And now for something completley different :)

[houtslager]

another build
well with all the other builds being posted, I feel its time I started posting a few pics too
Well the foundation was dug half by hand and half by machine.
Size - 6 x 5 x 1.5 m
hardcored poured and levelled by hand shovel
blinded out, then the fun started - a wacker plate to get a nice solid feel to it
Next job was the house foundation - bit ropey on moor ground so a corset was needed. Just a bloody big one 400mm thick 1.5 deep, gawd what a lot of sand/cement/hardcore went into that corset.
at the mo' I seem to have misplaced the floppy with those pics

So , now I have a swimming pool right next to my house.
Next mucky job is the foundations- I am trying to go green now, and will be using old tyres, filled with mud/clay.Each stack is 5 high, filled with this mix and hazel rods.
Then on top of these earth buttresses, go 6cm x 18cm x 6m joists then OSB for the sub floor.
Pretty standerd flooring eh now comes the curve ball

Walls are STRAW BALES, this should keep me snug and the neighbours happy.
AS the sound proofing and heat/cold insulation is the best per £.

So, here as some pics that I have not misplaced

http://i2.photobucket.com/albums/y14/houtslager/wipnewfloorforstudio001.jpg

http://i2.photobucket.com/albums/y14/houtslager/wipnewfloorforstudio-1.jpg

http://i2.photobucket.com/albums/y14/houtslager/wipnewfloorforstudio.jpg

 

[DaveL]

Hi HS,

I like the idea of going green, but have you heard the story about 3 little pigs? :wink:

 

[houtslager]

tell you what after it's been lime plastered your welcome to try it
even with a jet engine you'd be hard pressed to blow it over

 

[mel]

straw bales ????????????
so you wont be using a hotpot stove then ???

ive never given any thought before to a treehuggers workshop

 

[houtslager]

nah too small and I cannot cook a roast dinner on one BUT here
http://kaminoefen.alraundesign.de/product_info.php/products_id/69
well this is a different kettle of fish

 

[blurk99]

Hi HS,

are you building this in chipping norton or germany?

jim

 

[houtslager]

Germany, as its the only place in Western Europe where I could buy :? :roll:

 

[wizbongre]

straw bales ????????????
so you wont be using a hotpot stove then ???

ive never given any thought before to a treehuggers workshop

Hi all,

Just reading loads on this forum - really fascinating

Anyway, there was a house build featured on Grand Designs not too long ago that used straw bales for all of the wall insulation. Turned out really well.

Gareth.

 

[DaveL]

Hi Gareth,

Welcome to the forum.

 

[Inspector]

Hi houtslager

While some may tease you a little about using straw bales to make your shop. I won't.

I helped with the building of one about a decade ago at my fathers place. A house, 28' to a side (about 8.4m) on a slab with a rubble foundation, load bearing walls, conventional truss roof. Lots of hard work but they do have a special quality about them. He rarely put more than 2 or three loads into the wood stove a day to heat except for the coldest days in January / February when the mercury might drop to -20.

Biggest disadvantage over conventional framing is the lost space due to the wall thickness. About 1 meter difference from the inside/outside dimensions. A 5m x 5m shop isn't 25sq meters inside it's 16. Not as much of a problem for a larger shop because less of the percentage of overall area is lost to the thickness of the bale walls.

Are you building a load bearing wall type or an infill type? Reason for asking is that the bales we used were not equally dense, so some areas compressed and settled more than others resulting in the edge of the roof dipping in one or two places. To avoid that it's easier to frame the walls. Also when you finished making the window/door frames for a small building, you're almost to the point where if you had added a bit more wood to the heights of the frames and made some corners, the wood becomes structural and would use the straw for insulation only.

I look forward with interest to watching your shop go up. I don't have any pictures of the house I helped with to share as I didn't have a camera then.

 

[Paul Chapman]

Anyway, there was a house build featured on Grand Designs not too long ago that used straw bales for all of the wall insulation. Turned out really well.

If that's the one I'm thinking of, it was built by a bloke who worked in a forrest and he built the house mainly from natural materials that were available in the forrest. One of the most impressive houses I've ever seen. If they repeat the programme, it's well worth watching :wink:

Cheers

Paul

 

[woodbloke]

Paul - I've seen a few of those programmes and all of the builds have been very impressive - Rob

 

[wizbongre]

Anyway, there was a house build featured on Grand Designs not too long ago that used straw bales for all of the wall insulation. Turned out really well.

If that's the one I'm thinking of, it was built by a bloke who worked in a forrest and he built the house mainly from natural materials that were available in the forrest. One of the most impressive houses I've ever seen. If they repeat the programme, it's well worth watching :wink:

Cheers

Paul

That's the very one. He used the bales just as insulation, not as part of the structure which as you say was all hand built from the local wood stock.

Gareth.

 

[Paul Chapman]

If I remember correctly, he obtained permission to build the house because he worked in the forrest and had lived there for a number of years in an old shed. But I don't think he will ever be able to sell it unless it's to someone who takes over his job as well. Fabulous house, though, built using all the old-fashioned construction methods 8) 8)

Cheers

Paul

 

[wizbongre]

If I remember correctly, he obtained permission to build the house because he worked in the forrest and had lived there for a number of years in an old shed. But I don't think he will ever be able to sell it unless it's to someone who takes over his job as well. Fabulous house, though, built using all the old-fashioned construction methods 8) 8)

Cheers

Paul

That's right - he produced charcoal so was dependant on the land for his business. He ended up with some covenant that tied the business, property and land all to him. So his kids would have to continue the business or lose the house - he wasn't allowed to sell it!

I love our country's planning laws!

Gareth.

 

[Jake]

He ended up with some covenant that tied the business, property and land all to him. So his kids would have to continue the business or lose the house - he wasn't allowed to sell it!

I love our country's planning laws!

That sounds like a incredibly sensible planning decision to me. Otherwise instead of woodlands, we'd have whole estates of ex-charcoal burner's houses.

 

[houtslager]

hi Inspector, I am building a load bearing SB extension to the house, hopefully I'll have all the foundation tyres filled this time next month and all the joists in and flooring on.In the crawl space under the floor I am installing a 5000l water butt made from 5 1000l IBC's these will be for rainwater collection and grey water storage.
These IBC's will also be supporting the joists & floor

[/img]

then fventually the SBs go onto the floor.

 

[houtslager]

welll finally the hole is closed, by that I mean I have installed the water butts all of 5000 l, thesse will supply the toilets and washing maschine,

here is a close up of the joists, which are 8 x 16 cm, on 650mm centers to allow for 600mm EPS sheets between to insulate the floor.