Strawbale Building Workshop 

San Diego Sustainable Living Institute

http://sdsustainable.org/event/straw-bale-building-workshop/

Join us for a weekend hands-on workshop in straw bale building. Straw bale buildings have been around for over 100 years and have proven to be a versatile and ecological building material. Building with straw bales has many advantages over traditional stick frame construction:

• Energy Efficient- means less heating or cooling is needed
• Sound Proof- thicker walls absorb and block sound
• Fire Proof- three time the fire resistance of conventional homes
• Environmentally Friendly- straw grows rapidly faster than wood and is usually treated as a waste product by the farming industry.

This workshop is the perfect introduction in learning how to build a small structure with straw bales.Participants will learn how to build an accessory structure without a building permit by keeping the footprint under a certain square-footage. This is perfect for those wishing to add a shed, art studio, office, chicken coop, or any other small outbuilding. Over the course of the weekend, participants will:

• Learn how to build a simple foundation 
• Stack, cut, and trim bales
• Allow for doors and windows
• Plaster a straw bale wall
• Learn many other tricks of the trade

The building will be a post and beam structure with straw bale infill using all recycled and reclaimed materials. Once complete it will house a composting toilet.

This workshop is held in Spring Valley at Valley View Farm and the address will be sent out to registered participants. This workshop is taught by Don Axe who has over 20 years of experience in building beautiful homes including dozens of straw bale homes.