Straw
bale construction is in the midst of a remarkable revival across North America.
And a visit to David and Ann-Marie Warburton’s unique, three-year-old post and
beam straw bale home explains why. The two-story, three-bedroom 2,475 square
foot Warburton home combines high energy efficiency, low environmental impact
and serene simplicity on 3.5 acres in the Hockley Valley, an hour north of
Toronto, Ontario.The home suits the family’s lifestyle and desire
to live more in touch with the earth. Their treed property includes 600 feet of
frontage along the beautiful Nottawasaga River and provides plenty of room for
two kids and a new litter of puppies, as well as two home offices. David is a
self-employed garden designer/ builder and Ann-Marie telecommutes from her home
office for Bell Canada.
The couple’s first exposure to the use of straw
construction was in New Mexico. Says David, “We were in a restaurant and got
chatting with the owners. They were renovating the old building and had said,
‘Come upstairs...we’ve got something to show you.’ They’d torn off the walls and
discovered straw behind them.”
Sometime later, straw as a construction material
re-entered their lives. The Ecology Retreat Centre, Ontario’s premier source of
straw bale building workshops, is located just down the road from their
property. Attending a Permaculture event there, they met architect Linda
Chapman, who has been actively involved in straw bale construction since 1993.
She has designed and built many straw bale homes across the country and, with
the help of CMHC, has published two reports of research findings on straw bale
walls.
The Warburtons knew they didn’t want to build a conventional
house on their property. So when Chapman suggested straw bale, they researched
it and were pleased with what they learned. “There were no rude surprises,” is
how David describes it. “We looked at logs, but found it to be more challenging.
And straw bale hasn’t disappointed us. It was easy and efficient. And the house
has a wonderful solidity. It is cool in summer due to its
mass. And it’s quiet.”
Construction began in July 1998 and the family moved in
just before Christmas that year, with some interior finishing still to be done. For those
who worry that unconventional houses may be difficult to finance, it’s important to
note that the Warburton house has a conventional bank mortgage and regular home insurance.
Anne-Marie acted as general contractor for the project.
She had experience self-contracting a conventional home but had never been involved in
building with straw. She admits, “I had read a book and seen a video, but had no
hands-on experience with straw bale construction. That, in retrospect, was a mistake.”
The local building inspector happened to be interested in old building
techniques. So he quickly became knowledgeable and supportive. He even sent some
volunteers to help raise the walls.
She contracted with professional builders for the
foundation slab, post and beam construction and interior walls, wiring and plumbing.
“But once the frame was up”, she laughs, “the builders told me to call them
when the walls were in place! ...So I had to scramble to find volunteers to raise the
straw bale walls.”
Fortunately, she says, enthusiastic volunteers
“came out of the woodwork.” She says there are people who donated their time
that she and David don’t even know, so they’ve never been able to thank them.
Marveling at how everything fell into place, she says,
“One day [straw bale builder, author of the book Straw Bale Building, and presenter
of a workshop at the Natural Life Festival] Peter Mack drove by and asked if he could
help. He was a great help for the straw bale part.”
Due to Anne-Marie’s inexperience with straw bale
building, she had scheduled insufficient time for the baling and wiring process. What she
had thought would take one weekend took three weeks and led to some volunteer scheduling
hassles. But eventually, in November of 1998, 20,000 square feet of stucco was applied to
the walls in three coats.
The house is as much a work of art as it is
environmentally careful. The wood on the first floor was milled on-site, from the trees
cleared for the house. And the rest came from a neighboring property. The well-worn
floorboards on the first floor were recycled from the 100-year-old former Planters Peanut
Factory in Toronto.
One of the major concerns of potential straw bale
builders is getting a building permit. Peter Mack and his partner Chris Magwood say in
their book Straw Bale Building that “if you are committed to building with bales, you
will be able to get a permit for a soundly designed structure.”...although they admit
it could take some time and hassle. Since the Warburton’s home was designed by an
architect and engineer, Ann-Marie says they weren’t too worried. And she was right.
The local building inspector happened to be interested in old building techniques. So he
quickly became knowledgeable and supportive. He even sent some volunteers to help raise
the walls.
With finishing touches continuing to be provided by a
variety of local artisans and David’s professional touch shaping the gardens, the
Warburton’s straw bale home is a work-in-progress that suits their lifestyle and
personalities in a way that it’s doubtful a conventional house could.
