World’s First Strawbale Council Houses: A pair of semi-detached three bedroom council houses in Waddington, Lincolnshire.
Designed by Kuba Wihan and Barbara Jones whilst at amazonails and built in partnership with Taylor Pearson Construction for North Kesteven Council in 2009/10. Built for £103,000 per house above foundation, excluding balcony and porch.
In this NBS video, Barbara explains the various preparations made before the first bale is secured to the ladder plate and the process of laying the wall begins in earnest.
The role of render as both an aesthetic waterproofing and a strength-giving material is discussed; including experimental evidence from the BRE.
As well as explaining other key considerations, the programme compares the cost of building a typical three-bedroom straw bale house, to that of building using traditional materials.
Research by North Kesteven Council in 2013 proved the houses are ‘an energy-saving success’