Straw Around House

[big rockpile]

I have no Foundation and have Coragated Metal going all the way to the ground.But a lot of cold air comes up under it.

If i take Straw put it around the House will it Rust the Metal out?

big rockpile

[anniew]

BR,
I don't know about rust, but I would think it would draw mice and such.
Ann

[big rockpile]

I would worry about that too but with the Dogs and Cats they seem to keep them down to basicaly nothing.

big rockpile

[Hurricane Kurt]

I have used bales of straw as insulation at the old farmhouse I stay in while deer hunting. It works pretty well when kept in bales and stacked but once it gets wet it stays wet. After removing the bales in summer from the previous winter and dealing with the huge mess it made I started covering the bales in plastic.

I think your right being concerned about rust. If it were me I would put tarps on the bottom of the house covering the ground where the bales will be as well as the metal. Then after stacking the bales I'd cover them in plastic really good. If you can keep the straw dry you should be fine.

Kurt

[Alex]

Sell some bales, and buy some plastic, rigid insulation, and glue.

Glue some plastic to the inside of your metal, and to the floor (if you have a floor). Then glue two-inches of rigid insulation to the plastic. Protect with a sheet of plywood, or drywall.

Good luck.

Alex

[insanity]

I would also be concerned with moisture.

You might use this insulation under the house,against the underpinning or up flat against the floor joist.(shouldnt be to hard to put it aginst the floor joist,you could staple it or nail with roofing nails) I put some on the back of my grandmothers house to cover some cracks before vinyl siding it.Really easy stuff to work with, and as long as you duck tape the cracks where two pieces meet then the R-value should be pretty high.
http://www.lowes.com/lkn?action=prod...22-CP-14%20LOW

[uncle Will in In.]

If you can get some more steel to match whats on there now, you can cut it up into pieces a foot or so long, and shove them into the ground a bit, then fasten the tops to the metal wall already there. You'd have a perminent fix. A little latex caulk would seal them at the top.

[big rockpile]

The Metal is all the way to the ground.Just don't have no Insulation behind it.And I can't get to the inside.But plenty of cold air comes up through there.

big rockpile

[MorrisonCorner]

We used straw for years... and Kurt is right, they get wet and stay wet. Hauling them away in the spring was a job we all dreaded.

Our house was stick construction, but built on concrete pilings, so in essence, a stick constructed trailer, without the advantage of good corners (because of the round tubes everything sat on). We decided we had two choices: try to seal the foundation, or try to insulate the floor. Since we couldn't get under the house (like you can't) we decided to go with insulating the floor.

From the inside.

We haunted garage sales and auctions and amassed a collection of carpets. The ones that weren't so nice we put on the bottom, the nice ones went on top. We looked a little like Lawrence of Arabia when we got done, but it worked!

The base is a thick carpet pad used for expensive orientals, and that wasn't cheap. But it is wool felt on one side and rubber on the other. Rubber side down it pretty much blocks anything. Over that is one or several if one isn't big enough, area rugs.. and over the first layer of area rugs are the "pretty rugs." It lifts the entire floor up by about an inch, but it made a HUGE difference in how comfortable the house was.

[Alex]

Well. OK. How about installing cement board down about six-inches underground, and about six-inches above ground. Then attach to the metal and seal space with fiberglass and then seal with silicone, or something else.

Good luck.

Alex

[sue currin]

here in maine we put up plastic and let it spread out on to the ground for a good foot, then when it gets cold enough so nothing will melt we put the bails of straw around the house. we thke it away before the mud seasion and store it for the next year, no rot, no mold, no air coming in to your house

[cc-rider]

I haven't tried it, but I've seen houses where they put a bale of straw inside of those big, black plastic trashbags and tied the end up. Then they stacked the black bales around their foundation. I would think that would solve the wetness issue, plus make hauling them out in the spring easier. Plus, it didn't look too bad, either!

Hmmmm.... I wonder if you could just fill the trashbags with leaves and stack those?? Cheaper, lighter, dump them in the compost in the spring...

[pamda]

i read in mother earth mews allloongg time back about someone using the black trash bag and leaf thing and then come spring the leaves were spread on the garden for mulch or compost. sounds like a good idea, two birds with one stone thing pam

[pamda]

well my spelling is as usual up to par lol

[FairviewFarm]

My best friend puts bales of straw around the skirted base of her mobile home each winter here in Wisconsin. First they wait until the ground is frozen to deter mice moving in. Second they wrap each bale in a 55 gallon plastic bag so that the bale doesn't act as a sponge.

[goatlady]

I stacked bales 2 high around the plywood skirted mobile on the North and Northwest sides about 5 years ago and have had no problem with mice and it sure cut down on the cold floors. My biggest problem has been the neighbor's buffs jumping the fence and trying to eat the things! They were tied with that orange plastic twine and only 1 bales has busted and they have kept their shape just fine even with snow and rain over the years. Just my experience but it has worked just fine.

[Little Quacker in OR]

Yo! Rocky! LOL I don't pretend to have any expertise in this area. But I am wondering if you are in a house or mobile? I ask because I am in a mobile and about five years ago was getting a LOT of cold air in here. Investigation showed that it was coming from the heater vents. Further investigation(meaning I had to crawl under there..YUK!)showed that the "pipes"(?)going from heater to vents were poorly attached and had absolutely NO insulation around them!
A good buddy came over, attached them securely, added insulation to all of the flexible pipes and no more cold air!
I know you have probably already thought of this but wanted to throw it in anyway just in case it might be adding to your problem.

Good luck and a warm winter...LQ