Straw bale houses are easy to build, affordable, super energy efficient, environmentally friendly, attractive, and can be designed to match the builder's personal space needs, esthetics, and budget. Despite mushrooming interest in the technique, however, most straw bale books focus on "selling" the dream of straw-bale building, but don't adequately address the most critical issues faced by bale house builders. Moreover, since many developments in this field are recent, few books are completely up to date with the latest techniques.

More Straw Bale Building is designed to fill this gap. A completely rewritten edition of the 20,000-copy best-selling original, it leads the potential builder through the entire process of building a bale structure, tackling all the practical issues: finding and choosing bales; developing sound building plans; roofing; electrical, plumbing, and heating systems; building code compliance; and special concerns for builders in northern climates. New material includes:

• more extensive sections on electric wiring and plumbing
• updated sections on bale finishes and finishing
• a section on prefabricated straw bale walls
• a wider selection of case studies, photographs and illustrations
• a section on common mistakes
• budgeting for low-, medium- and high-cost projects, and
• new testing data that is in no other straw bale book.

Down-to earth and complete, More Straw Bale Building makes the remarkable benefits of straw bale building available in the most comprehensive and practical book on the subject to date.

Mother Earth News Wiser Living Series

Chris Magwood has designed and built some of the most innovative buildings in North America, including the first off-grid, straw bale home in Ontario which became a fifteen-year research project into the implementation of sustainable building materials and technologies. He is a director of the Endeavour Centre in Peterborough, Ontario where he teaches hands-on workshops and is a lead instructor for the Sustainable New Construction certificate program. Chris is co-editor of the Sustainable Building Series and author of several previous books on sustainable building, including Making Better Buildings, More Straw Bale Building and Straw Bale Details. He is a regular contributor to Mother Earth News, Home Power and The Last Straw Journal.

Chris Magwood's profile page

Peter Mack has been building and inventing for most of his life. A founder of Camel's Back Construction, he has helped refine bale building into a fine art and has provided guidance to other builders and homeowners on countless projects. An inventor, instrument maker, machinist, fitter welder, and avid mountain biker, Pete brings diverse skills and ideas to the straw bale community.

Peter Mack's profile page

Tina Therrien started plastering in 1997 as part of Camel's Back Construction, the first straw bale building company in Ontario. One of the founding members of the Ontario Natural Building Coalition, Tina has made numerous contributions in the natural building world and has plastered in France and Haiti. Passionate about food, gardening, and chickens, Tina lives in a modest timber frame home with her spouse, daughter, their flock of chickens, and their slowly expanding gardens. She is co-author of More Straw Bale Building, and she operates Shelter By Hand, a timber framing company, with her spouse. She lives in Low, Quebec.

Tina Therrien's profile page