Nice way to end the day
Don’t you love it when that happens?
October feels like it is moving quicker than lightning. It is one of my favorite months, no doubt. A much-needed rainstorm ended with this visual feast just the other day.
The work season is rapidly coming to an end…
Pug waits for the base plaster to dry
It is with somewhat reluctant, but inevitable feelings that we have just recently moved into our new straw bale house. I say ‘reluctant’ because really, the house is not complete. However, it has always been our intention to move in for winter, before the house is finished. Generally speaking, however, I highly advise people against moving into incomplete shelter, if they can avoid it.
Wow, this event looks really awesome, and best of all, it’s not that far away — and it’s free! Handworks is a (hand) woodworking tools event from May 24-25, 2013 in a beautiful restored timber frame dairy barn in Amana, Iowa. A bunch of hand tool companies will be there with their wares (and door prizes), and there will also be a presentation about that killer (and now famous) tool chest of H.O. Studley. Really cool. I definitely plan to attend.
Get the details here: http://handworks.co/
Here’s a handy tool if you happen to be building a living roof, or doing berm or other earth construction work. This topsoil quantity calculator will give you an idea of how many cubic feet / yards / tons of soil you will need for your project.
A 30×35 roof at 4″ thickness will require 3.5 tons of soil, for example. Wow.
In building our own green roof, it has been fun to try to guess how many buckets full of dirt we will need to use… although it’s pretty hard to keep track.
Well, there ya go!
Our group of volunteers help load soil to make our living roof
Yesterday was our very first day loading soil onto our rooftop, the official start of building our living roof! We used a pulley system to raise 5 gal. buckets up to the roof, where a line of people passed buckets to be dumped. It was a whole lot of fun, and it’s great to see our green roof coming to fruition, after weeks of scheming. Here’s a little bit more about our process.
Just like building our cob house, the living roof of our new straw bale house has had me thinking for hours, and quite honestly, it’s been the source of a lot of anxiety throughout the entire construction process. Gobcobatron was a breeze in comparison — single story, low to the ground, not a huge roof area.
But how would we get soil 25 feet up into the air, at the highest point on our new building? What type of soil, and how would it stay in place? Would people feel safe scampering all over the roof if we did the work by hand? Just how many hours of work is this going to take, anyway?
Our white oak balcony deck floor
It is a wise idea to incorporate rot resistant wood into your outdoor deck, balcony, or porch designs, to ensure a long-lasting, safe floor for years to come.
I’m happy to be finally decking our west balcony so that we can stand out there and enjoy the view, without worry of falling through or tipping the temporary piece of plywood we’d been using. We obtained some nice white oak boards for the occasion, as the balcony is exposed to the weather. The balcony is actually under a substantial roof, but nevertheless, with our occasional big storms, moisture and rot is a concern. We chose thick 1.5″ white oak wood for its excellent rot resistance and strength.
Wow, the last week has been a stream of constant web hiccups … but I think it may finally be over. I hope. Fingers crossed. Prayers prayed. If you are reading these words, then everything may very well be okay. Let me know if you’ve had or are having any problems reading The Year of Mud. Updates may now commence on their previously programmed schedule. Goodbye 404s and 500s.
By the way, check out that flatbread… oh boy, I love cooking a good flatbread on our rocket stove. These were actually supposed to be wheat tortillas, but this one got carried away and had an identity crisis, becoming more like a pita than anything else. It’s amazing what you can do with a little flour, water, and yeast or baking powder. Dry or with butter/oil, and there are about 50 variations in there depending on heat, dough consistency, temperature, etc. Mm.
After such a successful 2012 Natural Building Workshop season, we are already planning for next year’s courses and classes in 2013. Planning is an on-going process, and especially for events like these, we need to organize very far in advance to be able to structure our time and energy for the year. We hosted one Straw Bale Workshop and a Timber Framing Workshop this year, after months and months of planning, but next year may see the introduction of newer courses in the offering. I’m excited about the possibilities, and I hope you will be, too.
Things should be ironed out over the course of the fall season (the best time to do anything, really). Keep an eye peeled. Sign up for our email list to be the first to know.
I gotta say, it is somewhat bothersome when people have skewed perceptions & expectations of maintenance. Some people love the idea of “maintenance-free” homes, or gardens. However, I think that life is nothing but maintenance — literally everything, from your own body, your mind, to the environment in which you live (your house, your property, your vegetable gardens, etc.). Everything demands upkeep, demands sustenance and nourishment, demands a level of working functionality (ideally). Some lifestyles, of course, have a much higher percentage of “maintenance work” than others — farming, for one.
But since this is a blog about building (and building naturally), let me say a few things about the issue of building maintenance.
What Strawtron currently looks like
This is where progress on building our new straw bale & timber frame house currently stands. A year from now, the house should be fully plastered and lime washed, with a lush green roof, and a big ol’ greenhouse full of plants growing on the left side of the house. Imagine me on a hammock on a balcony, snoozing, too.
Hi there, I’m Ziggy. In 2008, I launched The Year of Mud while building my first natural home. This blog is a collection of personal stories and experiences building with clay, straw, and wood over the past 15+ years. A few of the things that get me fired up are natural plasters, timber framing, & Japanese architecture. Since 2012, we’ve been hosting Natural Building Workshops so you can learn essential skills to build your own natural home.
