[GSBN] FW: Strawbale and termites

Thu Aug 26 03:50:06 UTC 2010

Dear all,

I’m forwarding an off-list exchange between Alex Cicelsky and me (and a few
others) re: termites and strawbale buildings.  I’m interested to know from
anyone who has anything to report, whether there’s evidence that termites do
or don’t consume straw in regions where you live or work.

Thanks.

Martin

PS – John Glassford saw one or more of the e-mails below, thus explaining
his reference to Alex in his last e-mail to the GSBN.

------ Forwarded Message
From: Alex Cicelsky <alex at lotan.ardom.co.il>
Date: Wed, 25 Aug 2010 16:48:47 +0300
To: martin hammer <mfhammer at pacbell.net>
Subject: Fwd: IGCC SB codes comments from GSBN

Martin,

Resounding Yes – termites do consume straw.  In our region the termites live
in the ground and create covered pathways up into floors and walls.  Bales
stored on the ground become infected quickly.  When we placed bales on the
parking lot tarmac/asphalt, we found numerous incidents of holes bored in
the asphalt and the bale being devoured by hungry bugs. 

Building techniques from the northern regions of Israel become targets for
termites and other moist-ground based pests.  For example, the normative way
of flooring here, when the house's walls are commonly prefab concrete or
concrete blocks, is to pour a slab on grade, install the water pipes (PEX)
in interior walls and lay them on the slab until the reach a common junction
unit, cover the pipes with sand and floor with terrazo (square pollished
concrete and large aggregate) or ceramic tiles. Wooden door frames reach the
slab – i.e. are in contact with the sand.  Termites make a bridge from the
outside earth and travel freely through the sand.  They and wood worms eat
away the door frames, go up into wooden cabinets, etc.  We've tried to keep
a dry perimeter around houses to both reduce the proximiity of pests and to
protect the concrete foundations from the moist, corrosive earth (in our
area alluvium and/or sand), but people like gardens up against the walls and
the moisture wicks quickly to dryer areas.  Once a floor is infected holes
are drilled along the interior perimeter and poisons are injected.

Researchers that recently came pointed out 3 varieties of termites in the
ground.  The researchers explained that the termites need to live deep in
the earth, but have no qualms with establishing long supply lines.

Case in point: our newest building is badly infected with termites.  The
builders installed flashing around the tops of the concrete foundation posts
instead of installing a full plate.  The termites found a way under the
flashing and up into the walls. We did not see this because the termites
travelled up the foundation under a stucco layer with an internal air gap.
 They ate so much of the straw bales that a window sill collapsed and we
found a light remnent of moist straw (moisture brought by the termites?)
inside of the hollow earth plaster shell. 

We also find that the termites will bore into cob and even mud-chaff bricks
left on the ground.

Feel free to post this on the GSBN.  You may also want John Glassford's
input (he helped me with the full foundation plate concept).

Photos:
Toe up (poured concrete) and full termite plate covered with gravel
http://picasaweb.google.com/alex.cicelsky/LotanBuildingWithMud#5432890821599
159810
Concrete block "foundations" (more correctly just bases) with full termite
plate for geodome houses of ecocampus
http://picasaweb.google.com/ciclotan/KibbutzLotanCenterForCreativeEcologySEc
oCampus#5314222191355318770
http://picasaweb.google.com/ciclotan/KibbutzLotanCenterForCreativeEcologySEc
oCampus#5314222252954294754
http://picasaweb.google.com/ciclotan/KibbutzLotanCenterForCreativeEcologySEc
oCampus#5314222693929639730
more photos available via sidebar albums on www.alexlotan.blogspot.com
<http://www.alexlotan.blogspot.com/>

As for Pakistan and Haiti: its easy to find out if the termites like wood by
looking under wood or cardboard that has been left lying on the ground for a
while.  My experience is in a hyper-arid region.  Good workmanship and
details is the best insurance – the best way to solve the problem is to make
every effort to avoid it.  Graeme's comments on overhangs are very relevent
for us too because when it does rain once or twice a year, it comes with
high winds and the water finds every leak in the roof and pounds the
plasters hard.  

Alex 

From: martin hammer [mailto:mfhammer at pacbell.net]
Sent: Tuesday, August 24, 2010 2:17 PM
To: Alex Cicelsky (Kibbutz Lotan)
Cc: andrew at wdarchitects.com.au; mvital at zahav.net.il; strawnet at gmail.com;
larskeller at livinghouses.net
Subject: Re: IGCC SB codes comments from GSBN

Dear Alex,

Thanks for your input.  Yes, the R-values should also be in SI units, and
possibly the conductivity values shown as well.  

Re: your comment #1, do you find that termites consume straw in Israel or
other places you’ve worked?  To my knowledge termites (and other insects)
have not been found to consume straw except for minor problems with one
species in the American southwest.  

Recently I was told by an engineering professor from Pakistan that termites
there do not eat straw.  It was one area I was unsure about.  I helped
Darcey Donovan introduce SB buildings in northern Pakistan in 2006, where
they continue to be constructed.  In earlier iterations of the Pakistan
design, Darcey had included a termite shield.  We abandon it because there
were practical difficulties, but it remained a question.  That question has
apparently been put to rest, although I would like confirmation from another
source.  

I am now looking into this same question in Haiti, where I am about to
introduce SB construction, and where termites are ravenous with wood.

An argument can be made to install a termite shield in SB buildings even if
termites don’t consume straw, whenever wood is in the building
(post-and-beam, door/windows and their frames, or even roofs).  Especially
if earthen plasters are used and a local termite species might tunnel its
way through the plaster to get to the wood (as opposed termites that create
tunnels on the face of foundations to provide their path, thereby showing
evidence and providing opportunity for action).

Are you proposing to require termite shields because you know of termites
that consume straw, or because of the vulnerability of wood that might be in
straw bale buildings?

Thanks.

Martin

Martin Hammer, Architect
1348 Hopkins St.
Berkeley, CA  94702
510-525-0525 (office)
510-684-4488 (cell)

On 8/24/10 2:21 AM, "Alex Cicelsky" <alex at lotan.ardom.co.il> wrote:
From: Alex Cicelsky (Kibbutz Lotan) <alex at klotan.co.il>
Date: 2010/8/24
Subject: IGCC SB codes comments from GSBN
To: Martin Hammer <mfhammer at pacbell.net>
Cc: Andrew Webb <andrew at wdarchitects.com.au>, Michal Vital מיכל ויטל
 <mvital at zahav.net.il>, "David Eisenberg (strawnet at gmail.com)"
<strawnet at gmail.com>, "Lars Keller (larskeller at livinghouses.net)"
<larskeller at livinghouses.net>

Dear Martin,
Thanks to you and all for moving this forward with the IGCC.

In reference to comments #5-136 Strawbale Construction,  #5-134 Straw-Clay
and #5-135 Earthen Materials in document
http://www.iccsafe.org/cs/IGCC/Documents/PublicComments0810/07-Chapter-05.pd
f: 
1. I suggest that termite (and other pest) barriers be included.  To be
specific, a continuous steel barrier across the foundation including a
down-turned edge extending past the exterior and interior faces of the
foundation are a necessity in areas (drylands and deserts like ours) where
termites are prevalent.  I do not know what the US code is for this is – I
believe the Australian code is AS 3660.1-2000 [cc: Andrew Webb].
2. R values: a. please add SI/Imperial units to the R values, and b. if
possible include the conductivity values of the materials [used by the
ISO/European building community].

With great appreciation,
Alex

Alex Cicelsky
Director of Research and Development
Center for Creative Ecology
Kibbutz Lotan
D.N. Eilot 88855 Israel
Tel: +972-(0)54-979-9009
Email: alex at klotan.co.il
Website: www.kibbutzlotan.com <http://www.kibbutzlotan.com>
<http://www.kibbutzlotan.com/>
www.youtube.com/user/KibbutzLotan <http://www.youtube.com/user/KibbutzLotan>
<http://www.youtube.com/user/KibbutzLotan>

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