Norbert and Bill have done well responding to your genuine but uniformed
skepticism.
There is indeed a great deal of research, experimentation and serious
inquiry going on now about using SB. You would appreciate the ongoing
discussions about the behavior and monitoring of moisture in SB
construction. Check out the SB archives at :
http://solstice.crest.org/efficiency/strawbale-list-archive/index.html
It is not in the service of "consciousness raising" as you politely put
it. It is economically on par with most other sheathing systems with
the additional value of superior insulating qualities, regional
availability, low embodied energy, and the absence of alot of chemical
processing.
One thing you are right about. SB isn't about to be a new industry
supported material. This is because it is simple, inexpensive and
straight-forward to obtain. You won't see slick brochures on it at your
next green building trade show. Don't mistake the sort of home grown
discussion about it for it's serious potential.
Please visit this page on my website for a brief positive overview of SB
construction and introductory web links:
http://www.cstone.net/edc/html/grsb.htm
Best wishes.
Tom
-- Thomas A. Fisher Architectural Design & Envionmental Design Collaborative http://www.cstone.net/edc/index1.htm __________________________________________________________________ This greenbuilding dialogue is sponsored by Oikos (www.oikos.com) and Environmental Building News (www.ebuild.com). For instructions send e-mail to greenbuilding-request@crest.org. __________________________________________________________________