At first glance, straw bales can appear rather out of place on a construction site. Once the given structure is complete, however, their purpose is quickly understood. Secure and unique, straw bale buildings and walls stand as beautiful testaments to the potential of green design.

We designed and built a professional office with clean straw bales as infill between modified post and beam construction in Albuquerque in 1996. The soundproof and insulating qualities of the eighteen-inch-thick straw bales, as well as the aesthetics of the smooth plaster at the deep window wells and door openings, addressed our client's goals of privacy and comfort alongside a busy street.

Services

Sims General Building, Inc. can construct straw bale homes and light commercial buildings in the major Albuquerque area.

We also advocate straw bale construction of freestanding exterior walls. Here in the southwest, landscaping is often enhanced by hardscaping, which includes high walls. Straw bale walls perform excellently in this regard, as they go up quickly and perform well over time. Their unique character is well-suited to the southwest garden.

• The majority of straw is burned as a by-product of agriculture. When we use it as a building material, we lessen pollution and our state's dependence on timber.
  
• The R-value, or thermal resistivity, of the average straw bale wall lies between thirty and fifty. For reference, the R-value of an energy efficient 2x6 wall sits at fourteen (higher is better). Straw bale walls are known to cause lower heating and cooling bills.
• Tests have shown that plastered straw bale walls withstand fire twice as long as conventional wood-frame walls due to the density of the packed straw.
  
• The superior acoustic performance of well-built straw bale walls means outside noise stays outside
  
• SGB purchases its straw bales locally, which means lower transportation and energy costs

Resources

If you want to learn more about straw bale construction, check out these resources:

• TheLastStraw.org - Quarterly journal and informational site dedicated to everything straw bale
  
• Strawbuilding.org - California Straw Building Association
  
• NMAC 14.7.5 - New Mexico Straw Bale Building Regulations
  
• Straw Bale Construction Wikibook - Wiki compilation of useful info
  
• Sourcebook for Green and Sustainable Building - Provides recommendations and educational information for straw bale construction and environmentally-friendly building methods (by greenbuilder.com)