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There are so many things to consider when choosing a plaster for your straw bale home. I will try and give a quick outline here to get you all started on the path of inquiry. There are many decision to be made and many details to consider in those decisions. The plaster is the thing that most people will notice about your home, so make a wise and well informed decision. Below I will give some pros and cons to Clay, Lime and Cement based plasters. The decision is ultimately yours and I hope the information below will help you decide.
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I have written in the past about performing the steps necessary to identify the perfect place to build your house. I fully believe in the importance of knowing your site before you build or even design and furthermore suggest that the information regarding your building site be premiere amongst the important data you work with when designing your home.

As a contractor, there is another site evaluation that needs to happen. Consider that the building plans are already complete and the siting of the house has been decided. What else is there to consider about site evaluation?
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Photo from: www.marathonthreadscanada.com

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Below is the link to the recent briefings on Straw Bale Construction at the US Congress. This is a potentially exciting move for the world of straw bale construction. I know how slowly the US Congress can move, so my breath is bated although not held!
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I just wanted to let you know that I am on a short vacation in Victoria, British Columbia and so will not likely get out a post about how to be your own contractor this week. I planned to write one before I left, but did not find the time between packing and finishing up my seven day intensive straw bale workshop. I will write early next week, if not before. Sorry for the delay!

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I was recently told about some new research results that have posted on line. The Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation (CMHC) has just published a report authored by Colin MacDougall called “Effect of Mesh and Bale Orientation on the Strength of Straw Bale Walls“. The report is co-authored by Chris Magwood and Steve Vardy.
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The June seven day intensive straw bale workshop has come to a successful end. We had a great time together and built a wonderful structure that will become a play room for my kids (bonus of being a baler’s son!). Once again, friends were made and a good time was had, albeit with me cracking the whip in the background! I will take the month of July “off” and will be back at it in August with another seven day workshop in Jacksonville. I still have room for you if you want to learn and have fun with us.

(PICTURES TO COME)…..

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Photo: R Critchley Plastering

One. All he or she has to do is pick up the phone and call the plastering company!

Okay, that may be an overstatement of how hard it can be to work with a subcontractor when they plaster, but it at least makes my point. Plastering is an art. It is physically exhausting, and long winded. Without the right skills and a large enough crew, you will be setting yourself up for failure and frustration.
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The following post is somewhat outside the current series on How To Be Your Own contractor; however, I thought the content of the email question was good and the answer would probably serve more than just the man who asked it.
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HI ANDREW, I HAVE THE THREE PART DVD SET AND WAS TRYING TO GET THE BALL ROLLING ON A 30X35 GARAGE W/ BONUS ROOM ON TOP.THE INSPECTOR WANTS TO SEE ENGINEERED DRAWINGS. WHAT DO I DO? THANKS FOR NOW. ROB
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As mentioned in the last post “Part I: Know What You are Getting Into” you must know how to read plans for them to be any good to you. This is true for you as a builder and as a paper contractor. Subcontractors are not perfect and any one of them can misinterpret the plans on any given day. Your ability to catch those mistakes is paramount to the time line and ultimately the bottom line for your home.
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It is important that you fully understand what will be expected of you as you embark on the contracting of your home. It is easy to say that you want to contract the construction, but there is a lot to the process and perhaps the biggest pitfall is not knowing what will be asked of you before you start down that road. Nothing will create more worry in your process than realizing you are in way above your head only to realize it is too late to do anything about it.
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Photo courtesy of Midland Contractors, Inc. (www.midlandinc.com)

Over the next few weeks, I will be posting information about how to be your own contractor. Many of the people I talk to are excited about the idea of contracting their own house; however, once they get knee deep, they start to realize why contractors are paid the money they are. There is a lot to being a quality contractor and simply having a desire to do it yourself is not enough to do it well. You will need knowledge and a plan. You will need forms and contracts. You will need help.
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I partly wrote this post just so I could use this picture, I admit it. Cool picture though huh?

I often talk about knowing where your bales will come from before you start building and even designing so you can know the dimensions and how those dimensions will affect your process. I cannot say how important this is, now more than ever. The number of available bales in the Northwest is so small right now, that I am struggling to find enough for my June workshop! I have contacted all of my sources and have managed to find some bales, only to run into the dilemmaFr1skyandS of how to get them here. Fuel costs being as high as they are, it is hard to cost effectively transport bales any distance.
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You’re not the only one. I have a poster on my wall that I want to share with you all. It helps me remember that when my first efforts fall short, I don’t give up. It gives examples of influential men who started out as less than influential! I have always been someone who pushes through to the end and strives to accomplish what I believe is possible, no matter how hard it seems in the moment. Building a straw bale house in an area where no bale homes exist can be an uphill battle. Building inspectors, plan checkers, permitting departments, insurance companies, and more can stand in the way of your dream; but only if you let them.
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Hi Everyone! Check This Out:

For those of you who did not know, I am happy to announce the third Seven Day Intensive Straw Bale Workshop of the year. We completed the first two workshops in April and May with great success. If you are interested in attending the workshop, please sign up at www.StrawBaleWorkshops.com. The dates for this workshop are June 16-22. We will build a beautiful bale structure and will also eat, play and celebrate the summer solstice (one way or another). Below are some comments from previous workshop participants to give you an idea of the impact this work has had on them.

The class was not only informative but you gave out a personal energy that I still feel today. You help me believe that anything is possible as long as I believe and with a little sweat. Thank you for all that you have given to me.

Roy T. Fort Meyers, FL
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For years the only way to start a roofing job was to buy some cheap 3 tab roofing shingles, cut off the tabs, and lay the strip as the starter course. This was time consuming and wasteful. As with most corners of the market, someone who had to do this everyday for their living decided to create something better. The answer is the starter shingle roll shown above (made by Corning). This product speeds installation so much that I can’t believe I ever worked without it. The steps to installing a composition roof are outlined below and the inclusion of the starter shingle roll is a welcome addition in my books.
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A StrawBale.com reader just let me know about a blog post she wrote on her own blog. I found it interesting and I believe the topic is very important. If you are interested in checking it out, please click the link below.
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Okay so it’s not poop, but it could be from a distance! These are piles of extra concrete. It is so important to calculate materials well and it could be the straw that breaks your back. (I meant that pun by the way.) In this case, the truck load was too short for what the concrete guys had planned so they had to thin the slab thickness which ultimately left a lot of excess concrete. To be sure, I mentioned it to the concrete company owner. It was a mistake, and not a huge deal because the slab in this case was so small; however, on a big job, the little extras can run wild quickly.
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For a long time my crew has used the same mesh (2″x2″ 14 gauge welded wire mesh) to shape windows and door openings. It has always worked very well; however, I have recently found a situation in which that can be quite problematic for the plastering process.
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