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Charmaine Taylor Publishing

, Eureka [Cutten] California

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New books on straw bale building:
The Beauty of Straw Bale Homesearth
by Bill and Athena Steen...a gorgeous color photo book detailing the results of beautiful bale building; along with explanations on the practical aspects of thermal mass, solar gain, heating, cooling and materials. Shows earth floors, earthen built -n furniture, interior wall details, creative problem solving, and personal touches to straw bale homes. No matter what you want to build this book is inspiration taken from reality. 8"x8",113 pages #3016...$23.00... See &Order book Here

New ! The Natural House A Complete Guide to Healthy, Energy -Efficient, Environmental Homes...by Daniel Chiras. A really big primer on all forms of natural building from Adobe to Rammed Earth, Papercrete to Cast Earth Strawbale and Cob, with greywater systems and construction methods covered in good detail. Quotes and comments from leaders in alternative building throughout the book, with hundreds of photos and drawings. 300+ pages, Color cover, softbound, 8.5"x8.11" #1075..$35.00... See &Order book Here

The grandaddy of information on building techniques and materials:
A new book on straw bale building:
Serious Straw Bale: A Construction Guide for All Climates by Paul Lacinski and Michel Bergeron...#3015...$30.00... See &Order book Here

Reviewed by former The Last Straw editor, Mark Piepkorn:

This is a superior resource, covering so much ground that no other straw-bale book does. It offers a startling amount of information that complements and updates such classics as The Straw Bale House and Build It With Bales. With clarity and wit it thoroughly addresses dozens of frequently misunderstood and overlooked concepts, details and concerns from a perspective steeped in equal parts building science and field experience. This book is an excellent, vital addition to the thinking person's literature of strawbale.
Read the rest of this Book Review by Mark here.
Subscribe to The Last Straw newsletter, visit: www.strawhomes.com to subscribe, or call 505-895-5400.

NEW- MORE Straw Bale Building: written by Canadian straw bale builders Chris Magwood and Peter Mack #3010N - VIEW AT STRAW BALE BOOKS &DVDs Here
New!... Old Booklets from the 1930's-1960's. If you are curious about earthen and adobe building these are a good, inexpensive resource to start with.

Building with Adobe& Stabilized-Earth Blocks- 1964 : Leaflet #535, USDA . 8 page booklet, 5"x7" size, xerographic. Describes selecting soil; mixing, molding and curing adobe bricks with a form mold and with a Cinva Ram block press (ram photo shown). Explains building walls with cross section diagrams showing construction methods, roof design and attachment. Gives recipes for finish coating walls (plasters)- a casein & TSP wash, limewash and lime plasters. Black and white diagrams throughout. #535..$2.00... See &Order book Here

Adobe Construction Methods: Manual 19 : by LW Neubauer. 35 page booklet, 5"x7" size, xerographic. A very thorough primer for Adobe! Explains how to make and build with adobe bricks. Soil selection, stabilization and waterproofing with cement, emulsified asphalt, lime are detailed. Describes how to build and mortar walls, place lintels, windows, doors, and build roofs. Shows diagrams of construction details from foundation to roof, with correct measurments given. Covers finishing, painting, limewashing, fireplaces and chimneys,. Even describes other tamped earth methods such as English Cob, rammed earth, poured adobe; with photos and diagrams of formworks used. Black and white photos throughout, produced by UC California Agricultural Sciences Dept ,1964. #19...$10.00... See &Order book Here
Adobe& Sun Dried Brick for Farm Buildings-1934 : Farmers' Bulletin #1720, USDA . 18 page booklet, 5"x7" size, xerographic. This wonderful little booklet has photos of 1930s adobe buildings and laborers constructing them; to teach rural farmers this very low cost, fireproof building method. Describes mixing, molding and curing adobe bricks. Explains mud and lime mortars, coal-tar paints, when and how to apply finish plasters. Covers windows, doors, roofs, footings, foundations and chimneys with dimensions given. Shows photo of a very low cost roof of cottonwood logs/willow twig and straw, coated with adobe mud/sod. Black and white photos throughout #1720...$5.00.,,, See &Order book Here

Modern Pise Building:House building with compressed or rammed earth - A revelation for the Farmer and Settler-1923 : by Karl & Inez Ellington, 105 page booklet, 5"x7" size, xerographic. It is amazing to realize that Ellington traveled all over Europe and the USA promoting the rammed earth method. He stipulates that each man or "settler" should take advantage of the soil beneath his feet and build a "cozy little home". He describes the foundation, selecting soil; mixing, formworks and a varitey of lime washes. (This is the earliest reference to cooked wheat paste described.) Dozens of photos of houses in Norway, Sweden, Denmark, France, New Mexico & English cob. Covers walls with cross section diagrams showing construction methods, roof design, attachment. Gives recipes for finish coating walls - limewash and plasters. Black and white diagrams throughout. You also get a real sense of life in the 1920s, a most charming booklet. (There is a photo of an odd earth block ram press which can only be described as a 'contraption'-levers and gears everywhere)#2015..$12.00... See &Order book Here.
Rammed Earth Walls for Farm Buildings-1933, Bulletin 277 South Dakota State College. 67 pages, xerographic. This book extensively explores the soils and methods used for successful RE construction. Covers many plaster and finishing tests, with recommendations for lime, asphalt, cement "cream" and lindseed oil. Provides charts on aggregates % in soil for best compression, and other useful construction information from footings to roof. The Ag. Dept. built an experimental poultry house and recorded all experiments thougoughly to inform others on sucessful RE building. This booklet refers to #2012 Rammed Earth Walls, shown on the Adobe page, and to Ellington's "Modern Pise Buildings" from 1923 (see above). The photos are very poor due to xerography, but the text information is most valuable for anyone wanting to avoid problems during manual rammed earth building. 67 pages, booklet, xerographic, b/w photos and drawings. #277...$10.00... See &Order book Here
Mortgage-Free! Off The Money Grid by Rob Roy. Rob presents a complete guide to strategies that allow you to own your land and home, free and clear, it contains hundreds of tips that show you how to take control of the house-building process, and provides a unique perspective on crucial economic decisions to avoid debt. Roy and his wife Jaki have built and owned 5 homes this way! 225 pages, paperback #9003... $25.00.... See &Order book Here
The Passive Solar House: Using Solar Design To Heat & Cool Your Home by James Kachadorian. Practical, applicable solar design advice that is usable in any region or climate. Information includes * Proper siting and strategic window selection and placement * Energy and money-saving construction tips * Ideal air-exchange rates, and ways to avoid overheating * Methods for gauging and maximizing thermal mass * Criteria for sizing of backup heating systems * Interior design for year-round comfort. 220 pages, 50 b&w and color photos, 50 illustrations, charts, paperback. #5002...$25.00... See &Order book Here
The Solar Powered Home from Rob Roy This VIDEO shows how to plan, purchase and set up your own home photovoltaic system, with tips from some of America's leading experts in renewable energy and home power, 84 minutes. #5009...$29.00... See &Order book Here
The Solar Electric House by Steven J. Strong. Excellent introduction to photovoltaic-powered houses, including design, wiring, and energy management by one of the design pioneers. Covers both stand-alone and grid-connected PV houses, 288 pages, paperback, graphs, charts, index. #5003... $22.00... See &Order book Here
Residential Structure & Framing ...An easy to understand guide teaches calculating loads, sizing joists and beams, and other structural problems during building. Includes cantilevered floors, complex roof structures, tall window walls, seismic and wind bracing. Has advanced techniques for wall, floor (shows floor trusses) and roof framing with dimensional and engineered lumber. Illustrated, many photos. 272 pages. #4044...$35.00See &Order book Here
Finding the perfect book on how to build a masonry stove (Russian, Katchelofen), Kiva, Horno, or fireplace is difficult. No one book really has it all. Below are listed the titles available. My best advice is to also check out your library for fireplace building books which show the basics, and can be adapted to masonry styles.

ROCKET MASS HEATER by Ianto Evans ( good for any type of interior home heating- not just cob)
Just printed.... a well done booklet on making a heat source for cob and other houses with simple methods, and materials ( metal drums) to use radiant heat.
Many people are not aware Ianto wrote a book on the Lorena stove many years ago, for a clay cooking stove used with low fuels. This booklet is the natural transition to home heating.
100 pages, B&W images and illustrations, 6"x8" format, softcover.#4099...$18.00...See &Order book Here

To see some beautiful stove and oven designs visit the Masonry Heater Association of N. America webpage at: http://www.mha-net.org , email Norbert Snef, designer, for more information at: mheat@mha-net.org
And also visit the Buckley-Rumford Fireplace Homepage at http://www.rumford.com. Email buckley@rumford.com. Rumford fireplaces are described as "having a rounded breast, and a straight back", and are designed for maximum heat/fuel efficiency, minimal smoke.
Katchelofen stoves are Swedish tile stoves also designed to radiate heat, and are safe to sit close to. Do a web search to find information.
Lastly, visit the Brick Industry Association at www.bia.org/ at Section 19-Fireplaces for great, free articles and good infomation on using brick.

Book with the MOST information on how to build a masonry stove/oven.
The Bread Builders: Hearth Loaves and Masonry Ovens, by Daniel Wing & Alan Scott. This book has over 65 pages of complete stove building and construction detail. The balance of the book is about masonry stove bread baking, with recipes, stories, and more. The Stove building section has many drawings, descriptions, instructions on materials, tools, techniques, problems, fixes and more, on masonry ovens. Photos show indoor and out door ovens, old style and new, and a masonry oven with or without a bread baking area, can be designed and built using this book. 253 pages, 12 color and 60 b&w photos, illustrations, bread recipes, commercial baking information. #4001...$35.00... See &Order Stove books HERE

The Book of Masonry Stoves by David Lyle. Builder Rob Roy says these stoves are 35% more efficient than the best 'air-tight' stoves. Learn about masonry stoves and how to maximize wood heat in your home. These stoves are designed so you can sit close and not be burned if you touch them, heat radiates out, making living areas comfortable for hours with less fuel consumed. An excellent introduction to this most environmentally friendly of combustion-based heating systems. Includes extensive history of wood burning, principles of masonry stoves, and examples of masonry stoves used around the world. 52 photos, 92 illustrations, index, paperback. #4014...$25.00.. See &Order Stove books HERE
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