Our Straw Bale House

We Had Some Visitors

2012-01-04T01:49:00.000-08:00

When I was down the coast I found some frogs round our tank! They did not get in but it was cool to see them round. 2 white ones and the one in the pics below. Liked seeing them there, my little croaking friends for a few nights.

Final Touch-Up with Water Harvesting

2012-01-03T19:48:00.000-08:00

Well, I went down just on New Years to finishes up our down pipes and fix up the others. Have a good little system on there now with leaf catchers etc. Should collect a small rivers worth off the roof now!

We have a new kitchen!

2011-12-03T23:11:00.000-08:00

Well, we now have our kitchen. Thanks to Ebay, we found this one, bid on it and picked it up for $800. Not bad, but we had to dismantle it and then take it down, from Sydney to Wallagoot. After trailer hire we will be up for about $1,000. This includes all appliances!

Dad helped me take it apart on the Friday while Mum looked after the kids. Took us most of the day but we got it done!

On Saturday, Mel & I drove the kitchen down to the property and it is now waiting in the shed for the walls to be fixed and tiles laid and then we will fit it in. We have a real good idea how it will fit and think it should look good. Photos of finished product to come!

Here is what it looked before we took it out and in the shed awaiting our magic!

Eaves

2011-11-30T22:50:00.000-08:00

We had Ian Gowing back on site to do our eaves. We are really happy we persisted in raked eaves. I think they look great and Ian did a great job!

Cool Site

2011-11-10T19:13:00.000-08:00

Been finding some cool site and really nice people. Here is one really cool site to check out.

http://www.strawbale-building.co.uk/

Another Visit

2011-10-22T18:26:00.000-07:00

Headed down the coast, with the kids, to meet a few people on site and a bit of cleaning. Been run about so not much time for a tidy up of late. Had the plaster in who fixed our outside areas & plastered them. Spoke to Ian Gowing about getting our eaves put up & even managed to sell some let over bales and tidy up a bit.

Finished Plaster on Undercover Areas

Shed Before & After. Bethany helped me with sweeping

Start of the Vege Patch

Trav helping with drive way & straw spread as mulch

Outside Ceilings & Gardening

2011-10-03T16:46:00.000-07:00

I went down over the long weekend with Mum, Dad & the kids to batten the outside areas and a bit of extra work. We got up all the battens & insulation for the front and back areas. We also sheeted the front alcove. Mum got the window sills sanded and a 2nd coat of seal on them. We also did a massive tidy up, moving pallets to form a compost area, spreading more straw over the batter which should break down with all the rain we have had, cleaning up timber piles, rubbish dumps and laying bales out to stop water flowing toward the house. Have a few pics for this trip, just so much getting done and so much to do!

Inspection & Testing Carried Out

2011-08-29T18:28:00.000-07:00

Frank Thomas came out to have a look at our mold problem on our internal walls. We are a bit worried because he said he'd never seen anything like this before. He took some samples off the walls and they are being sent to a local lab and also a lab over in Germany for testing. We are hoping to get a result soon so we can keep moving on. Will keep you posted on the test results and remedy.

We Are Painting

2011-08-28T17:09:00.000-07:00

We went down with the kids over the weekend to have a look at our new plastered walls. They look amazing. Really makes it look like a home. We went down to paint the walls with there first coat of sealer. Really comes up great with just the undercoat on the walls. Trav & Beth helped out with the painting & Trav also helped with taking some photos. The kids really kept them selves entertained and were really excited to see their rooms and the house as they had not seen it with the internal walls up. Thanks to John at Inspirations Paint & Accessories for supplying our paint. Very friendly people out there that know there stuff. Thanks.

Biolytix Blunder

2011-08-18T16:04:00.000-07:00

If you have been keeping track of this blog for long you will realise in the early days I would rate highly the Biolytix Sewage System. So much so, we went out early & purchase a system in full with free irrigation hose, a great offer & could not pass up. The Biolytix cost over $7,200.

At the beginning of this year, Biolytix Australia went into liquidation and we ended up loosing our system & our money. The thing that has upset me the most now is that the Australian leg of Biolytix was purchase by New Zealand Biolytix. They are now trading, in Australia, again. Same system, same name but no supply of systems or money back to anyone that lost out.

I really do like this system. I think it is the best going round but I do not like the Biolytix business ethic. I have contacted Biolytix NZ to see if they were going to help out the people, including myself, who lost out in this Biolytix Blunder but have had absolutely no response from them. If they are going to buy up the remainder of Biolytix Australia & then trade back in Australia, under the same name, then I believe they have an obligation to fill or refund orders lost. At least offer some sort of decent discount on a new system for people that have lost out.

There is no Biolytix news for me or the other customers that lost out any time soon which puts me up s**t creek without a sewage system!

Plaster Going Up

2011-07-06T15:30:00.000-07:00

Mel went to the property today to check on the progress of the ceiling going up, cornice's & setting of plaster. All looking good. Great to see the finishing surfaces in place. In a few weeks it should be ready for painting. Can't wait to see it.

We Are Starting Our Plaster Work

2011-06-22T21:17:00.000-07:00

Just wanted to give a wrap to Col Searston Plaster & Peter from Sapphire Plaster. Both of these guys so far have gone above and beyond with helping us on our house.

Peter has been out a few times delivering plaster board, showing us how to apply it on the walls correctly, delivery of battens & metal corners. Great guy and great service.

Col has also been out to quote, show us how to put up battens & insulation. He is starting next week, Monday, so cannot wait to see the transformation with the insulation, plaster board & cornicing up.

Thanks again to Col Searston Plastering & Peter at Sapphire Plaster for all your help so far.

We've Got Mold

2011-06-12T20:49:00.000-07:00

When I was down this weekend we noticed that all our walls have got mold over them. Every single one. Not sure what is going on with it as it must have been introduced into the mix. We are not quite sure how to fix this but will let you know how we do when we get an expert opinion. If anyone has heard of a solution please let us know. Here are some photos of what is looks like.

Ceilings & Window Sills

2011-06-11T20:17:00.000-07:00

Went down over the weekend to start putting up the battens & insulation for the ceiling. Did not get it all done but about 80% there. Our plasterer, Col, is going to help out with finishing off. We had some help over the weekend from Frex & Dad with the ceiling and Mum with the window sills. Corine helped out as well as we had a problem with the walls. Here are some photos.

We Have Water

2011-05-28T20:38:00.000-07:00

I went to the property today to set up a few things in preparation for the long weekend. We are putting up our ceiling battens for the plaster board to go up. We have insulation purchased at a really good price, Thanks Ebay & the failed government insulation scheme. While I was waiting for the plaster dude to come and show me how to put them up I managed to get all out fresh water lines run to the house ready for connection to hot & cold water service. I also had a nice surprise of our water tank being full too. No more tankers needed.

We Have Solar

2011-05-09T16:10:00.000-07:00

We have our solar panels installed now. I was down over the weekend to fix the power box and watch them finish our solar panel install. Also fitted the last do lock too so the house is now locked up. It's nice to be generating some power too.

We Have Locking Doors

2011-04-09T02:30:00.000-07:00

Went down over the weekend to finish of some electrical work, run some phone line & fix our front door locks. We got these front door locks sent from the US as you cannot buy this style in Aust. The brand is Kwikset and they have a big range. Not that much to send over as well. I think it was worth the time and effort for these door handles. What do you think?

Catching Some Rain

2011-03-27T17:32:00.000-07:00

I went down this weekend to hook up some of the down pipes & fix up some drainage around the outside of the house because of a water build up issue we have had. Got the drainage sorted but only managed to hook up about 2/3 of the house as I ran out of time. At least if it rains now we can collect some water. Hoping to get down and hook up the rest of the piping in the next few weeks.

The Finish Is Getting Closer ???

2011-03-07T20:19:00.000-08:00

Got photos of the window sills & final internal coat of clay render. I think it looks really good but allot of money spent. Everything is getting closer to finishing too. Holes are getting filled & covered, locks getting put on, finishes are presenting them selves. Mel has been whipping the crew to put in some hard, long & tough days down on the property. I'm proud of her efforts & what she is putting in to this build. See for your self.

Finished Strawbale Walls, Window Sills & Wood Panelling over the top of the back door

We are glad Frank Thomas, Strawtec, has finally finished. He & his associates have done a good job but not sure it is worth the massive amount we have paid so far. Not sure I'd hire him again if I had my time over, just because of the massive strain on our budget among other things.

Gyprock & Plastering

2011-02-28T14:30:00.000-08:00

Over the past few days we had been putting up the Gyprock. Peter from Sapphire Plaster measured up, supplied, delivered & gave us a 30 min run down on hanging the Gyprock. They are a good bunch of guys at Sappire Plaster. Worth a look if you are doing any ceilings or walls in the area. Stud Walls & Gyprock going in.

Internal Walls & Render

2011-02-25T22:39:00.000-08:00

Mel, Dad & I have been down to put these internal walls to bed. They are coming together pretty quick after the first stuff up. My fault for not listening to everyone I suppose. Here are a few photos of us putting up noggins etc. Thanks again so much for Mum looking after Travis & Bethany again & also Dad for coming down for the week to sort out the walls. We owe you allot for the help you have given us.

Stud Walls going in. Mel is a Pro with the nail gun

The roughing in of the electrical also went in. Thanks Frank (Mel's Uncle) and John for coming down at such short notice. Really good & quick job. Thanks again to John & Frank. Could not have done it with out you.

John & Frank running cables

2nd & Last External Render Coat

2011-02-08T17:02:00.000-08:00

Mel went down to help with the 2nd & last external rendering coats for about 10 days. We were trying to achieve both coats in the one go to move the house along. I came down in the middle to give a hand & with a few other odd jobs, not that I was much help. I think they were all keen to me go home & out of the way! Here are some photos below.

2nd Coat going on with pump. Mixture of Lime, Sand & Cement.

Netting is placed in for strength.

Our front entrance & exposing our timer posts that have been under cover for at least 4 months

3rd & final coat going on

Internal Walls Going Up

2011-01-23T17:23:00.000-08:00

Mel, Dad & I have been at the property over the weekend putting up the internal stud walls. Mum looked after the kids for us again, we owe them alot after this has finished. We were using 90 x 35 T2 timber. Marking out the walls from the plans and then dyna bolting the timber or 'bottom plate' to the floor. Then, using a plumb bob, marking along the roof trusses where the 'top plate' will go. Then, cut out your vertical lengths and 'skew nail' them in place. I heard a good tip before starting the verticals and that was to cut them a little longer than they need to be. They will jamb in-between the top and bottom plates and they are easier then to get square and secure. It becomes a one person job instead on one person holing while the other nails. Check out the photos below.

How About Those Windows & Doors

2010-12-31T16:50:00.000-08:00

Mel & I headed down to work on the house with the kids in between Christmas & New Years. Had a good time & got a few odd jobs done. Mel worked on getting the first protective cover on the windows. Really brings out a nice colour with them. Then we both got in and attached all of the window locks before having a great New Years.

Gee I can't wait until our house is built & we can get all the tradies, etc off site. I can't wait to live in our own, private space together as a family again!!!

2nd Coat Render & Our New Windows

2010-12-22T14:25:00.000-08:00

Mel went down again to help the builders with the 2nd coat of render. They managed to finish all of the inside but only about a 3rd on the outside because of the amount of render that has to be built up.

We also had our new windows & doors installed too. Ian Gowing helped us again. Really good job from a great tradie. Thanks again for your great work.

2nd Coat about to start

2010-12-12T14:58:00.000-08:00

Mel is traveling down on Wednesday to start the 2nd coat. Hopefully the windows & doors will go in not long after so we should be to lock up by Christmas. Will up-date photos as they come to us.

A little bit of Landscaping

2010-11-27T20:07:00.000-08:00

From the 25th to the 27th of November we were down planting some of the front batter of the property. Mel, Dad, Mum & I planted about 350 plants - Travis & Bethany pulled about 30 plants out thought. It was good to see them interested in getting dirty, not that many kids need much of an excuses to roll around in the mud!! All lilly pillies & boobialla. Should look good when they start to grow. We had plenty of mulch left over from all of the loose straw which was handy too. We also measured out where the internal walls were going to intersect to the bale walls.

Time to Let the Render Dry

2010-11-07T17:24:00.000-08:00

Well, what a busy month. It is hard to believe that exactly 1 month ago we had just a slab!!! Thanks again to everyone to get to this stage, we would not have been able to have done it without all of the volunteers, tradies & our families. We still have a way to go with fitting out and everything but to see a structure with a roof put a massive smile on our faces. Thank you!!!

Just the bare minimum jobs now until the 2nd coat goes on in about 3 weeks. Here are some progress shots show you the past month.

1. Starting of the Top & Bottom Plates - 8th to 13th Oct.
2. Up goes the window & door frames - 14th & 15th Oct.
3. The straw bale walls going up - 14th to 18th Oct.
4. Roof trusses on - 20th to 24th Oct.
5. Colorbond on - 27th to 30th Oct.
6. 1st Coat of render - 1st to 5th Nov.

1st Coat Render - Day 4 & 5

2010-11-05T17:16:00.000-07:00

On the 4th day they started on the outside of the house with a lime render. I came down with the kids on the Friday (5th Day) & we were very happy with the progress. It looks like a different house with the first coat of render now.

1st Coat Render - Day 2 & 3

2010-11-03T17:11:00.000-07:00

Over the 2nd & 3rd day the team finished the inside rendering with a nice clay render.

1st Coat Render - Day 1

2010-11-01T16:48:00.000-07:00

Mel headed to the property for this part of the build. I wish I could have been there but I had to work & Mel wouldn't want me there anyway. Mel said she really enjoyed her self and had a good time working hard with all the renderers. Here are a few pictures of the inside render going on after an intense hair cut of the bales.

On Goes the Roof

2010-10-31T16:31:00.000-07:00

As you can see over the last week the guys from Merimbula Metal Roofing have fitted our roof, which looks absolutely amazing.
Adam was an absolute champion. Him and his boys, as well as doing the roof, helped out with attaching the bottom flashing as well. This should stop any moisture creeping into the bales from rain & water hitting the outside walls. They did a great job. What is very note worthy is that Adam attached all the fascias & guttering & arranged the flashing job while he was on his way to his wedding in QLD. Thanks again mate & congratulations.

Also a big thanks to Chris Clements & Bluescope Lysaght Batemans Bay for the supply of the roof sheets & gutters. Chris was really quick with getting our order through & pushed hard for an early delivery as well. Thanks Chris & Bluescope Lysaght Batemans Bay.

Rendering Preps

2010-10-25T15:34:00.000-07:00

Today's job was getting the walls straight & ready for rendering. This involved beating the bales with the 'persuader' & giving the walls a haircut with the hedge trimmers. They really come up straight & clean after a bit of work, as you might be able to see. We also fit the electrical socket points as well. This was also a sad day for me as I had to leave site to come back to my 9 to 5. The house is now in the hands of Frank, heaven forbid, & the roofers who start on Wednesday, weather permitting!?

Roof Trusses - Day 5

2010-10-24T15:28:00.000-07:00

Today was just myself & the builder checking the last of the tie downs & the clean up & sorting out of all the good bales which went back in the shed for our next project. All looks good for inspection & alot bigger without all the bales around.

Roof Trusses - Day 4

2010-10-23T21:51:00.000-07:00

Today was my day off until in start to, lets say piss down with rain! I had the morning with Mel & the kids. We came home to have a much deserved arvo sleep when it came bucketing down. I jumped in the car and got out to site to help Frank & Hardy cover the bales just in time to keep them safe and dry.

Roof Trusses - Day 3

2010-10-22T21:49:00.000-07:00

Today involved getting the battens in place & allot of tying trusses down as well as preps for council inspection.

Roof Trusses - Day 2

2010-10-21T21:43:00.000-07:00

Our nice timber beams in place & our awesome view

Roof Trusses - Day 1

2010-10-20T18:51:00.000-07:00

Found a great builder to help us put up the trusses. Ian Gowing of Jellat Jellat was a great bloke to work with. He worked well with Frank on site, which I could only assume would be hard for any builder, but also did not mind me and Greg laboring for him. A good tip for keeping costs down too. The first day went smooth, as you can see from the photos.

Straw Bale Working Bee - Day 6

2010-10-19T18:47:00.000-07:00

Today the last of top plates on. Now its a matter of compressing the bales and screwing off to the vertical window and doors frames.

Compression is achieved by the steel compressions plate you can see across the top plates. The threaded rods are pushed through the ply skin and then through the steel plate. We then cut the excess off the threaded rod and secure, finger tight, to the steel / compression plate with a washer, spring washer & nut.

When all the compression plates are in place & we have cut off the excess rod we measure from the top plate to the floor in a number of points around the house. We then find the lowest point & then tighten down all other points to this measurement. For Example, our lowest point was 2865mm. So we tightened down every point to 2865mm making sure we were level across the top plate with a spirit level. This should get the top plates to an even and level height around the house.

Note: You should not progressively screw the plates down. Try and have as many teams as you can at different points of the house. This will stop pre-loading at one side of the house.

.. Now, this is the hybrid bit of the build. Where the window & door frames are coming through the top plates, next to the noggins, we screw or bolt through the vertical frames. This, therefore distributes the load onto the bales through the top plates and onto the frames which are connected to the bottom plates and slab. The excess off the window frames can now be trimmed off with a chain saw so they don't get in the way of the roof trusses.

Straw Bale Working Bee - Day 5

2010-10-18T18:43:00.000-07:00

Top plates still going up with last of bales. Roof trusses arrive

Straw Bale Working Bee - Day 4

2010-10-17T18:33:00.000-07:00

The walls keep climbing & top plates going on. Look at all the happy working bees.

Straw Bale Working Bee - Day 3

2010-10-16T18:13:00.000-07:00

Straw Bale Working Bee - Day 2

2010-10-15T18:31:00.000-07:00

Rained out. Not time for anything apart for a coffee or a sneaky beer!!!

Straw Bale Working Bee - Day 1

2010-10-14T18:23:00.000-07:00

Frame work going up

And Now the Fun Begins - Day 6

2010-10-13T18:20:00.000-07:00

Today, we started bolting down the bottom plates. From our engineering plans, we could not be greater than 900mm between noggins / bolt down points.

Before we start, at each end of the bottom plate we place a piece of 5mm fibro or blue board under the bottom plate. This allows a gap for any moisture in the bales to drain out.

Dad had manufactured some brackets out of recycled 5mm, 50 x 50 angle iron I found in a scrap metal bin. They were cut 90mm in length, same as the noggins on there side, the drilled and counter sunk to house a 14g 50mm batten screw. We then sprayed it with rust proof paint.

From each separate bottom plate we measured in 450mm from the ends & placed a noggin on its side. We then measure 900 from the centres of these noggins to get our next tie down point. We used 125mm 12 Ø Gal dyna bolts. This allowed 75mm into the slab, which was required from the engineer.

We then need to fill up with 20mm aggregate. Mel did a great job at this. The stone is in there to help with drainage of moisture.

And Now the Fun Begins - Day 5

2010-10-12T18:10:00.000-07:00

Bales arrive on site

And Now the Fun Begins - Day 4

2010-10-11T19:54:00.000-07:00

Today we continued with the top & bottom plates as well as getting ready for the arrival for all of the bales coming tomorrow morning. We also had a bob cat into clear up the site for all the traffic in a few days.

And Now the Fun Begins - Day 3

2010-10-10T19:54:00.000-07:00

Today, Dad & I got in and cleaned out the shed and carport for the arrival of our straw bales which are due in 2 days. It was a bit of a job but we got it done & was then able to continue on to finish the Top & Bottom plates. Here are some more progress pictures;

And Now the Fun Begins - Day 2

2010-10-09T19:54:00.000-07:00

Today we kept on with the top & bottom plates. Getting onto a bit of a rythem. I have discovered a great place to purchase all my timber from with the best bucnh of blokes to deal with. North Eden Timbers. If it was not for these guys I would have struggled to get as rar as I have so far. Thanks for your help and I am sure its not the last they have heard of me. I have some more progress picture below. Enjoy;

And Now the Fun Begins

2010-10-08T19:54:00.000-07:00

Well, here we are. Crunch time. I arrived last night and started some light preps for the guy to come and lay the ant capping. He arrived this morning and had it finished in no time at all. I got started on the top & bottom plates. Here are some photos on the progress.

Compression Plates

2010-09-19T19:54:00.000-07:00

We are slowly getting everything together now.

We have all the compression plates cut & drilled. He are some photos of them getting rust proofed.

Its kind of like watching paint dry!

All our timber is ordered, windows & doors have now been sorted out as well and looking forward now to the build its self.

Have been talking to Frank from Strawtec who is also looking forward to seeing how the build comes together and I am glad that I have his expertise on site for the workshop.

Still positions available for the working bee wall raising & rendering the week after as well. Hope to see you there.

2010-09-07T20:49:00.000-07:00

Remember, if anyone is interested in attending our Straw Bale Working Bee between the 14th & 17th of October please email us on stevomelo@yahoo.com.au.

Hope to see you there

Preperations

2010-09-04T19:37:00.000-07:00

Greg & I headed down on site again yesterday to do some work in preparation for our build / working bee on the 14th of Oct. Here are a few pictures to run you through;

1. Trenches dug for Electrical & Phone Line.
These will be installed next week

2. Water Supply & Storm Water Line
We ran both water supply lines as well as storm water to the house for two reasons;
1. Water supply, from our tank, during the build.
2. The storm water in the same trench for then the roof goes on we can fill out tank right away. We actually had a tanker deliver about 40,000L as well.

Preparing pipes for in the tank & first lot of storm water in

Storm water pipe in as well as 40,000L
(Doesn't look like much)

Covering pipes with river sand and now neatly covered.

3. Cutting of Drive Way & Drainage
The guy from Barkers excavation was great, could not have got a better guy to do the job. I was expecting him to take 2 or 3 days & he did it in 1 and did an exceptional job. Thanks mate.

Note: The lower 2 pictures area before & after shot after Greg & I used some of the many rock's we have onsite!

The Date's Set

2010-08-31T19:28:00.000-07:00

Good news. We have a confirmed date for our Straw Bale Building Working Bee. 14th - 17th of October which is Thursday - Sunday. It is in the Bega area, for those who do not know. I will be there for a week before putting up frame work and prep work for the workshop and also a week after for rendering and putting up the trusses & roof. We are looking for volunteers for our working bee and maybe a few hands for before & after the workshop. If you wish to come and attend please email us on stevomelo@yahoo.com.au. Hope to see you there!

A few Touch Ups

2010-07-31T20:17:00.000-07:00

Got back from the property today after 2 days away with Greg, a mate from Shellharbour. We finished off the shed roof & single entry door so we can store the bales when they arrive. Also attached all the compression rod joining nuts and covered them with saftey tape. You will also notice that all the form work has been removed now and the post stirrups are now in too. It was a very productive weekend. Thanks Greg & thanks to Melea for letting him out for the weekend.

Our Finished Roof
The Finished Door

Greg Helping with Nuts

Compression Rods with

Nuts & Safty Tape

Bad New for Recycled Products

2010-07-02T22:18:00.000-07:00

Well......the news is all bad for all the Doors, Windows & Timber we have purchased for the house so far. Basically the new AS3959 - 2010, after the Vic Bushfire's, has come out saying that we have to use one of 7 specific Fire Retardant Timbers (FRT) on exposed faces. Therefore all the recycled materials we have purchased are no good. We are in the process of quoting for new windows but specialty items like these tend to blow out budgets. Hopefully this won't push back any building progress.

We Have A Slab

2010-06-23T22:22:00.000-07:00

We finally have our slab laied. It has been a while coming but its now down. Boris has been great. He let us work with him laying the pods. This saved him a bit of time and, most of all, saved us a little money. Below is the steps taken to lay our Waffle Pod Slab.

Saturday - 19th June

Last of Plumbing in

Screeding Complete & Compression Rod locations marked
Note the white paint on the form work

Sunday - 20th June

Termite & Moisture Barrier down

First lot of Pods & Steel -
You can see Boris pointing out all of our mistakes

Monday - 21st June

All Pods in Place

Time for the 600 odd chairs

Tuesday - 22nd June
Council Inspection - No real interesting photos this day!!!

Wednesday - 23rd June

The Pour

Massive Delays

2010-06-03T21:37:00.000-07:00

We have had a huge delay with all the wild weather down Bega way. We have had down pores and high winds. The worst thing about all the rain is that none of our down pipes were connected to the tank!!! Have held up the plumber & therefore is now holding up Boris with finishing our pre-slab work. We are hoping that the plumbing can get installed later in the week. All we can do is wait & see if this weather gives us a break.

First Look at our Slab

2010-05-29T20:54:00.000-07:00

Went down to the property to meet up with a few contractors today. Boris has now profiled & formed up our slab. The plumber should start within a few days and then we will be back to work on laying our Waffle Pods & mesh, which I also took deliver of while I was there. The form work gives us a real good idea of the house size & layout now.

1. Looking to the South
2. Looking to the North

3. View from Driveway
4. A Whole Lot of Waffle

We have also had our tank back filled so we get a really nice view on top of our tank now, as you can see. This was one of our main purposes for getting the concrete tank was to sink it and have a nice viewing area to put a table & chairs on. To enjoy the view!!!

1 Shed & 1 Tank Please

2010-04-30T19:17:00.000-07:00

Mel & I, went to the the property over the last week to put up our shed. With the help of my Mum & Dad, Dad on construction & Mum looking after the kids, we managed to get the shed about 90% complete. Everything was finished apart from the Ridge Capping & guttering. We do at least have a lockable shed on site. If someone was to attempt to put up one of these sheds it might be wise to get someone in to do it, if you have the money of course. The instructions can be rather vague at times, which can chew up your time. At least its up!!!

At The Start

During the Build

The Finished Product

Our New Tank

We also had our new water tank installed. This is going to supply all our drinking and cleaning water. Its 140,000L which we hope should be enough. It is submerged so the top should make a good patio area too.

Slab Is Started

2010-04-19T22:51:00.000-07:00

The shed slab has been formed up now. Boris will be pouring tomorrow for Dad, Mum, Mel & I to head down for a week to put it up. We have also had confirmation that work on the tank has started. There should be plenty of photos to come in the next week or two.

TIMBER!!!

2010-04-12T22:47:00.000-07:00

Mel & I went down to the property to sort out some finer details before the shed slab was layed. We have to move it because of the rock. This should all be started next week sometime. Our massive hole for our water tank has also been dug. We had to also remove a few trees too. It is easy when you have the right equipment.

1 Stubborn Rock & More Delays

2010-03-31T02:20:00.000-07:00

During this week we found that we can get our shed slab poured on 300mm of fill. So we organised to get our tank excavated, by Ben Barker of Barkers Excavation, and to move the excavated earth onto the slab site. When I went down on site, the surveyors had pegging out our house which I marked out with marking paint.

We then realised that the shed & house would fit but there would be no physical way to drive a car in or out of our shed if we had to move the shed because of the rock in the way. Ben gave John a call who has a larger dozzer the Leon, 26 Tonnes vs 18 Tonnes. John had a look at the site and is confident that he can remove all of the rock that is in the way of our shed, he will have a go at this job around Wednesday 7th April. Hopefully we will have some good news by the end of next week. Ben is going to still excavate our tank site for Bega Concrete Tanks to install the week after Easter, at least we will have something underway. All progress on our house & shed slab is on hold until John gets on site and has a go at this stubborn rock!!!

With all the above said, when we see views like this it makes it easier to push on!!!

Trying To Get Things Started

2010-03-25T01:54:00.000-07:00

Today Mel & I traveled to the property to meet up with our concreter Boris, our plumber Greg, our excavator Leon & the surveyor Steve. Leon has said it is about as much as he can do with the site. We are still left with a large rock right where our shed needs to be and thinking about moving it to the left to get it off the rock area.

Boris still thinks it is a very rocky & un-even surface and will have to get in contact with the shed company about altering the shed slab.

The surveyor is going to be back on Monday to peg out the house. We are now toying with the idea to rotate the house slightly to have the edge of the house run along the cut line to give us more space where the rock is.

Hopefully everything will come together and we can get a start on our slab the week after easter.

Mel's Trip to the property

2010-03-18T01:37:00.000-07:00

Today, Mel went down to the property to meet with Leon & our drafts person Ken. We had a bit of a problem with a 'rock' that does not want to budge. Mel & Ken talked about house position if we could not move the rock and that we should get a surveyor on site to mark out the house position. Will have some better news next week.

Our Cleared Block

2010-02-28T18:08:00.001-08:00

Before

After

Its started. Leon was able to start clearing on Monday the 22nd of Feb. After about a total of 2 - 3 days work we are left with what you see below. It is great to see our veiw opened up even though it was a little sad to see all of the trees gone. All we hope is that the house we will be building will contribute 10x back to the environment than the trees that we have cut down. We will, of course, be re-planting alot and hopefully re-juvinating the area. Anyway, with that said, we are underway. It feels good to have finally started. The cutting should be finished by the end of the week.

Mother Nature's Delay

2010-02-16T17:59:00.000-08:00

Who would have thought that on the day we could actually get the land clearing started that the Bega area has a record rain fall. 127mm in one day. Oh well, I think we might be delayed until next week. Fingers crossed.

Here We Go

2010-02-14T16:42:00.000-08:00

We went out to site today and met with Leon. He is really keen to start and, depending on the weather, is able to start as early as Tuesday. We are really excited and can't wait. We have included some more photos we took this time so everyone can get an idea of the work to be done just to start building. Will be heading down next weekend to check on progress so this is the last time we will be seeing the block like this.

Pick Up Our Van

2010-02-13T16:14:00.000-08:00

We had a mammoth trip over the last few days. We drove up to Penrith, on Thursday, to drop off the kids, glad we did that. We then drove overnight out to Mildura, about 11Hours, to pick up our van. Really nice and cosy. Just a few personal touches from us and it should look really good. We stayed Friday night in Mildura & early on Saturday drove to Merimbula. Now our map said it should only take about 11 Hours. We were aware we were towing a van so we added on about 2 hours. We let at 6am and did not arrive on site until about 2100 (9pm), about 15 Hours. A very long day!!! Total travel by the time, by the time we get home, will be 2459km's in 3 days. Have attached a map to show you our travels.

We are meeting Leon tomorrow to arrange for him, hopefully to start this week sometime. Fingers crossed it will be soon. Have attached a photo of Mel enjoying the van just after we bought it.

WE HAVE APPROVAL!!!

2010-02-04T15:51:00.000-08:00

Well.......we just found out from council that we have approval to start building. All the paper work is being processed through council now and we should be able to start within the next week or 2. We just have to wait for our consturction certificate to come through after our '$520 Contribution' to coucil carparking. Will keep everyone posted but everything should start going gang busters over the next few months......so will keep everyone posted.

Our Temp Accommodation

2010-01-25T16:02:00.000-08:00

We decided to buy a caravan for when we stay on site to save on accommodation costs when we start building, and maybe a way to have a holiday or 2 when we are finished. I have attached pictures so everyone can check out where we will be staying.
Still no word from council, have a feeling it won't be to soon.

A little set back

2010-01-11T15:55:00.000-08:00

Mel & I were a bit bummed today. We found out that all the wood that we tracked down we cannot use in our build. Because it was oregon timber and we are in a termite area it is not a good timber to use. It's not all bad because we can re-sell it but there was alot of work put into collecting and processing this timber but we would rather sell it rather than have our house eaten buy termites. We have to roll with the punches though and we can't do much appart from go with what the plans say.
Still not word from council, hopefully not to much longer though.

Whats Happening In The New Year

2010-01-06T02:46:00.000-08:00

Well........Our plans are still in at council. We have hit a little snag on the idea of a Straw Bale house in a bush fire prone area. We had to send a CSIRO report, which was to us by Bohdan Dorniak (http://www.bdcoarchitechs.com.au/), who conducted the survey. If it was not for him and his report we would not have got this far with council. Everything now rests in the hands of the RFS, so we have our fingers crossed. The thing is, in comparison to other types of houses (Fibro, Timber or Brick Veneer), Straw Bale should be the best choice in this type of area because a Straw Bale wall is so tightly compressed and sits behind 40mm - 50mm of render that there is no air to fuel the fire, unlike the Fibro, Timber or Brick Veneer which have pockets of air between that & the plaster inside. My opinion is Straw Bale should be the councils 'house of choice' in a Bush Fire Prone Area for this reason.

Everything happening with the Development Application has not stopped us picking up bargains to build the house though, we just picked up some great slate tiles today. We wanted a natural stone on top of the concrete slab to help with the thermal mass of the building.

We also picked up 10 (160x 160) American hard wood posts from my work which was used as pallets for some heavy machinery. Work was going to burn them until I saved them for the bargain price of $1. We really would like to use them for decking or roof posts, we will see how they fit in to the build. We will hopefully have an answer from Council toward the end of the month and will keep everyone posted.

Our Little Timber Mill

2009-12-05T21:18:00.000-08:00

On Saturday I went up to Mum & Dad's, with Bethany & Trav, to unload our bounty of timber. Big day and alot of hard work, thanks to Mum & Dad for the day. This is how we did it;

1. We had to de-nail all the timber. Sore hands by the end of the day and we also managed to break a hammer.

2. We then sorted out the timber in lengths & types. Any that we could not use, we had sawn down into smaller peices, which will be used for 'noggins' in the building process.

3. We were then left with our 3 sorted 'piles' of Oregon, Treated Pine & Hard Wood. Most of which can be used in our build or at least be swapped for what we need.

Just A Little Timber

2009-11-19T16:54:00.000-08:00

Dad & I drove up to Newcastle today to pick up some timber we won off Ebay. Looks like a lot but this is only about a 1/4 of what we need. The good thing is we got it cheap & it was really good quality oregon timber. A bit of work to clean it up but that does not cost anything except our time.

Our Plans Are In!!!

2009-11-18T21:48:00.000-08:00

Our plans are finally in to Bega Council. Mel & I drove down to Bega today to sort a few things out while also submitting our plans. Ken had dotted all the i's & crossed all the t's. We were quietly confident on our way home that our plans should be fine. When we walked the plans to council, that even the ladies lodging the development application, looked to see Kens name on the covering letter and said 'Oh Ken Gordon has done these plans, should be no worries at all'. Made us feel very happy. We also met with Leon Russel, to discuss further details of our land clearing. We also sorted our our shed details too. Everything is looking good and progressing well.

Our Final Plans Are Here

2009-11-11T14:27:00.001-08:00

Our final plans are here. We have not really changed much from the last, just a few minor details, but we are ready to put them into council now. We can't wait. We are heading down to Bega next week, hopefully to submit them and also talk to our land clearer, Leon Russell. We can really picture living in this house, the layout & space really suits us as a family. If you have any comments we would really like to recieve them. Will let everyone know how it goes with council, this could be a long process but we have faith in Bega council and Ken Gordon, our drafts person. Fingers crossed it does not take to long.

Little Treasures

2009-11-01T19:38:00.000-08:00

On the weekend, the kids & I went to help clean out my late Grandfathers house. This has been an on going thing for about the last 4 to 5 months now. Some people may have said he was a bit of a hoarder, but Mel & I say he was just saving a few things, for us, to help build our house. There has been alot of treasures found, including these cast iron lamp posts that Dad is wheeling up to the trailer. We have found bathroom sinks, tiles, mirrors, windows, pipe work, furniture & a fireplace. Some very old & beautiful items. Still no plans as yet, hopefully soon.

Still waiting for our plans

2009-10-28T19:20:00.000-07:00

Just thought I'd give a quick post, just so anybody keeping track of us did not think they were missing out on anything......we are still waiting for our plans back from the drafts person. We are hoping to get something back soon so we can get something done before Christmas. We have alot lined up but this will all be pending on the plans coming back soon, council approval & the land being cleared. Fingers crossed we will have something back from Ken by the end of the week. We will keep you posted.

Update to Plans

2009-10-06T21:17:00.000-07:00

Mel & I went to the property today to see Ken and discuss the final plans for our property. We think we have nailed it now and can't wait to see them drafted. We should see something early next week, can't wait. We have so much lined up as soon as we get the go ahead from council.
1st its the land clearing, Leon Russel from Russels Earthmoving & Excavations
2nd we now have our shed lined up
3rd We have got our concreter lined up too
4th The tank from Bega Concrete Tanks
5th Then our Biolytix System should go in.
We have also found our roof at Mordek too. We are picturing everyday the finished product. Should be good to see. Will keep everyone posted when the final draft comes through and hopefully we can get some of the above work done before Christmas.

Our New Design

2009-09-21T22:24:00.000-07:00

We have a new house design. After our awesome time in Canberra with Andrew & Leanne, talking to Tom Chen & Frank Thomas, we have come up with our new design which, we believe has passive solar and thermal mass properties. We have a few changes, which are going though our drafts person, Ken at Gordons Drafting. At the moment but should have our plans finalized by the end of the week and then into Bega council.

Strawbale workshop cont...

2009-09-03T21:19:00.000-07:00

We met some great people on the workshop. There are so many ways to incorporate green principals when building a new home it's impossible to know all of them so it was very helpful talking to others.

One person, Tom Chen at savagearchitects@hotmail.com , is studying architecture and looked at our design for us. He pointed out a few flaws as far as passive solar design goes. When we left on Sunday Steven and I had a four hour drive to go pick up our kids to contemplate our design. When we got home we put pen to paper and have come up with a few possible designs. We will keep you posted.

Strawbale workshop in Canberra

2009-08-31T21:03:00.000-07:00

Steven & I recently did a strawbale workshop, through Frank Thomas at Yesterday, Today & Tomorrow in Canberra, helping to build Andrew and Leanne's house. Steven had previously done a course but I was a complete novice. It was exciting seeing how fast a strawbale house can be built. This house was infill whereas our house is going to be a hybrid system - we hope - still waiting for council approval.

As you can see here I am piling up the bales. I became quite expert at making custom size bales. Its amazing that Thursday morning this 230 square metre house (roughly) had no exterior walls and by Sunday lunchtime they had started rendering.

Can't wait until its our house!

Our House Plan

2009-08-25T23:48:00.000-07:00

Our preliminary house & layout plans have arrived thanks to Gordon's Drafting Services in Bega. Mel & I are very excited. Only a few changes, but I think it looks really good. You can see our wind turbine in this view and also our awesome doors/windows off our living & bedroom areas that we picked up cheap on Ebay. We should hopefully have our plans through council soon and then it is finally time to start building.

What makes our build eco friendly

2009-08-24T16:51:00.000-07:00

Besides our house being built from straw bales, which has amazing insulation properties, we are incorporating the following;

Solar Panels from Clear Solar
Biolytix is supplying us with our Black & Grey Water system.
Pyramid Power, in Pambula, is helping us with our Solar Hot water & Install. They are in our area and I feel know the best system for our climate. They are also installing our Biolytix System too.
Rhino Tanks is supplying us with a 126,000L Tk
We are going for a natural roof insulation, probably wool or shredded paper. We have not chosen anyone as yet there.
Straw Bale, our walls are coming from Trent at straw.com.au from Coleambally, NSW. It is a bit far away but has the best straw to build with.

We are so excited to start our build. Should not be long until we receive our plans too which I hope to share with you all too.

Our Small Plot

2009-08-23T12:31:00.000-07:00

This is our lovely, 6 & 1/2 Acre, bush block. As you can see it has a nice little slope to it, but has not stopped us from wanting to build on it. The top of the block is mainly filled with 'Stringy Bark' & 'Bloodwood' trees. We are going to try and minimalise the amount of land we are clearing and is going to make us a little upset to see them knocked down but we are going to try and use them as much as possible during the build. We will have a mobile saw mill who will cut most of the timber to size for the framing required and the leaf tops, bark and un-usable wood will be used for mulch. All the 'dead wood' around will be used to keep us warm on the cold Wallagoot nights.

About Us

2009-08-23T12:13:00.000-07:00

G'day. My name is Steve Page. My Wife, Melanie, our 2 children, Travis, Bethany & I are about to embark on building our own house out of straw bale. This idea of a lifestyle change from Wollongong to Wallagoot, on the N.S.W. far south coast has been in planning for over 2 years now. This is our blog of how we have planned our house, different Eco techniques, Eco products we have used & our overall journey. We plan on living off the land as much as we can. We will grow our own fruit & veges, chickens for eggs, solar hot water & power. Our sewage system will purify its self

through worms and organic material and flow back onto out fruit trees. We will hope that one day what we are doing now might inspire someone else to do the same.