Woman Builds Daughter A Straw Bale House For $10,000 | Building Off The Grid

To fulfil her goal of building a house for her kids when they turn 18, Shalina is building a straw bale house for her daughter Joli on their land. Shalina and her family have four weeks and a budget of $10,000.
From season 6 episode 5.
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[@ginnywilliams5115]

Beautiful job on this build; I loved all your little touches! My husband and I were fortunate to live in a straw bale house for six months during the winter of 2021-2022. It's located in southwestern New Mexico and was built over 30 years ago. I can tell you first hand that there was ~zero~ evidence of rot, vermin or bugs invading the space. The house was sturdy, cozy and warm because the strawbales provided incredible insulation. I also loved how deep the window wells were, great for our cats to sit and look outside. After living in one and seeing all the advantages, I would love to build our own straw bale house some day.

[@alainvosselman9960]

So cool that you've already experienced living in them. I have a project planned as well but i was weary at first if these places are healthy on the long run, if foundations don't sustain too much damage over the years risking structural instability or so...the wood 'breathing' or changing shape over the years... tons of worries but i've seen my fair amount of videos where people have been living in them say since the late 70s, early 80s and are still living in them without ever having had any major issues; So i don't think it will be money spent poorly. Go for it ! Good luck !,

[@echothegoodwolf]

What a beautiful thing to do for your daughter! Especially in this world for her to know she always has a home!

[@fritzwilhelm8258]

How would that be for a high school graduation present? Here's your new house, honey. It's paid for and electricity's free!

[@austinpowers1999]

Noice

[@imho2278]

Only really a holiday house...no water catchment, no shower, no solar in winter, but someone has to mind the goats. Odd.

[@fritzwilhelm8258]

@@austinpowers1999 (smack!)

[@bondpaz]

I love it! Ours is 775 square feet. The cob it very fire resistant so fire isn’t as likely as with a regular timber house. 😃👌🏽

[@alainvosselman9960]

What a gift. Don't have any kids but that face they pull when getting a gift like that must be priceless. Wish there was a little bit more to see as to how you did the entire building but it is very helpful anywayz ! Dreaming of building my own test project and have already got land i can use to build on in Spain... Thanks for sharing your knowledge & experiences !

[@SynthoidSounds]

She is a supermom . . . and beautiful!

[@TRUMP20Z4]

Very so.

[@imho2278]

Far more than he deserves.

[@coyotefeather4896]

Gorgeous! The only thing I wonder about is why they would use strawbale for the interior wals? Seems to me like it would rob a lot of interior space and also thermally isolate the three rooms so you don’t have good heat exchange throughout the whole house. My instinct would be to build the whole house as just a big strawbale rectangle and then divide the interior rooms with thinner walls made of cob or wood or something like that. But maybe theres a reason they did it?

[@shannonelliott9230]

I agree with you, and also lamented in my heart that there was not a shower?

[@RVBadlands2015]

Where building one in northeast Arizona. It’s been a long project.

[@phynnie]

Did anybody get the pun @ 1:37 ? I laughed so hard.

[@willm5814]

Beautiful!!!!! To be able to create something like that for your daughter- you are all amazing! ❤🥰💕🇨🇦

[@pattiehanan1356]

Sensational! What a great family! Enjoy your lives!

[@byronleatham1183]

That's a nice house I'm going to be building home fairly soon I've been northwestern Arizona I was planning on using Adobe bricks the straw house looks a whole lot easier than building all those Adobe bricks and you did it for $10,000 and that's well within my budget I don't like I don't see a flying at all it's got to be a lot less flammable a wooden house like a log house I would definitely put a wood burning stove in it in the bathtub and probably make mine a little bit bigger than yours but looks nice warm cozy and comfortable and you don't have to make a 30-year loan that makes you pay for it three times very nice nothing but compliments for you and your lovely little house

[@floridaman2110]

I want a little house in the desert like this.

[@thecooldude4371]

Me too 😭

[@blokejr4801]

She’s such a sweet girl☺️

[@panic8821]

"blood sweat and tears" 🤣 all i see is a joy

[@bjonh3099]

So, I know for a fact this would require a lot of labor for the timeline. Very skeptical on the price of materials with slab. As a builder, we just know these things.

[@Shes_Royal777]

Good job mom and dad. I want to build one of these homes.

[@jameswatson8420]

I approve of straw homes-B.B. Wolf

[@ilcanaledellanatura]

Thanks for sharing from my channel🙏

[@muleskinner1940]

Why cant u use lime induced cob on the bails or liquid cement abd spray it on the bails

[@bensfixitpage341]

The slab alone is $10k. Whats the actual cost?

[@imho2278]

$17k

[@darrylpaul7017]

Wow looking good now how about some rain water collection ???

[@imho2278]

They are trucking water in. Wonder why

[@JegErBrittnee]

I love it!! But I would need on the grid 😂

[@alpeterson]

Wow, when I turned 18 my parents bought me a suit and told me it was so I could go serve a Mormon mission for two years.

[@Septentria]

what a wonderful family and amazing home !!!! i love it !

[@shannonelliott9230]

Athena & Bill Steene? (Close to name of author/builder(s) Someone should recommend sources for information on strawbale. People are asking questions about bugs, mold, and fire, and I know these are null subjects, but a lot of folks don't. THERE ARE books, folks, I just don't have the titles off-hand, but look them UP! Straw bale is one of the most awesome building materials ever, hands down! Great gift, parents!

[@MutantWorm]

Cool. I also just want to know which model pack they used for the animation ;)

[@djfuentes5714]

Great home! Love your innovation. How did you pump the water in the hot tub? To cycle it to the smoker? I would love to build one!! Thanks!

[@imho2278]

From a central tank refilled by water tanker.

[@mondavou9408]

I love the boulders. Where is that property located? I would love to find parcel like that. It kind of looks like around the four corners (where Colorado, Arizona, New Mexico and Utah all come together).

[@bjonh3099]

Ya.. looks like around White mountain area.

[@gamera2020]

Very pretty, but the kitchen sink is really impractical.

[@per6644]

What are the dimensions and price of one straw bale? Thanks!

[@KvltKommando]

wheres the toilet?

[@amrattkakabajwa4407]

Home is home 🏠 lovely 😘 little Home 🏘️ enjoy

[@TheChinBurton]

What show is this?

[@A.R.C.77]

next house is of wood then one of bricks. not by the hairs on my chinny chin chin 🤣🤘

[@UTCAMPEDFITNESS]

Thanks!

[@joanneganon7157]

Your a Lucky girl 💝. JO JO IN VT 😆💕

[@tommyb.justis6274]

nice crib 👍

[@boardwalkbw7130]

This lady is my twin yall

[@noramascarenas9990]

Just sold my home and I'm buying land in Colorado..not sure about the " rules" here tho.. I would pay you to build me one twice this size for me and my son.

[@truefuschniken]

AMAZINGGG!!!!! ❤️❤️❤️

[@leeboy244]

yall didn't show alot of the build .not very helpful for someone building there own.

[@imho2278]

They showed heaps!

[@Bill-n1e]

it was 10k with solar? that's pretty cheap. most straw bale "builders" would try to charge close to 50k-100k for a similar build.

[@imho2278]

$17k

[@RVBadlands2015]

What is the sq footage of this house.

[@thecooldude4371]

I should do this

[@shannonelliott9230]

Didn't see a shower? While this was amazing for a tiny house, not having an indoor bathing area made it feel not quite really finished.

[@imho2278]

Hot tub.

[@mikebeatstsb7030]

I'd love this..

[@abmstudy190]

I want work in construct I have diploma in civil engineering and iam fresher

[@aprwi]

❤❤❤❤

[@mikeunum]

Notch nitch

[@TheAlmightyGod1]

I dont like it. Its completely too small.

[@jimaforwood743]

What about a kitchen?

[@VIRGONOMICS]

Can’t wait to see the bugs -

[@ShalinaLunasafeusage]

1 year later and still no bugs 🙂 strawbale and clay really do well together.

[@ginnywilliams5115]

@@ShalinaLunasafeusage The comments about bugs, vermin, fire danger, etc., are all unfounded. Your daughter will be enjoying her home for many years to come. Nice job!

[@RVBadlands2015]

I live in a strawbale house and we have no bugs.

[@lvloneymaker24]

What if there's a fire

[@iknowyouwanttofly]

Cob hold up well for fires.

[@imho2278]

Mum is great...smart and hardworking...but the bf isn't near as good as her. What's up?

[@blqissalyemen3081]

💙💛🌷

[@DoomFinger511]

That truth window will be great to let the bugs in and out. Also a great port for a fire to engulf the inside of the walls. But still a cute looking house.

[@goulash75]

Not many critters are interested in straw, as long as there are no seeds in it. That's why it's recommended to use clean straw as opposed to hay. As for the fire, the inside of the house would already have to be on fire for it to get into that little hole (unless she were silly enough to put a candle or something in there), and then the straw is too dense for the fire to spread far once in there. I doubt it would spread as far as a foot if you lit a fire in there. Try closing a dictionary or bible, and then lighting it on fire. Not much will actually burn unless you take the pages out, one by one, and scrunch them up. Same principal for straw bale houses. There have actually been fire tests done on them, and they perform better than most other modern building materials. Strangely enough, water / moisture will do more damage than most fires.

[@DoomFinger511]

@@goulash75 That's a good point about the limited airflow. But what about mold and rot? Won't the organic straw start rot over time and that port hole could allow moisture to seep in over time.

[@goulash75]

@@DoomFinger511 rot could become a problem, but these walls "breathe". One of the main reasons for using mud & lime mortar is that it wicks moisture out of the straw as the sun dries it from the outside. The combination of mud and straw also helps balance humidity in the building reducing the chance of mould inside. If they make the mistake of using cement render, then yes, mould and rot become a big problem. Many of the straw bale houses in the UK, that had lasted hundreds of years, were destroyed in the '60s & '70s when cement rendering became popular on houses there.

[@DoomFinger511]

@@goulash75 That was interesting, I didn't know how useful using that low tech building options could be. Although it isn't surprising since it's been used for 1000s of years.

[@shannonelliott9230]

@@goulash75 Good reply~

[@Mihoshika]

Well, let's just hope no one uses an open flame in those.

[@CHenry-lg1nl]

Strawbale is actually must more resistant to fire than most modern construction.

[@Mihoshika]

The bulk of it might take some time to burn, but the external bits would go up in flame pretty quick, especially if it's left to dry for a while, and it's relatively arid where they're at. After a quick burn, it'd spread fire to other flammable bits on the house.

[@billbrowning50]

You’re expecting this straw to last for years and without vermin finding your straw as a great home for their children?

[@annetowner5447]

There is a house in Europe built this way still structurally sound since 1920

[@imho2278]

Ìts covered in clay and located on plastic on cement. Plenty of homes near here are 40 years old.

[@johnnynephrite6147]

Two rooms on both sides = 4 rooms. I guess that rez school didnt learn you so good.

[@Shotgun_vk07]

🥇🥇🥇 first

[@retireorbust]

Always have a home to come to...so much better for all concerned than the basement. Very nice, mom and dad.