KTWU Sunflower Journeys 2002 - 1506A - Straw Bale Homes
Produced by Amanda Shaw
Narrator: When David and Monika Eichler first decided on a new home, they weren’t quite sure what they were looking for. David Eichler: We knew we wanted to do some form of green building, something that would be very sustainable. So we looked a lot of different styles of “green” building and talked with a lot of people who did specific types of green building. After working with an architect to design a floor plan of a house that we thought we would like, we took it down to see a friend in Eureka Springs, Arkansas. She looked at the floor plan and said, ‘you know, this would be beautiful as a straw bale home.’ That’s where we looked at each other and thought, ‘Well, maybe that’s the route then that we need to do.’ Narrator: The Eichlers purchased land on a hillside just outside Lawrence. They now had a place for their new house, but one problem remained. Monika Eichler: We had heard of straw bale, but it was just one of these concepts where, A.) how are your ever going to find a builder in Kansas? David Eichler: I was talking to one of our neighbors who’s a farmer. He said, ‘You know, I heard somewhere on one of the AM farm talk channels out of Manhattan that there’s some guy who’s crazy enough to build homes out of straw.’ Narrator: That ‘guy’ was Rod Harms. Rod and his wife Stephanie Rolley--both landscape architects--built their home using straw bales. But initially, they kept the idea to themselves. Rod Harms: I guess the first couple of years we didn’t talk too much about it. We’d had enough of the jokes and the three little pigs. But, part of it was it was our pioneering effort, and while we had researched it, we weren’t sure. But now we’re very confident in its technique and that it’s a valid building technology. Stephanie Rolley: We also learned, as we started to study it more, that this was style of construction that had been used a long time ago, starting in Nebraska and in the prairie states in particular. So, we found out that it had made sense to people over a hundred years ago and that it still makes sense today. Rod Harms: True Nebraska-style straw bale was actually stacking the bales like you would a bale pile on the farm, where they were the structure. The exterior walls were stacked like bricks then a plate was put on top. The roof system was tied to the bales. Rod Harms: We elected to build what’s called a post and beam structure. That I describe as a picnic pavilion, if you go to a park you’ll see the vertical columns and then the horizontal members, the beams that support the roof structure. So, the houses we’ve built have been on twelve-foot bays and have the columns and beams and posts and then a roof-truss system to hold and support the roof system. The bales then are just infill between those columns. Rod Harms: This is our solution for a window box—the element that bridges the bale load around the actual window opening. And it starts to show how thick the wall is, and then the actual window will be placed inside. The width of the box gives you the option to set the window to the interior of the house or the exterior. We like to often put them at the exterior so that you have a window box or platform inside the house. Narrator: With walls two feet thick, the primary benefit to straw bale construction is of course insulation. But Rod and Stephanie have found other reasons to love straw bales. Stephanie Rolley: Well, the insulation of the walls means that it’s warmer in the winter and holds the heat. It’s also cooler in the summer. The type of insulation we didn’t expect but have been really pleased by is the wind insulation. It’s a very quiet home because the walls are so thick and they buffer a lot of the wind noise you get out here on the prairie. Rod Harms: The straw wall with cement stucco on the outside are all porous surfaces. Air does move in and out. If you spent time in a straw bale house, I think you’d notice the air quality. Narrator: Rod Harms is so confident of straw bale construction, he’s building more homes in the Manhattan area. And he agreed to consult with the Eichlers in building their custom-designed home. Monika Eichler: The vision that I have for where I live, I would say it’s sixty-five percent done. There’s quite a bit of cabinetry to still have installed, and we have white walls because we can’t paint until May. The plaster needs to cure. So, that’s just one of the blessings of a straw bale home: having patience. David Eichler: Straw is not identical, you know, every bale is not a mirror image of the one that proceeds or follows it. And so once they stack all the straw bales, they can come through with a chainsaw and just cut everything, so everything is fairly even. We felt strongly that we didn’t want to have that. As you look at the interior walls and especially the exterior walls, you’ll see there’s a lot of undulation. And that’s done purposefully and by design. It could be much smoother than it is, but we really the like look so that when you get up close and look at it, there’s no question in one’s mind that there is straw behind it Monika Eichler: Part of building a new home, you have this sense that, ‘oh, it’s going to feel like a new home, and it’s not going to have the expression of an old home and the feel and character of an old home. With straw bale, now granted, I don’t think anyone’s going to walk in say, ‘oh, this is a really old home’, yet, it does have a lot of character. David Eichler: We also have the ledges where we get to have plants. So, it makes a wonderful way to sort of bring some of the outdoors inside. Narrator: Most straw bale homes include a truth window to prove to guests and potential buyers that the walls really are made of straw. Narrator: For their truth window, the Eichlers turned to an artist friend for inspiration. David Eichler: We told him we’d like some kind of door that you might find in a fairy tale. We love it. It has the Latin word for truth over it. Monika Eichler: This home is really quite the dream. We feel privileged because I know a lot of people want to build a home and not everyone gets the chance, so we feel blessed about that. This transcript is from KTWU's Sunflower Journeys 2002 season. A production of: |
