But when it was determined that the bale homes could be relied on to keep out the extreme Nebraska elements, these unwitting environmentalists decided to live in them permanently. Huntsville, Alabama saw the first straw bale home built with post and beam construction, but not until 1936, when Dr. William Burritt built a two-story mansion. This type of construction remained popular until the 1950s, when home construction began to see the mass production of stick-built homes and straw bale construction was all but forgotten. Fast forward to 1993, when the first load-bearing straw home was built in Tucson, Arizona, a structure approved even when such materials were not included in local building codes. Fast becoming one of the most popular sustainable construction techniques, economical straw bale construction makes beneficial use of what many consider a waste material.
Straw is unpopular with termites and other types of burrowing insects.
And using proper barrier construction methods to keep the straw completely dry, a straw-bale structure can last indefinitely. In fact, some hundred-year old straw bale homes can still be seen in Nebraska to this day. Stacked like huge bricks, straw bale wall systems can go up quickly, without years of construction knowledge or fancy tools. The straw is available wherever grain crops wave, and it's a constantly renewable resource. Straw bale construction can be used to build homes which are both structurally sound and inexpensive.