Agricultural Adaptation Research Co-op

Typical Straw Bale Structure
748mm
356mm
967mm
The units can be quickly and cheaply made
almost entirely from donated and salvaged
material: reclaimed wood and nails (or preferably,
screws) from disassembled coastal homes, and
donated straw bale from the farmers themselves.
They provide a high RSI value and hence can be
used to beef up the thermal performanc of the
envelope in nested spaces where required. A
quantity of “spare” modules should be built up
and stored, which can be used to create a warm,
ad-hoc emergency shelter space in the event of
a severe storm or flood that displaces coastal
residents.
Modular Wall Construction
Each wooden frame module is sized to hold two
stacked, compacted straw bales of standardized
dimensions (14” x 18” x 36”), compacted. Straw
will be filled in the gaps between the two exterior
frames to reduce thermal bridging across the
wall. Construction consists of simple stacking
andscrewing together of units to provide vertical
and lateral bracing.
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Finishing
Once the stacking is complete, each side of the
straw bale wall is enmeshed with a metal lath and
coated with a thick layer of cement plaster. This
helps waterproof the assembly and gives it a 2hr
fire rating. Since these straw bale assemblies are
not bearing loads from the truss or exterior roof
structure, there is no danger of a an isolated fire
in a strawbale-enclosed room from threatening
the sudden collapse of the overall roof through
the rest of the building.