If the wall had been wood, it would have burned. If it had been steel, it would have buckled. As the temperature on the hot side topped out at 1,940 degrees, the cool side temperature rose only 12.7 degrees. Code regulations allow the temperature to increase by as much as 250 degrees and still pass the test. In a wind test, the equivalent of a 75 mph gale caused no movement in a straw bale structure.
Higher numbers indicate relatively better insulation.
A six-inch wooden wall with fiberglass insulation, for example, carries an R factor of 19. The average roof rates R30. One bale of straw without any plastering rated R48. Straw bale evangelism takes off Special straw bale workshop scheduled for May 24 -26 by Alice Martinez ob Bolles was not prepared for the response his straw bale exhibit received at last month's EarthFair in Balboa Park. We always expect a lot of 'Three Little Pigs - Big Bad Wolf' jokes, and an equivalent number of the genuinely curious.