[GSBN] energy efficiency.

[Builders Without Borders]

Sorry for weighing in so late on this topic.

I'm recalling that the ADRA straw-bale housing initiative in Heilongjiang,
China, which was awarded the World Habitat Award in 2005, that homeowners
were saving approximately 2/3 of their heating costs compared with
traditional brick buildings.   Not only that, but each small home saved 150
tons of CO2 from going into the atmosphere, because they sequestered CO2 in
the bales and reduced the burning of coal to stay warm. And the health of
the inhabitants improved, as they reduced the indoor air pollution from
breathing coal smoke.

Sincerely,
Catherine Wanek
Co-director
Builders Without Borders
www.builderswithoutborders.org

*Ecological builders working together for a sustainable future.*


On Wed, May 17, 2017 at 3:35 AM, Rikki Nitzkin <rikkinitzkin at gmail.com>
wrote:

> Thanks. That is exactly the problem. She writes for the section of
> “business” in the paper and knows NOTHing about building… I sent some
> explanations which she asked me later to “simplify”.
>
> I suggest that you give her/him a range, like “between 20% and 50%.” You
> should tell the reporter that there are a lot of variables that can affect
> how big that percentage
>
>
> That is exactly what I did.
>
> taker
>
> El 15/5/2017, a las 18:52, Nehemiah Stone <nehemiah at stoneenergyassc.com>
> escribió:
>
> It might be important to remember that this is a *newspaper* reporter,
> and remember who her/his audience is. The reporter is likely looking for a
> sweeping, *usually *and *generally* accurate, estimate. While the nuances
> of “compared to what?”, and “in what climate?”, are important for builders,
> energy geeks, and clients who are considering their immediate home-building
> options, for a newspaper article, those details are in the weeds.
>
> I suggest that you give her/him a range, like “between 20% and 50%.” You
> should tell the reporter that there are a lot of variables that can affect
> how big that percentage is, but unless this reporter *also*writes for a
> more technical journal, s/he is not likely to want to get into that level
> of detail.
>
> *Best,*
> *Nehemiah Stone*
> *Stone Energy Associates*
> (916) 663-1225 (office)
> www.StoneEnergyAssc.com <http://www.stoneenergyassc.com/> (not yet live)
>
> *“The ultimate test of a moral society is the kind of world that it leaves
> to its children*.” Dietrich Bonhoeffer
>
> *From:* Gsbn [mailto:gsbn-bounces at sustainablesources.com
> <gsbn-bounces at sustainablesources.com>] *On Behalf Of *asbn at baubiologie.at
> *Sent:* Friday, May 12, 2017 8:38 AM
> *To:* 'Global Straw Building Network' <gsbn at sustainablesources.com>
> *Subject:* Re: [GSBN] energy efficiency.
>
> Dear Rikki
>
> The question is energy saving compared to what?
>
> We can build straw bale houses in low energy standard (according to the
> minimum energy standards)
> or even as passive house. So the energy saving in this case compared to a
> conventionally insulated house is zero.
> If you build with big bales, this may result (theoretically, without
> including windows) in half the energy consumption of a passive house.
>
> Important is the saving of preliminary energy compared to conventional
> insulations and the CO2-storage.
> According to Werner Schmidt: „Straw Bale Houses need only 10-15% of the
> preliminary energy of a conventinal house”.
>
> Compared to a concrete house a straw bale house needs 50 times less energy
> in production (source: GrAT, TU Vienna)
>
> Liebe Grüße / kind regards
> Herbert Gruber
> asbn – austrian straw bale network
> ph: 0043 2958 83640
> mobile: 0043 650 22 16 812
> asbn at baubiologie.at
> www.baubiologie.at
> www.strawbuilding.eu (ESBA – European Straw Building Association)
>
>
> *Von:* Gsbn [mailto:gsbn-bounces at sustainablesources.com
> <gsbn-bounces at sustainablesources.com>] *Im Auftrag von *Rikki Nitzkin
> *Gesendet:* Freitag, 12. Mai 2017 13:06
> *An:* Global Straw Building Network
> *Betreff:* [GSBN] energy efficiency.
>
> Hi,
> A reporter for a National newspaper here in Spain wants to write an
> article on SB.
>
> She asks me: what is the % of energy savings in a SB house?
>
> Can anyone give me a ball-park figure? o a link to somewhere with reliable
> data?
>
> I usually compare the centimeters of insulation in a conventional house,
> to that of SB. But I don’t have the data on what the difference is in real
> savings…
>
> thanks, Rikki
>
> Rikki Nitzkin
> Strawbale Building and Clay Plaster:
> education, consulting, and building
> www.tallerconco.org
> https://www.facebook.com/TallerConCo
>
> tallerconco at gmail.com
> (+ 34) 657 335 162 <+34%20657%2033%2051%2062>
>
> <image001.png>
> Coordinator & Professional Member of:
> <image002.png>
>
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