What type of Consturction?

[Wendy]

Wisconsin Weird

AKA

The Ray Special!

 

[tom mack]

Exterior is clay, lime and or Cement based plaster. Tank is for solar heating panels on the roof to supply heat to the house/ improvements.

 

[Mr Rex]

ICF or Hay bales, the walls are awfully thick. Stainless tank is for pasteurizing milk from the dairy operation that you didn't mention because this is a residential loan

 

[mollyadame]

Dirty Jobs

The walls are made from manure and straw? I saw that on Dirty Jobs. I wouldn't want be in that house during a hurricane.

 

[Mike Boyd]

The tank looks like a pressure tank for the water system. I agree that it might be a straw bale or maybe rammed earth. Stucco exterior over the bales or rammed earth. Slab floor. A very plain Jane and likely owner built....maybe from a kit of some kind.

Write Greg. He should have many off-the-grid plain Janes.

 

[Ray Miller]

Exterior is clay, lime and or Cement based plaster. Tank is for solar heating panels on the roof to supply heat to the house/ improvements.

Correct on the exterior, it covers the straw bales. The interior is the same with a bit more straw. The tank is for the solar heating panels, they are not on the roof but off to the side of the house.



The tank looks like a pressure tank for the water system. I agree that it might be a straw bale or maybe rammed earth. Stucco exterior over the bales or rammed earth. Slab floor. A very plain Jane and likely owner built....maybe from a kit of some kind.

The tank is a dairy tank, there is a larger tank for the well system to hold 1000 gal of water for drinking. Everything in the home is either recycled or gotten off the farm. Lots of native, cherry, pine and hickory wood was used from the farm. Lots of recycled wood like the large planks in a couple of room’s floors.

The basement picture show a red line, behind that red line is an in floor hydro heating system and it is through out the house in zones on all floors.

In front of the red line in the picture is earth that is for the wet part of the root cellar and the other part of the concrete floor is for the dry cool side of the root cellar in the basement.

The house has a gray water system for use in the garden and other areas, the picture of the building with the glass front. That roof is used to collect rain water in a cistern to use for gray water use. It set about a 150 ft behind the house and is also used as a green house and shop.

The house uses both passive and active solar heating, with back up wood stove.

This house is totally self-sufficient and off the grid.

The two side by side doors were recycled from an old church. All the doors in the home are recycled solid wood doors.

The sewage system is designed for composting for use in the garden.

The home is in two sections on the main level. One being a straw bale home that was built over twenty years ago and the newer part that was built this past year.

This is about the most green home I have seen.

By the way this is a nartive appraisal.

 

[Michigan CG]

Home would most likely qualify for LEED certification.

http://www.usgbc.org/DisplayPage.aspx?CategoryID=19

How are you going to put value on the non-grid aspect of the home?

You have your homework to do.

 

[RSW]

Dunno...stucco?

Looks like an old tobacco barn. You guys grow much tobacco up there?

What is that big tank? Is that part of a geothermal system? Or just floor style heating?

Edited to add:

Maybe an old school house?

I think it is a moon shine still!

 

[Joshua Fookes]

I bet it has some major utility perks.

check to see if the bush house ever sold.
http://www.snopes.com/politics/bush/house.asp


You can check out straw bale plans here
http://www.balewatch.com/

yours looks a little like the "Clover" (from the south elevation, without curved walls)
You might get some data from these guys, they would know if they have supplied any plans/kits to areas around you


Another helpful site to see how they are made
http://www.solarhaven.org/NewStrawbale.htm

http://www.solarhaven.org/Construction1.htm
http://www.solarhaven.org/Construction2.htm
http://www.solarhaven.org/Construction3.htm
http://www.solarhaven.org/Construction4.htm



Good luck


Josh

 

[tom mack]

Ray, try the web site at http://www.strawbale.com/
Send a message to Andrew Morrison and he may be able to help with additional information. Hope this brings lots of beaver pelts!