by Martin Freney
Ironbank, South Australia

Zoe and I decided to practise permaculture after doing a Permaculture Design Course (PDC) in 1999. We wanted to be part of nature rather than fight it.

First off we got the advice of one of the PDC tutors who gave us the thumbs up on a 1.5-hectare (3.8-acre) block in the Adelaide Hills. It had good solar exposure and many options for house sites. Rainfall was excellent, around 900 mm a year.

We promptly planted an almond tree, which subsequently got moved. Lesson one — plan your property thoroughly. We built a shed to store materials and insulated one end of it to live in. An old potbelly stove kept us warm in the winter but we sweltered in the summer.

For the next 18 months we planned our house. We decided on strawbale because we felt that it was economical and ecological — not to mention beautiful. And we had clay on our site that was suitable for rendering.

A strawbale construction workshop helped me understand what we were getting ourselves into and, more importantly, I met Bohdan Dorniak (strawbale architect) and Gerald Wittmann (structural engineer) who helped us with plans.

We decided to convert our shed into a post and beam strawbale house to save money. It was ideally located for fighting bushfires, car access and views. We quickly built another shed to store materials and purchased a caravan to live in.

The compact design uses curving strawbale walls.

We engaged a private certification company that was sympathetic to strawbale construction.

Zoe and I decided to become owner builders. My father, Ian, was keen to help. We worked side by side for two years, me on site two to three days a week and Ian often working a six- or seven-day week, especially when we were racing towards a deadline — the birth of my first child — which is what Zoe was working on! Family and friends helped out now and again.

Zoe was in charge of finding salvaged materials and fixtures and fittings. We had little experience and made many mistakes. A willingness to roll with the punches and a sense of humour are a must.

The construction process went like this:

• The steel cladding of the shed was removed and stored.
• The steel columns of the shed frame needed reinforcing.
• Steel framing was added to extend the shed.
• Strawbales were stored and wrapped in plastic with mouse traps to keep them vermin-free.
• Ian supervised the footings contractor and plumber.
• Window boxes, doorways, and cupboard framing were built.
• Bale raising: Lance Kairl, local strawbale building guru, helped run a workshop. In one weekend all the bales were up!
• Rendering was slow, so we investigated spray-on rendering. Eventually it was done — a beautiful terracotta-coloured irregular finish, which blends wonderfully with the local terrain — because it IS the local terrain.

While rendering all the other jobs were tackled: internal stud walls; the curved bathroom wall; the compost toilet; the hydronic floor heating; the polished concrete and timber floors; installation of PV panels and solar hot water heater; wiring; tiling and finishing.

Selecting materials was difficult. Steel is durable but has a lot of embodied energy (and pollution of the environment through mining). Straw is a waste product (although ours was especially grown for building). However, straw ploughed back into the ground helps replenish the soil. If you can build a house that is durable and energy-efficient with as many salvaged/natural/local materials as possible, you are doing the best you can. Design is important and professionals can help.

What do I love about our house? We built it — our handprints are all over it. It keeps us warm in winter with minimal heating, and cool in summer with no air-con. We have a 12 to 15 degree buffer against outdoor temperatures! Our utilities bills are insignificant as is our carbon footprint. In summer we deliver surplus energy to the grid. The fruit orchard is thriving, irrigated from the reed bed and we are becoming competent vegie growers —starting to reduce our food footprint (food miles).

Would we do it again? Yes, definitely. There were stresses, but ultimately, you are only accountable to yourself, and you can tweak the design as building unfolds. There are some wonky walls but we love ‘em. So if you can live with your mistakes, and you don’t mind hard work, go for it.

• Photos and plan reproduced courtesy of Martin Freney.

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