April 20, 2018 @ 9:00 am - April 29, 2018 @ 4:00 pm
Join us for two 3-day hands-on natural building workshops to learn straw bale & natural plaster construction with natural building expert Michael G. Smith. We will be combining these techniques to create an efficient, inexpensive walk-in produce cooler for our farm.
SCHEDULE
April 20-22 Part 1: Straw Bales – Walls, Foundations, and Design
In this 2-part hands-on workshop you will learn to build a highly-insulating walk-in produce cooler or any other small straw bale building. Learn to source and select the best bales for building, change their size as necessary, and stack them into strong, durable walls. We will explore the best options for structural systems and how to install windows and doors. We will also discuss foundations, floors, plumbing and electrical considerations.
Friday, April 20th
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9:00am – Coffee and Farm/Site Tour
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10:00am – Personal Introductions & Introduction to the Building
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11:00am – Demonstration: Cutting Straw Bales to Length, Hands-on: Begin Cutting and Stacking Straw Bales
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12:30pm – Lunch & Break
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2:00pm – Talk: Intro to Straw Bales
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3:30pm – Hands-On: Stacking Straw Bales
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5:30pm – Clean up
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6:30pm – Dinner
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7:30pm – Natural Building Colloquium Movie Screening
Saturday, April 21st
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8:00am – Breakfast
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9:00am – Morning Meeting, Resources for straw bale building
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9:30am – Talk: Installing windows and doors, Hands-on: Continue stacking bales
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11:30am – Demo: cutting bales to width, Talk: pinning and tying options
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12:30pm – Lunch & Break
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2:00pm – Talk: foundations and drainage for straw bale walls
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3:30pm – Hands-on: Begin pinning and tying
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5:00 Tour of Laid Back Manor (near by home built with natural building techniques)
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6:30pm – Dinner
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7:30pm – Slide Show: Intro to Natural Wall Systems
Sunday, April 22nd
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8:00am – Breakfast
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9:00am – Morning Meeting
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9:30am – Hands-On: Continue Pinning & Tying, Begin Stuffing Gaps, Trimming Corners & Making Clay Slip
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12:30pm – Lunch & Break
2:00pm – Talk: Design of Coolers, Installing Plumbing & Electrical, Project Management & Scheduling, Questions & Answers, Workshop Evaluation
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4:00pm – Clean-up Site & Departure
April 27-29 Part 2: Natural Plasters and Finishing
Now that the straw bales are up, you need to know how to protect them from weather, fire, and animals. Clay plasters are usually the best option for base coat plasters, and often for finishes as well. Learn to assess the suitability of a clay soil and develop the best plaster recipe. We will prepare the bale walls for plaster and mix and apply plasters in different ways, with and without mechanical assistance. We will also learn about lime-based plasters for increased water-resistance and discuss roofing and other weatherproofing strategies.
Friday, April 27th
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9:00am – Personal Introductions, Review of work done so far
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10:00am – Intro to Plaster Types & Materials: Clay, Lime, Gypsum, Cement, Preparing chopped straw and clay slip
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11:00am – Demo/Hands-on: Slip-coating the Walls, Demo/Hands-on: Mixing Methods for Clay Plasters, Mixing in a Wheelbarrow, and Tarp and Mortar Mixer
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12:30pm – Lunch & Break
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2:00pm – Hands-on: Mix and Apply Base Coat Plasters
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5:00pm – Talk: Good Detailing Around Edges
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5:30pm – Clean Up
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6:30pm – Dinner
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7:30pm – Film Screening: Mud, Hands, a House
Saturday, April 28th
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8:00am – Breakfast
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9:00am – Morning Meeting, Resources for Natural Plasters
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9:30am – Talk: Lath and Adhesion Coats, Talk: Intro to Lime Plasters
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10:30am – Hands-on: Mix and Apply Lime Plasters, Base coat application continues
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12:30pm – Lunch & Break
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2:00pm – Talk: Finding and Testing Clay Soils
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4:00pm – Hands-on: Lime Plaster Continues, Base coat application continues
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5:30pm – Clean Up
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6:30pm – Dinner
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7:30pm – Slide show: Natural Plasters and Finishes
Sunday, April 29th
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8:00am – Breakfast
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9:00am – Morning Meeting
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9:30am – Talk: Testing Mixes
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10:00am – Hands-on: Clay Finish Plaster Mix Testing, Base coat application continues
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12:30pm – Lunch & Break
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2:00pm – Talk: Weather-protection, Sealants, Roofing, and Detailing, Question & Answer, Workshop Evaluation
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4:00pm – Clean Up and Departure
COST
About Michael G. Smith
Michael G. Smith has been leading natural building training’s since 1993 when he helped start the Cob Cottage Company, the group that first introduced cob to North America and helped spark the natural building revival. He has designed and built more than 50 natural structures, ranging in size from wood-fired ovens and outdoor benches to a 3,000 square foot community hall. His specialty is energy-efficient hybrid design, using locally available materials in a wide combination of techniques. He is the co-author of The Hand-Sculpted House (Chelsea Green, 2000), and The Art of Natural Building (New Society, 2nd Edition 2015). He is a founder and organizer of the Natural Building Colloquium and serves on the boards of the Cob Research Institute and the Natural Building Network. For more details, see strawclaywood.com
About Wall To Wall
Wall to Wall is a Comprehensive Natural Building Workshop Series happening this spring at Ridgewood Ranch in northern California. Join us for a comprehensive introduction to the art and science of natural building. If you attend the whole series of 5 workshops, you will learn 10 different versatile construction techniques that can be used alone or in combination to make nearly any kind of structure in almost every environment. http://walltowallworkshop.tumblr.com/about
