Sustainable Building: Straw-bale Eco-Architecture

Featured on Planet Green and “The World’s Greenest Homes” TV show, Kevin Edwards’ 3000 square foot straw-bale constructed home is beautiful, green, more affordable than traditionally built homes, and packed with amazing eco-features. Located in Scottsdale, AZ, this modern straw-bale house includes a saltwater swimming pool, recycled windows, ceiling accents made from recycling the delivery pallets from the work-site, a cooling tower inspired by Middle Eastern architecture, custom energy efficient refrigerator, and a re-circulating pump for instant hot water creation.

This straw-bale construction is straw bales encapsulated with metal lathing and then covered with stucco. The huge cooling tower uses a mister at the top with gravity pushing the mist down and providing what Kevin says is fifteen degrees of cooling! Kevin also incorporated the natural texture of the straw into the ceilings of the children’s rooms to create a noise-dampening affect.

Most popular in the Southwestern United States, straw-bale homes are built from the byproduct of the cereal grain industry (not to be confused with hay) and offer outstanding temperature and noise insulation, fire and termite resistance, and structural durability. They are also inexpensive to build with bale costs for a 3,000 square-foot home like Kevin’s running about $10,000.  If you are willing to live simply and use recycled materials, beautiful straw-bale homes can be built in their entirety for well under $50,000. The total cost of Kevin’s home was not disclosed.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hl1-5dexnD0