this post was submitted on 02 Feb 2024
46 points (94.2% liked)

And Finally...

1115 readers
460 users here now

A place for odd or quirky world news stories.

Elsewhere in the Fediverse:

Rules:

founded 2 years ago
MODERATORS
[email protected]
46
Should more British homes be built using straw? (www.bbc.co.uk)
submitted 10 months ago by [email protected] to c/[email protected]
19 comments fedilink hide all child comments
 

This didn't seem quite serious enough for UK, but it's kinda neat.
Big Bad Wolf could not be reached for comment.

And as Insulation seems to have become my Special Interest at the moment, I dug into the material a little more.
It's supposed to be installed 400mm thick.
It has a transmission value of 0.12WMK. So 400mm on the outside of the house is equivalent to...150mm of glassfibre or 75mm of cellotex.

As it's vapor permeable, it shouldn't have any of the damp issues poorly installed insulation suffers from.

So, if you can get away with the look, and have the space outside, it's a pretty cool (/warm) material.

you are viewing a single comment's thread
view the rest of the comments
[–] [email protected] 11 points 10 months ago (3 children)

I'm sure the fire department would love it

[–] [email protected] 22 points 10 months ago (1 children)

It's apparently 120 minute fire rated. On the outside of a building, that's a fair amount (and certainly better than PIR board, see Grenfell!)
We rate materials and construction by how long it takes to burn, and that time is generally a reasonable amount of time to get out of the building. For example, a domestic ceiling needs to withstand for 30 minutes.

My own experiments with Stieco found it was very hard to actually set alight on a bonfire. I'm not sure how straw fares, but the woodfibre based board tended to char and prevent further spread. (Until it reaches a flashpoint, I guess)

[–] Hotdogman 15 points 10 months ago

Fire rated, sure. But how does it hold up in a windstorm? Asking for a little pig friend.

[–] [email protected] 5 points 10 months ago

Big bad wolf rubbing his hands too. Rookie mistakes people!