The building of this house in a very rural area in the interior of Argentina (Córdoba province) was the fulfilment of an eleven-year dream. No permits of any sort were required, but the house is bale in-fill because this is an area of seismic movement. I used 660 bales, all of locally-obtained oat straw that had been “cured” for eight months. I had neither architect nor building engineer: I designed the house, basing it on a photo I’d seen in The Straw Bale House. The floor plan was done by a draftsman, structural calculations checked by an engineer and an architect friend in Spain. The house (excluding the porch) measures 242 square meters (2605 sq. ft.) and has a central second floor. It faces east, to take advantage of the view of the Sierra de Comechingones.

I directed the work, all of which was performed by local tradesmen with no experience in bale building. Village residents had never heard of such a thing and thought we were mad; they have since changed their minds. As far as I know, this house is the largest bale house in all of South America. Last year (2008), I completed a second, smaller (100 sq, mts/1100 sq ft) house on my property and was able to complete it for about half the cost of a conventional brick house.

My houses and their owner have been the subject of a story in the county newspaper, a local radio interview and, again last year, featured in a frequently aired national television program on the channel of the Ministry of Education which has generated considerable interest in the technique, which pleases me, as Argentina is very well suited for and could derive great advantage from bale building.

I pinned the bales with rebar on the four extremities of each wall and then followed the advice given by Barbara Jones on her web page: I used weed-whacker plastic whipcord to tie the bales to bamboo after first trying furring strips. I tested various lime-based plasters and put on three coats (manually) with no cement additive. I’ve experienced cracking, but principally due to wooden window sills that had not been properly cured, thus swelled and warped; they have been replaced.

Labor costs are low here, so I was able to complete the house, complete with high-end plumbing (all pipes passing through bale walls are thermofusion) and custom woodwork, lighting fixtures, staircase, carpentry, woodstoves, etc., for a very reasonable cost. The floors are of brick set atop a four-inch layer of coarse sand (anti-ant) in turn set atop a four-inch layer of brick rubble atop pressed earth.

Insulation value has thusfar proved high. The first week in the house saw frost on the ground outside, but it was easy to sleep without using the woodstove; in fact, I didn’t even use a quilt! The summer here is hot: 40 degrees centigrade (104º Fahrenheit) days are not uncommon, yet the house remained comfortable, even on the upper floor; I have no ceiling fans either. All visitors to the house were highly impressed by the difference in temperature when they entered. Nearly four years down the road, this continues to be true, both in my house and in the newer one.

The house took nine months to complete so that it was habitable; I had not finished painting the exterior nor had the stone footing façade been done. Errors unrelated to bale building technique delayed the construction, which required a complete change of crew six months into the job. Had the second crew of six been on the job from the beginning, I believe I could have completed the house in six months. We were also blessed with favorable weather. Roof leakage has been nearly non-existent and the one small leak (the galvanized chimney plate) was easily repaired.

My efforts to “permaculturize” the property have progressed slowly, but progressed. This year (2009), I hope to complete two greenhouses and the root cellar and next year (hopefully) fig a deep well. The adobe brick project came to naught, as it would not have been cost-effective.

I am hoping to acquire a small amount of land in Patagonia, where the bale-building technique could be of great value to the inhabitants. A completely self-sufficient monastery (my gooseberry jam providers) with which I am connected has taken an interest in the idea, so we shall see.

All in all: so far, so good!

You can contact Tim on timothycullen2@gmail.com or follow him on his blog at fromthecatacombs.info