Stumps and slab in place!

In the last weeks, we have battled the typical winter weather in this part of the world - rain, wind and some more rain. Not the ideal weather to work on the foundations but against all odds, we have now managed to put in the stumps for the house and the slab for the garage. We are using concrete stumps (not the most environmentally sound solution) as the land can get really wet and there is also a creek and a dam nearby that could overflow in really bad weather.

There have been other hiccups as well (as expected with building). The first load of concrete mix we received was not of the highest quality and set really quickly, making it hard to adjust the stumps correctly. We also had problems with some broken stumps, so the whole of last week Peter has been pulling, digging and jack-hammering some of them out (not an easy job even in good weather).

Despite the problems and delays, we are really enjoying the project and look forward to starting the next phase - building the floor!

At Last We Begin!

We are building a small strawbale house, designed to be environmentally sensitive where possible.

Why build with straw? The construction itself uses a timber frame to provide structural support, with strawbales as infill in external (and in some cases internal) walls. The strawbales will be coated with an earthen render (clay, sand and lime). Straw is a natural material that has excellent insulation, fire resistant (when rendered) and sound proofing properties. We also like the look of strawbale houses with their natural curves and often warm earthy colours.

Strawbale construction is becoming increasingly popular in Australia, having had a significant history in the United States (strawbale houses were first constructed in Nebraska in the late 1800s). There are active communities of strawbale builders in many other countries.

After two years in planning, we have now started our exciting and challenging journey as owner builders. In the last six days our empty field has been transformed into a building site. Here are a few photos of our first days.

8am Friday 25th July 2008 - an empty field.



3pm Friday 25th July 2008 - driveway complete, garage site excavated and house site in progress.



Tuesday 29th July 2008 - set out almost complete.