For more information, readers are encouraged to obtain a copy of the Strawbale House Book, to subscribe to strawbale periodicals such as Out On Bale, to search the WWW for other sources of strawbale information, and to enter into conversation with other SB enthusiasts. One topic which spans all of the components listed above is the concept of embodied energy. Embodied energy is the total amount of energy which is consumed in the manufacture and transportation of a product, in this case, building materials. When one chooses methods and materials which have a low embodied energy, one minimizes the total environmental and societal cost of the structure, and moves toward choices which could be termed sustainable. Embodied energy in steel, aluminum, and most metals.
Much heat is needed to refine and produce each material .
Most of these materials are very heavy, requiring much energy to transport them from production facility to use site. Aluminum is of course very light, but aluminum production requires very great amounts of heat. And production facilities are centralized, making transportation costs significant. Concrete is high in embodied energy, though not so high as metals. Heat is required to produce Portland Cement, a constituent of concrete, but much less than metals.