Meet The Host - Delta CO
This September, we will be in Delta, Colorado, to learn straw bale construction skills together at Ken and Kristin's retirement dream homeplace.
They made the leap last year to leave the hustle of city life and lean into a farming lifestyle where their four-legged family members could join them. A homeplace where they could watch the sunset over the mountains and get their hands in the dirt each day.
A Little Background...
This home incorporates the labor-saving Buck and Box Beam Infill straw bale wall system. Similar to the Post and Beam Infill wall system, this system reduces the need for bale notching and is designed to match the size of the bales locally available.
This structure is where thoughtful design and DIY meet beautifully to support reduced labor while still providing the much-loved features of straw bale construction—excellent insulation and that 'feel' of a bale home.
Close to one of Colorado's prime agricultural towns, their homeplace is at the edge of one of Delta's iconic hay farms with a view that inspires an extra morning coffee to enjoy it. It was this view, along with passive solar influences, that decided them on the home design and orientation on the site.
Attention to those details was even more important to them as they have chosen to remain 100% off-grid. Their home is powered solely by a photovoltaic system, which they've located on their recently built horse and storage barn.
View to the mountains with afternoon monsoons lit up!
From Your Host
What drew you to building a straw bale structure?
We wanted to build a home, not a house, that would be energy efficient, warm in the winter and cool in the summer, and have aesthetic appeal. We’ll depend on solar energy, so building an efficient strawbale home made the most sense to us!
What would you share with someone else who is thinking of building their own straw bale dream home?
Think about location, location, location, and orientation to maximize your design. Plan ahead. It takes longer than you think to get it all together. Work out as many of the details as you can far in advance if possible. It will pay off big time in the end.
What did you find useful as a workshop participant that you are excited to bring to participants at your workshop?
During the workshop that I attended last year I enjoyed being a part of each step of the building process. Getting involved in each phase of the project was invaluable as I knew I was going to be “hands on” with my own build this year.What are you are looking forward to about your workshop?We look forward to sharing our excitement for the building of our strawbale home and meeting other like-minded enthusiasts of this construction method.
What are you looking forward to about your workshop?
We look forward to sharing our excitement for the building of our strawbale home and meeting other like-minded enthusiasts of this construction method.
Ready For Hands-on Learning?!?
Ready for hands-on learning and to enjoy the process of building something meaningful in a community of other strawbale folks? Then this might just be your workshop.
See the Current Workshop Schedule for more details.
Curious about becoming a Workshop Host? Learn more here.
Hands-on skills take time to master, and these workshops are a great opportunity to get more time to learn and build on your skills with Timbo’s expertise to help you on your way.
