Straw Bale Building Workshop

Paul J Belanger, eco-designerStraw Bale Building Workshop
September 11, 12 and 13th, 2015
Sherwood Park, AB

With Paul J. Belanger, eco-designer
Guest presentation by Kenton Zerbin

Workshop fee: $235/person or $400 for couple or two friends. Low income price is 15% less. Lunch and beverages provided Saturday and Sunday.

Space is limited.
To register call (780) 723-3533.

Weekend workshop will feature both classroom time and “hands on” construction. We will be training on a straw bale sauna at Cabine Soliel near Cooking Lake (25 min South-East of Sherwood Park).

Straw bale constructionWorkshop Topics

  • Straw bale building details for Alberta’s climate.
  • Adding passive solar heating for your design
  • How you can reduce building costs
  • Discussion of the tiny house approach and other alternative housing strategies
  • Hands on work will include straw bale install and stucco plaster work on walls
  • Experience with a “living roof” design

Workshop Schedule

Friday:        6 pm to 9 am
Saturday:   9 AM through to 5 PM small social in the evening
Sunday:      9 AM through to 5 PM

Friday Evening
On Friday evening there will be a causal social and open discussion. This starts any time after 6 pm.  For those who cannot make it Friday evening, any important information discussed will be repeated on Saturday/Sunday.

Saturday
This is mainly a classroom day. We will break from sitting and work on the straw bale sauna for a short while. In the evening we will have an informal social and discussions.

Sunday
We will work directly on the straw bale wall. Most of our hands-on work will include lathe and stucco preparation and application of lime/cement plaster. Formal wrap-up will be 5:00 pm.

Lunch is provided on Saturday and Sunday (items for both for meat eaters and vegetarians), including coffee/tea.

Preparation of straw baleWhat to Bring

  • Gloves and a hat
  • Work clothing
  • Your own coffee/water mug
  • Note pad, pencils, and camera
  • A small amount of apple cider vinegar for your hands when plastering
  • Drinking water (we will have some on hand, but you can bring some of your own)
  • Work tools (optional): tape measure, hammer, tin snips, trowel for stucco. We suggest not bringing power tools since they may be damaged by sand/cement or lost in the straw.

Travel Accommodations

For non-local workshop attendees it is possible to put up a tent at the workshop site, which is on a large acreage.

Directions to the Workshop

Map to workshop site

Carrying straw bales

>>>  REGISTER NOW <<<