Local homeowner describes straw-bale home project, building methods and permitting experience

Mike Polskamp, a homeowner who said he and his wife built a straw-bale home, described the construction method, moisture-management techniques, and permitting experience.

Polskamp said straw-bale building can be “incredibly green, actually carbon negative” because it uses agricultural by-products and, when kept dry, bales can last for decades. He described a house built with straw bales stacked within a framed perimeter and finished with clay-based plaster, set beneath a steel roof with a 7-foot overhang designed to keep water off the walls.

“All that straw generally rots if it's left out or there were burning it years ago,” Polskamp said. He listed moisture control steps: large overhangs, avoid plumbing in exterior straw walls where possible, wood framing around plumbing penetrations and plasters that draw moisture outward to evaporate.

Polskamp said the construction was engineered and permitted: the project used engineered plans, the builder obtained inspections and the straw-bale technique has been included in building codes. He said tests of similar straw-wall assemblies showed good fire performance in laboratory testing and cited examples where straw-bale structures survived wildfires that destroyed conventional homes.

He described the work as labor-intensive but well-suited to community “barn-raising” style volunteer events, and he encouraged attendees to take hands‑on workshops with organizations such as the California Straw Builders Association.

Ending: Polskamp invited attendees to visit the site and to participate in plastering and finishing work.