Tiny House Blog

I first saw an EcoNest about 9 years ago and had forgotten about them until now. Even after studying many different types of natural building, Econests will continue to be one of my favorites because of their beautiful resemblance to the curves and colors of nature. They might even be the closest way to be outdoors without stepping out the door.

EcoNests are simple, elegant, and healthful handcrafted dwellings that welcome owner participation in their construction. Continue Reading »

Alternative Energy, Passive Solar House for Sale

The house is located in Tres Orejas, a small off-grid community one-half hour west of Taos, New Mexico.

Situated on 3/4 acre of desert oasis with outstanding 360° panoramic views of the Sangre de Christo (Rocky Mountains) and Picuris mountain to the east and southeast, with BLM National Forest to the west.

Casa Juan Galan- a beautiful, small (one-bedroom), green solar-home.

Operates on sustainable energy: passive solar heating, off-grid electrical system with solar panels (photovoltaic) & wind generator electricity.

It’s an energy efficient, energy independent home.

Rain and snow water harvesting-catchment system provides water (about 4500 gallons of storage).

Heat is by passive solar and a wood stove. There is a small propane heater in the new bathroom. I have left for extended times in the winter and the house plants have survived on the passive solar alone (temperatures around 0 F).

The house is almost 800 square feet.

There is a tank house and next to it, a covered pavilion—which would be fairly easy to convert to a studio/office, maybe a bedroom.

The house has one bedroom which is a combination studio/bedroom with a queen size loft and a small Mexican chimenea (freestanding fireplace). It has a space to hang clothes. A clothes closet is being built as part–but separate from–the new bathroom. There is another small sleeping loft (or storage space) next to the kitchen.

The bathroom is “in process” and the septic system will be finished in the spring (or ASAP, if sold soon). I have been using a “sawdust flush” composting toilet. The bathtub is large with a shower. All greywater is designed to go to trees and plants

The hot water heater is an Aqua Star propane on demand. I have installed an efficient propane refrigerator. The kitchen stove is a small trailer-type propane 3 burner with oven. The kitchen and dining space are separated by a bar. The living and dining area are separated by a partial wall with an arch.

There are two water holding tanks. One is about 3000 gallons and is in the tank house. The other is 1500 gallons and is freestanding. Roof collection for snow and rainwater is about 890 square feet.

A solar haven with High-Speed Internet, Internet Phone and good Cellular reception available.

A great recession-proof, real estate deal!
For sale by owner Asking: $115,000
email: JuanGalan(at)TresOrejas(dot)com

Visit website for more photos and details.

by Kent Griswold (Tiny House Blog)

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In the stark Texas desert, Patricia Kerns has created a small community of tiny adobe, cob and straw bale houses that snuggle right into the landscape. I first saw Patricia’s tiny houses in the book, Little House on a Small Planet. The dome of the Egyptian style guest house caught my attention because of its interesting shape.

Patricia’s little community in Terlingua, Texas contains six tiny houses: the main straw bale house, a shower house, a bathroom, the guesthouse, a cob studio and a new project which will house a kitchen and a great room.

The cob studio was built with Ianto Evans of the Cob Cottage company. The main straw bale house is a 20-foot circular structure. Her power comes from several solar panels and a small wind turbine. She uses rain catchment systems for all her water needs.

She also has a video tour of her property and its tiny houses on her website.

Her love of natural building and small spaces came along at a time when she wanted to simplify her life and become financial independent. She took a straw bale building workshop, and she realized that with her new skills, she could leave her career as an attorney and build her own house.

A few years later she is living the life of her dreams in the desert. She was kind enough to send me her story of building a life of simplicity:

Journey to a Small Place
By Patricia Kerns

My journey to a small place began with a simple desire for financial independence. Several years ago, having taken an early retirement from my employer, I needed to find a way to live on less than half my previous income. I had to reduce fixed expenses, especially mortgage/rent. The crazy idea that I could find some cheap land and build a house with my own two hands began to work its way into my head.

How crazy? I was a 40-something attorney whose only experience with a hammer was to hang diplomas. Being a woman, I didn’t even have a high school shop class to draw on for experience. I ran through these and other pertinent facts every day, trying to get the goofy idea that I could build my own home out of my head. When the chance to attend a workshop on straw bale building came along, I jumped at it, thinking I could finally prove to myself that I couldn’t do it. But that workshop, and several succeeding ones, made it clear to me that my dream could be realized.

I began planning my home’s design as I sought land and prepared to move to a small desert community in the Big Bend area of southwestern Texas, far from any big cities. As I developed the design, I realized that the house would have to be very small if I wanted to complete it myself. I originally considered this to be a limitation, one I was willing to accept. I imagined that my standard of living in terms of creature comforts would decline, but accepted this as a small price to pay to free myself from the burden of a mortgage. I got some excellent advice at one of the workshops I attended: record the amount of time I spent in every area of my home for a week. I was living in an 1100-sf home when I conducted this experiment. I was amazed to find that there were two rooms in my home where I rarely set foot. I realized with a shock that the primary purpose of those two rooms was to store furniture that I had only purchased so those two rooms wouldn’t be empty. This was a happy realization, since all I had to do to cut my space needs in half was to sell furniture!

I sold every piece of furniture I owned, had multiple garage sales and made a few deposits to thrift shops. After two months of shedding stuff accumulated over twenty years, I packed what was left into a 10 x 6 U-Haul trailer, hitched it to the back of my truck, and headed for Texas. I had never felt so free in my life. It was the first sign that living in a small space wasn’t going to be the dip in standard of living that I had imagined.

I spent the first three months in Texas camping out of my Suburban in the National Park while looking for land. This was a good start to my new commitment to minimalism. In January 1998, I moved onto a piece of unspoiled desert land halfway between the communities of Lajitas and Terlingua, Texas. I erected a 16 x 16 foot army tent, built a composting toilet and solar oven, set up a solar shower and camp stove, hooked up some solar panels for power, and I was living in the lap of luxury.

It took about two months to get my foundation built and the straw bale walls up, just in time to have a place to get out of the severe winds that whipped across my land in February and March. I had no roof, no windows or doors, and no floor, but I had a comfortable place to sit and read or play my guitar while the winds howled by “outside.” I could never before have appreciated such a humble shelter. It seemed like heaven to me.

I spent six months finishing the exterior, roof, door and windows, then moved into the house while I finished the interior. I had designed a space that included a bedroom, a small computer nook, and a larger sitting room. The design was a circular space trisected into three areas. Between the three areas, instead of building walls, I built shelves that pass through so they can be utilized from either side. This gave me a great deal of storage in a small space. The bed is a futon on a plywood board that flips up to reveal storage. I also designed a built-in sofa in the sitting area with storage underneath. I learned a lot about effective use of small spaces for storage by visiting numerous trailer sales lots and observing their use and design of space. All of my interior furniture is built in, using cob (unformed adobe) and scrap wood.

I decided not to have the kitchen and bathroom in the main house, but rather to leave them for a second project. I haven’t regretted this decision, and continue to be happy cooking on a camp stove or in a solar oven, and using a camp shower and composting toilet. The climate here is quite mild, so this might not be feasible in a more northern location. I learned to live with so little during my journey here that every addition now seems like an unaccountable luxury.

The most beneficial consequence of my decision to build small became apparent as I networked with other self-builders. I was able to complete my home in the same amount of time that many people used to build larger structures, but using much less labor. This allowed me to like the home and continue to like it as I worked. I never felt overwhelmed by the process. My little casita and I have remained fast friends, and I have nothing but good memories and good energy invested in my home.

As it turns out, there was no lowering of my standard of living – not in creature comforts, not in any other way. I have learned to be greatly appreciative of every little comfort, and I enjoy what I have now far more than the four times as much that I used to have. My home and possessions serve me and shelter me, and are never a burden that require more than I am willing to give (such as a 30 year mortgage). I am well on my way to becoming sustainable on this land and a small home is part of what allowed me to see my way there. Now, when I am inside large enclosed spaces, I feel lost, disassociated and adrift. I wouldn’t trade my casita or my experience of creating it for a mansion any day.

Note: I wrote the above article five years ago. Since then, I have completed a small bathhouse of adobe and a small office building of cob. In addition, I have a large shade building (one day to be a kitchen/living room – if I ever think I really need it…) by which I catch enough water for my needs. I remain mortgage-free, and have no utility bills. Visitors stop by occasionally and say “gee, isn’t it HARD living like this?” I’m not sure what they mean, but I guess it’s that I have a composting toilet, cook outside and have no television. I think back to when I had all those “luxuries” in my life, and what it was costing me to sustain them. No, it isn’t hard!

By Christina Nellemann

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There is something feminine about straw bale homes. The warmth, curves and color of these natural spaces act like a hug when you walk in the door. While these profiled straw bale homes are small rather than tiny (most are around 400-800 square feet) they were envisioned, designed and built by women that I feel epitomize the beauty of the straw bale house.

Most followers of strawbale building and other natural building techniques know of the Canelo Project and Athena Swentzell Steen.

She and her husband Bill run this small non-profit organization that is dedicated to the exploration and development of living systems, including growing food and building homes that creates friendship, beauty and simplicity.

Straw bale cottage at the Canelo Project

Interior of straw bale cottage at the Canelo Project

Their latest book is Small Strawbale, which covers everything from building walls and open shelters to small and exquisite homes built out of straw bales.

Carolyn Roberts also wrote a book detailing the trials and triumphs of building her own straw bale home outside of Tucson, Ariz. A House of Straw: A Natural Building Odyssey profiles the challenges of passing her county inspections, the issues of building a house as a single woman while trying to raise two children, and the wonders of creating her own space and the friends she made along the way. Her website breaks down the cost of each part of the building process, and her total for the home (land not included) came to approximately $50,000. Because of the thick walls and use of passive solar, her electric bills average about $35 a month.

Interior of Carolyn Robert's straw bale house

Caroline Coalter Wilson built her house, Paca de Paja, to also serve as a small bed and breakfast. She works at the Arizona-Sonora Desert Museum and runs the B&B part time. She was previously a park ranger and naturalist with the National Park Service and has written several publications on natural history.

Paca de Paja

I really admire these women who have tackled the building process from the ground up and utilize the beauty of natural products in their homes. More information for my fellow female dreamers and builders can be found in the book
The House That Jill Built.

By Christina Nellemann

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There are a lot of myths out there about straw bale construction. There are people who will tell you that homes built with straw bales will encourage rodents and other pests. They may also warn you against the high likelihood of fire in a straw bale home. Perhaps they would even go so far as to suggest that straw bale houses cannot hold their value over time. The naysayers are around, and that is not likely to change anytime soon; however, you can find out the facts for yourself by watching this video below.

Don’t rely on those who would speak false information as if it were truth. My goal with http://www.StrawBale.com is to get the truth about straw bale construction in front of as many people as possible.

httpv://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BkWQnQ70wVQ

The above video is a short clip about the myths of straw bale construction. It quickly sums up some of the biggest myths. Like those mentioned above, and counters them with facts about the reality of straw bale construction. At the end, there is a 3 minute (or so) slide show with music through some beautiful straw bale homes. I hope you enjoy it.

About the Author
Andrew Morison is a licensed contractor specializing in straw bale and green construction. He has shown thousands of people how to build their own straw bale projects through his comprehensive series of instructional straw bale, concrete foundation, and plastering DVDs. You can check these out at http://www.LearnStrawBale.com.

Recently I have had the opportunity to review Ted Owens Guidebook and DVD - “Building With Awareness.“

Green designer and filmmaker Ted Owens has spent much of his professional career in the field of energy and resource-efficient design. Award-winning filmmaker and designer Ted Owens guides you through the entire construction process of building his elegent and energy-efficient straw bale home. Building for efficiency requires more than just using straw bale for insulation in the walls.

It is the entire house design the will prevent overheating in the hot summer months and high energy bills in the winter. Building With Awareness shows you how to look at the big picture and choose the proper materials and design parameters to insure your home is both comfortable and beautiful.

Beautiful design is a green building principal that is just as important as energy-efficiency. This video and book looks at a home as an entire system – the layout of rooms and windows, the materials chosen for specific areas, and how the home relates to the angle of the sun. All have a dramatic impact on how well the home performs. This video is packed with green-design and construction techniques from professionals working in the cutting edge of home building and design. Many of these concepts add nothing to the construction cost of the home, yet can save the homeowner thousands of dollars in utility bills.

Housebuilding seems complex until you break it down into simple components. By breaking the design and construction into separate elements—each one flowing into the next—the process becomes easy to understand.

Straw bale walls are like working with the oversized blocks that you used as a kid. Once you see the step-by-step demonstration by straw bale expert Stefan Bell, you will know that building your own home is within your grasp. Stefan is not only a master at his craft of straw and mud, he is also engaging and entertaining. Ted’s enthusiasm for straw bale construction is contagious. Learn each step of code-approved techniques for straw bale construction—stacking, noching around posts, window installation, code-required proceedures, how to split straw bales, plaster and stucco preparation—the whole works.

In the adobe section, Ted shows you how to build walls out of mud bricks. Placing thermal mass walls (thick, heavy walls that can absorb and store heat) within your highly insulated exterior walls, is very important—and sometimes overlooked in green building. This will greatly improve the efficiency of any straw bale home. This home stays cool and comfortable inside, without the use of an air-conditioning system, even in the hundred-degree heat of New Mexico. It does this by taking advantage of the local climate and by using adobe thermal mass walls. If adobe is not available in your area, either stone or brick can be used.

This home generates 100% of its own electricity. Wiring and electrical work for straw bale and frame construction are demonstrated by solar energy expert Joe Yarkin. Joe, when he is not working on electrical wiring for straw bale homes, is installing large photovoltaic systems in anarctica for the National Science Foundation. He brings a passion and knowledge of alternative power systems to this video. Joe wires this straw bale and adobe home for both a conventional and photovoltaic electrical system.

Stefan Bell also hosts the sequence on using an all-volunteer crew to apply the first coat of mud to the home’s walls. He demonstrates mud mixtures, application techniques, the use of tools, and additional tips and tricks. Nothing will get you up to speed faster than by watching Stefan go through the entire earth plastering process. By the end, you will want to get your hands dirty yourself. It’s fun!

The finish coat of earth plaster is demonstrated by author and master-of-mud, Keely Meagan. She wrote the original book on earth plastering, “Earth Plasters for Straw Bale Homes”. Keely will show you how to obtain a beautiful white earth plaster finish in a variety of colors—even if you have never plastered a wall in your life. She will show you how to mix the earth plaster and what tools to use. When finished, you end up with a beautiful, paint-free surface on your walls.

In the Guidebook and DVD, you will learn how to install a rainwater cistern, how to construct a rubble trench foundation to conserve concrete, and how to place your windows to maximize solar gain. You will learn how to make small spaces appear larger, and how to make the best use of the space you have.

The purpose of the Guidebook and DVD is to educate, inspire, and give you the confidence to build your own home using a variety of green building materials. This video is an engaging journey through green-home design.The Guidebook and DVD will appeal to both the casually-interested and the professional builder. Whether you are ready to start building or are just interested in the concepts, this video will inspire you to create a living environment that is truly a pleasure to live in. It will be the least expensive tool you buy for saving money in the design and construction of your home.For those of you interested in building a tiny house using straw bales, I would hightly recommend this Guidebook and DVD. You owe it to yourself to at least look it over. Go to the Building with Awareness website now.

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If you are interested in straw bale construction you will want to know how to finance it. Andrew Morrison of StrawBale.com has written the following article that covers this topic. Enjoy!

Financing Your Straw Bale Project

One of the most difficult aspects of building with straw bales may be finding money to finance the project. Conventional lending institutions do not like to take big risks when lending their money. Something that is outside of their comfort zone is very quickly turned away. This has plagued straw bale builders and our clients for years. In order to be successful at acquiring funding from conventional sources, it is important to understand the common reasons banks site when turning down loan applications for straw bale construction.

Can’t Find Comparable Sales

Because there are not an excess of straw bale homes in most communities, banks can easily say ‘sorry’ simply because of this one issue. It is important to push the banker and/or the appraiser a bit further on this point. Comparable sales are exactly that, comparable. Bankers will tell you that straw bale homes are too unconventional. Great! Now you have found access to your appraisal homes. Anything that is considered unconventional is now a comparable sale that can be used for your appraisal. In most markets, this will include log homes, rammed earth, cob, structural insulated panels (SIP), other straw bales, adobe, insulated concrete form (ICF), and anything other than a simple stick framed building. Don’t let them get away with telling you there are no unconventional buildings in the area. The appraiser and banker only need three comparable homes. Do your own research to find them if need be.

Too Unconventional

This is the biggest shell game the banks have. They tell you one thing when they mean another. It is so easy for them to say something is too far outside of their comfort level. After all, how can you argue with that, it’s their comfort level, not yours? The truth is, you can argue with that and you can win. A banker once told me that when you hear this, what is really being said is that you do not have enough capital to back up the loan. The same banker said he would loan me a $1 million to build a home out of matches if I had $1 million in the bank to guarantee the loan. Of course, if you have the money to build with in the bank, you probably won’t be out looking for a loan; however, you may be able to find someone who does have the money. Friends, family, and private investors are everywhere. Find someone to guarantee the loan and you will get your financing. Perhaps a family member will gift you the signature for free. If not, you can offer a small interest rate to the private money or family money lender. They do not have to put the money in an escrow account, simply have it available if you default on your loan. Their risk is not that high and there are ways to minimize their risk even further.

Closing Dates Are Important

The date of closing on a loan for the purchase of land and the construction of a home is very important. This may not affect you as much as it does the next person who wants to finance straw bale construction. Let’s say you are buying a piece of land and intend to build a straw bale home. If you get a bank loan just for the land and close that loan before you build, you are not setting a precedent for the next comparable sale. If you buy the land, hold it in escrow, build your home, and then close escrow, you have created a comparable sale for the next person building with straw. The reasoning is that construction loans do not generate comparable sales. They are not considered sales, but rather straight financing for construction. If, however, you tie the construction to the purchase of a piece of property, you then create a sale of a straw bale home, even if you built it yourself for yourself. The more people who do this, the easier it will become to build with bales.

The Homes Are Uninsurable

Another great myth worthy of its own article! If a banker tells you that you won’t be able to insure the home and therefore they cannot give you a loan, you can confidently tell them that they are actual incorrect. Just like the banking industry, this is a snag for straw bale home builders and owners, but it is not a permanent snag. There are companies all over the United States that are willing to write home owner policies on straw bale structures. They can be hard to find, but they do exist, and they are reputable companies. In fact, there are companies in Arizona that actually discount premiums due to the high fire resistance of the structures! Do your research and you can successfully insure your home.

When All Else Fails

If you still struggle with financing and/or insurance after employing all of the ideas you can conjure, you still have one last hope. If you are building an infill straw bale structure, you can change the wording on your building plans to eliminate the words Straw Bale. Very often it is simply the words that get the bankers stuck and not the reality of the home. If your plans say “Post and Beam frame with cellulose insulation” you are telling the truth and lowering the red flag words “Straw Bale.” If you are building a load bearing structure, consider your walls to be a masonry unit. The new engineering shows that the structures are strong enough on their own to resist lateral and out of plane shear stresses with the proper construction. Therefore, your bales become the base for the masonry unit. The plaster, bales, and wire mesh constitute the masonry assembly. Work on your verbiage and this will minimize the red flags as well. Consider the difference between: “Load Bearing Straw Bale Wall” and “Approved Engineered Masonry Assembly.” Which one would you approve without question? This has been the technique employed for years. I would like to see people move away from it and be straight with the type of home they are building. Nonetheless, the immediate reality of your situation may dictate that you need to use this tactic. If so, fine. After your home is complete, the reality for the next person will be different as you will have created a conventionally funded comparable sale to help them along their way, as long as you time your closing properly!

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ABOUT THE AUTHORAndrew Morrison is the founder and owner of A. C. Morrison Construction, LLC, a company specializing in straw bale construction. Andrew has a passion for straw bale construction that is matched only by his desire to teach his knowledge to others. Andrew is the creator and builder of the Straw Bale Village, a community of 15 straw bale homes in the National Historic Landmark City of Jacksonville, Oregon. He is a skilled, licensed General Contractor (CCB License #161204) with experience in designing and building both conventional and straw bale homes. Andrew has owned A. C. Morrison Construction, LLC, since 1996. Andrew received a BA degree from Hampshire College in 1995 for Glacial Geology. He also has a degree in construction technology. Please visit his professional web site at: www.StrawBaleConstruction.net

Straw bale works extremely well with timber frame construction. It is a great infill for tiny houses and small cottages. Andrew Morrison of Jacksonville, Oregon with his company at StrawBale.com has designed the neatest little cottage using these two elements.

This peaceful little cottage is perfect for the do-it-yourselfer who is interested in learning about building with straw bales, or for anyone who is looking to have a cozy peaceful retreat space added to there homestead.

It has passive solar capabilities built right in, and of course incredibly insulative walls. The stamped concrete floor can collect solar energy during the cool winter days through the large south facing windows and radiate it into the space at night. The design also presents many round elements such as rounded walls and windows and an open beamed arched ceiling that look to capture the organic qualities inherent in straw bales. An electrical plan is included on the floor plan and it features a lighting element along the ridge beam that absolutely drips with warmth.

The Sunset Cottage is a small yet cozy 200 square foot structure elegantly designed. It is very spacious inside with a large window seat and areas that can accommodate built in features such as closets and beds. It has a beautifully curved open beam ceiling that gives the space a “open” feeling. It is relatively easy to build and is a great way for someone interested in building with straw bales to create a nice art studio, meditation space, or guest house.

If timber frame and straw bale is of interest to you do yourself a favor and look this one over. For more information on this cute little cottage go to: StrawBale.com

Interior Sunset Cottage

Interior Coach Bed

Sunset Cottage Ceiling