anybody ever insulate with hay bales?

[chad]

my house is on the top of a giant hill, and have a huge sliding glass door that forces north.

i did the plastic insulation thing on the inside, and then today, i spent $20 and bought 11 hay bales. i then piled them n front of the door on the outside (covering it up).

think this will help, or did i just waste $20?

[Dogman]

my house is on the top of a giant hill, and have a huge sliding glass door that forces north.

i did the plastic insulation thing on the inside, and then today, i spent $20 and bought 11 hay bales. i then piled them n front of the door on the outside (covering it up).

think this will help, or did i just waste $20?


chad there are houses out there that are built out of bales as the core of the outside walls and they mostly do not need to be heated or cooled much if done right.

Need to find links. http://www.buildingwithawareness.com/Movies2.html

Edit: There is a world of info just google hay bale house.

In answer to your question bales make Great insulation!

[mamboni]

my house is on the top of a giant hill, and have a huge sliding glass door that forces north.

i did the plastic insulation thing on the inside, and then today, i spent $20 and bought 11 hay bales. i then piled them n front of the door on the outside (covering it up).

think this will help, or did i just waste $20?


Great insulation - critters love it. I hope you have an outdoor cat and lots of rodent traps. ;D

[chad]

my house is on the top of a giant hill, and have a huge sliding glass door that forces north.

i did the plastic insulation thing on the inside, and then today, i spent $20 and bought 11 hay bales. i then piled them n front of the door on the outside (covering it up).

think this will help, or did i just waste $20?


Great insulation - critters love it. I hope you have an outdoor cat and lots of rodent traps. ;D


:soap

[mamboni]

my house is on the top of a giant hill, and have a huge sliding glass door that forces north.

i did the plastic insulation thing on the inside, and then today, i spent $20 and bought 11 hay bales. i then piled them n front of the door on the outside (covering it up).

think this will help, or did i just waste $20?


Great insulation - critters love it. I hope you have an outdoor cat and lots of rodent traps. ;D


:soap



My wife won't let me bring a bale of hay within 50 feet on the house - she is TERRIFIED of rodents. The hay for my chicken coup is kept in a galvanized steel can!

[chad]

i am counting on the bald eagles, hawks, and other assorted flying death machines here to take of them for me. ;D

[beefsteak]

There was a time when I used Hay Bales for winter insulation, and doubled it on the East Side, from which cometh our bad weather. I also bought a honking fire-extinguisher. Uncovered hay bales are subject to spontaneous combustion. If you've ever seen or tried to put out a hayfire, you won't stop to ask why.

Better yet? Buy 2 and keep them by that door. A glass door is not a 30min fire rating divider like 5/8" Sheetrock over fire rated rockwool insulation batts which have been covered by vizqueen in order to create a vapor barrier.

beefsteak

[chad]

i'll put an estinguisher down there, but doesn't hay have to "get hot" to combust?

the warmest it will get here all winter is maybe 35 degrees. most of the winter we're at zero or close. :conf:

[mamboni]

i am counting on the bald eagles, hawks, and other assorted flying death machines here to take of them for me. ;D


Well, we have red tail hawks that hunt the property and still mice and squirrel roam free. My schnauzers are useless - they prefer Iams.

[Dogman]

i'll put an estinguisher down there, but doesn't hay have to "get hot" to combust?

the warmest it will get here all winter is maybe 35 degrees. most of the winter we're at zero or close. :conf:


Hay is organic and just like a composting heap for a garden if it gets wet inside it can start to decompose, just like in a composting heap for a garden, and yes it can get hot inside,

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sVpY1iH4AdI (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sVpY1iH4AdI)

If you keep it dry , Not a problem, but if it gets wet deep enough in the bale, can be a problem.

[Dogman]

i am counting on the bald eagles, hawks, and other assorted flying death machines here to take of them for me. ;D


Well, we have red tail hawks that hunt the property and still mice and squirrel roam free. My schnauzers are useless - they prefer Iams.


Get a rat terrier, non stop while awake, drive you nuts but the critters will be history.

[chad]

i've been looking at some of these hay bale safety sites, it says they have to get well over 100 degrees to combust.

i have a hard time believing the center of these bales can get anywhere close to 100 degrees when it is 20 degrees outside.

what am i missing here?

[zap]

Maybe some of the haybalers can chime in, I baled some alfalfa for a few years when I was young, I don't think hay will just get hot, We used a tester when baling to check the moisture content, to much moisture would insure hot hay. You don't want that !!!!!

Chime in haybalers ! ;)

Edit; so if the hay wasn't baled properly the bales will be hot inside already no matter what the outside temp is.

edit again; I think it has to do with the curing and pressures of the baling itself not just because it is sitting wet.

[chad]

it's going to be sitting outside in the snow and rain, so it will be wet. it already is soaked, actually.

[madfranks]

Hay bale insulation is good cause it's cheap, plus the R-value (insulation value) of hay bales are approximately the same as fiberglass batt insulation, that is, approx R-3 per inch. If you're planning on building or installing permanent hay bale assemblies, you must protect them from excessive moisture while at the same time allowing them to vent. If they get wet they need to dry or they will rot and decompose. Also, as pointed out already, critters will find it to be a perfect home so again, if it's going to be permanent, make sure you critter proof it.

[chad]

not going to be permanent, i'm going to use it as mulch come spring. thanks for all of this great info guys, keep it coming!

[freespirit]

it's going to be sitting outside in the snow and rain, so it will be wet. it already is soaked, actually.


...once it gets soaked, then freezes, it will be like a block wall...it'll block the wind just fine, but won't have the R value...i would suggest you cover it with a tarp, but now that they are already soaked, this point may be moot...

[gunDriller]

i've been looking at some of these hay bale safety sites, it says they have to get well over 100 degrees to combust.

i have a hard time believing the center of these bales can get anywhere close to 100 degrees when it is 20 degrees outside.

what am i missing here?


actually, with the proper chemistry (nitrogen rich mixture including manure) it will get to 160 degrees F.

the process is known as hot composting. it's fun - maybe it appeals to the inner pyromaniac ? ;D

http://www.sonomacompost.com/images/home.jpg

that's steam rising at some of the piles at Sonoma Compost. they have a 22 acre facility and take in about 350 tons a day (for which they charge $35 a ton). the management is a team of 2, a business manager (Jewish guy who got the exclusive contract from the county) and a technical guy, a retired Berkeley soil science prof. i took a hands-on class from the soil science guy.

he's very experienced and insists that outside temperatures do not affect the inside temp of the piles. i.e. when it's in the 20's in Sonoma County, his compost piles still heat up to 160.

that doesn't entirely make sense to me, but he's got a lot more experience.

[SLV^GLD]

i've been looking at some of these hay bale safety sites, it says they have to get well over 100 degrees to combust.

i have a hard time believing the center of these bales can get anywhere close to 100 degrees when it is 20 degrees outside.

what am i missing here?
The composting action is exothermic and it release some volatile gases. Many a barn has burned down thanks to composting hay bales providing the fuel and the accelerant for a spark or hot ash to ignite.

[MNeagle]

my house is on the top of a giant hill, and have a huge sliding glass door that forces north.

i did the plastic insulation thing on the inside, and then today, i spent $20 and bought 11 hay bales. i then piled them n front of the door on the outside (covering it up).

think this will help, or did i just waste $20?


I think you just blocked a potential fire exit. :-\

[freespirit]

my logic tells me that once they get frozen solid, they will most likely act as a huge heat sink, drawing more heat from the home...regardless of the film on the inside of the door....the only way they'll work right is if they're dry, and covered to keep them that way...IMHO

curious to hear how it turns out....

[TheNocturnalEgyptian]

There is a method of construction that may interest you. It is four things:

1) Wooden Frames
2) Hay Insulation
3) Hung Drywall
4) Weather-proof Stucco

It is cheap. It is relatively easy to set up with only a small community of people. It is light. It is easy to move, even on foot without mechanized power. With a good foundation, it is strong enough to support a two story abode with the entire roof as a patio : )

[Book]

hay is flammable, decomposes, and is a great home for vermin.

Fiberglass is cheap.

:dunno

[MNeagle]

Or insulated drapes!

[chad]

been about a week. it's noticeably warmer by the door and down in the basement in general. they seem to be working.