benefits of straw
Excellent insulation— plastered straw bale walls have an insulation rating of R30-35
- Plastered straw bales have a Class A fire rating—straw bale walls offer a 2 hour fire wall. This is the level of protection required by codes for stairwells in high-rise buildings.
- Easy to install— large “building blocks” stack easily
- Beautiful deep window sills— good for window seats and growing plants
- Uses a “waste” product— most straw in the United States is burned creating a high particulate pollutant. Enough straw is burned in the US every year to build 2-3 million homes.
- Sequesters carbon— the carbon absorbed throughout the straw’s growing cycle is sequestered in the wall rather than released into the air through burning.
How do you cover a straw wall? Straw bale buildings, like other natural buildings, need to breathe. Apply a lime and clay plaster to both interior and exterior walls for a beautiful, healthy finish.
- Offers a water resistant coat that allows the wall to breathe.
- Resists insect and rodent infiltration.
- A softer plaster than cement stucco making it a nicer surface to the touch.
- Acts as a carbon sink for the life of the house as the lime absorbs carbon from the air turning to limestone.
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