PART THREE
The first layer of cement stucco is called the scratch coat. We used a mix of two parts cement, one part lime and five parts sand. We reinforced the door and window areas with diamond lathe. Chicken wire was "sewn" to the bales with twine and a metre long bale needle. The scratch coat is the thickest coat of stucco. In the space of one afternoon, our friends had the job done. And all they asked in return was pizza and beer.Thanks to our dedicated group of friends, the brown coat was applied the following day. The brown coat is a similar mix, but has a slightly higher sand content. We made a two-piece "barn door" and installed a prefabricated window. The door looks great and fits the rustic theme of the cabin.
Later, we added two coats of stucco to the inside of the cabin, so at this point, any critters who might have made their home in our bales are forever entombed!The final coat! The third layer of stucco was a thin colour coat. Having attached diamond lathe to the gable ends of the cabin, the stucco now reaches all the way to the peak of the roof. We added pigment to the mix to add some warmth to the stucco, which dries to a much lighter colour than shown in the above three pictures. The interior of the cabin has a nice smooth, sponged finish, accentuating the subtle (and some not-so-subtle!) curves. On the ceiling, we installed OSB (oriented strand board) on top of a good thick layer of "Roxul" brand insulation. There's no point having highly insulative walls if the roof is not insulated too. We caulked any remaining cracks in the woodwork, and then painted the ceiling.
Outside, we primed the roof (which due to its recycled nature, originally came in several shades of grey), then painted it Tremclad green. We added, and painted, soffits and facia to finish the roof structure, then nailed in metal eavestroughs and downspouts, complete with rain barrel for water collection. The concrete floor of the cabin was finished with plywood, then stained and varnished. We added our "truth window" ... a small frame, attached to a small un-stucco-ed area of wall, through which any doubting visitor can see the straw "inside" the walls. Although we didn't "wire" the cabin, we located a GFCI protected 110v electrical socket located just outside the door, so with a small electric heater, we are able to keep the cabin toasty warm on those cold winter nights! Finally, a deck was added to the front of the cabin, linking the completed Straw Bale structure with our recently completed yurt.
The entire project has been a great learning experience. Without any previous building experience we realised that with a little determination, anyone can build their own Straw Bale structure. If this info has been of any help or inspiration to you, or if you have any questions, please drop us a line!
