THE CIVIC ART: CLEVELAND: AKRON STRAW BALE HOUSE CONSTRUCTION DETAILS

Per Calvin Smith, the builder:

“The wall construction is 2x6 at 16" OC, 1/2" "Bracerite" structural breathable wall sheeting, Raindrop Tyvek House Wrap, Grace Vycore tape at the seams, 5 1/2" cellulose, netting for the cellulose, 1" of 2 lb closed cell foam, massive caulking and sealant package, straw bales tied to the top and bottom plate and 1- 1/2" of Earth Plaster. The total wall thickness is approx. 22 1/2" to 23".

The R- factor for cellulose has an official rating of 3.82 per inch. That is because the "Codes" will not allow it to exceed the R of Fiberglass. It seems the fiberglass lobby has much more money than does the cellulose lobby!!! The actual R of cellulose should be at least R-4.91 per inch or greater, but for our purposes we stayed with the R-21 factor[5.5 in. wood stud x 3.82/in.] R-1 for the Bracerite", R-7.1 for the cell foam, R-21 for the cellulose, R-30 for the straw bale and we get an R-59.1. We also have the Thermal Mass factors of 1-1/2" of earth plaster which can be significant, as well as a 1 hour fire rating. I did not count anything for the R factor of 1" of cedar siding. (harvested in 10 - 15 years)

For the roof, the structural integrity of the rafter is a 14" TJI. 1" (conservatively) of 2 lb cell foam and 14" of blown cellulose with netting equals an R-60.58, when in reality it should be rated at 75.85 if we were allowed to use the actual rating of the cellulose. We sprayed the 2 lb foam in all the box sills at least 8" thick (56.80) as well as up a 30" heal height and all the way to the ridge in every rafter.

There is 0 ...NO ventilation in the house, that chore is handled by the ERV [energy recovery ventilator] system. We have a "Hot Roof" application. An exterior vent is run to the wood stove.

The CFM air leakage was tested by an independent rater and the blower door revealed 450 CFM @ 50 pascals. That is approx. 18 sq. inches for the entire house.”

Joe Ferut, the architect, adds:

“In terms of air tightness, the house is at 1ACH @ 50 pascals before finish plaster and drywall. The Canadian R2000 standard is 1.5ACH, and Passive House is .6ACH.”

QUOTABLE

“To vitalize building materials, to animate them with a thought...to charge them with a social significance and value...to impart to them the best that is in the people–such is the real function of the architect.”

—Louis Henri Sullivan

“One of the primary obligations of any work of architecture is to create a sense of place, to respect and enhance a building’s physical and cultural context.”

“Another responsibility is to work within a tradition in a scholarly manner, to be succored but not smothered by the values of architectural culture.”

—Robert A. M. Stern

“The best way to make real architecture is by letting a building evolve out of a place and culture.”

—Samuel Mockbee of Rural Studio

“There is not an important city anywhere in America that does not have a unique character, a particular spirit, and a fascinating history.”

—Kenneth T. Jackson

“The past possesses an accumulation of wisdom which we ignore at our peril.”

—Philip Langdon, fromA Better Place To Live

“The city is the place of availabilities. It is the place where a small boy, as he walks through it, may see something that will tell him what he wants to do his whole life.”

“In the city, the street must be supreme. It is the first institution of the city. The street is a room by agreement, a community room, the walls of which belong to the donors, dedicated to the city for common use. Its ceiling is the sky.”

—Louis Kahn, from Between Silence and Light

“When we build, let us think we build forever.

Let it not be for present delight nor for present use alone. Let it be such work that our descendants will thank us for, and let us think, as we lay stone upon stone, that a time is to come when these stones will be held sacred because our hands have touched them, and that men will say, as they look upon the labor and wrought substance of them, 'See! This our fathers did for us."

—John Ruskin

THE CIVIC ART: CLEVELAND

AKRON STRAW BALE HOUSE CONSTRUCTION DETAILS

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