We started a company called NaturBilt in 1998 dedicated to the use of natural, sustainable materials, natural building techniques and the use of re-purposed or reclaimed, post-consumer lumber and millwork. Our goal is to minimize environmental impact while maintaining function and beauty. We use recyclables whenever possible and although it might take a little more effort, for earth friendly folks it’s definitely worth it. People have said that our structures look like they “belong there”.

We have built four structures over the last 10 years starting with a small 12X12 outbuilding on a farm in central Wisconsin. It was far from the alternative techniques I have learned since then but it was a good first effort. We sided it with yellow pine “slab”, the cutoff material from lumber mills that is the leftovers from squaring the timbers for board-making. It looked natural and provided great weather protection and insulation. 

The next project was a “garden barn”. A 12x20, two story structure that was almost completely off the grid. We collaborated with an organization called the global Balance Institute and really learned allot. We used 80% recycled lumber, mostly from our own dumpster diving adventures. All windows and doors were recycled. We used a rubble trench foundation and a post and beam structure made of box beams half recycled 2x4s and half recycled plywood, screwed and glued. Once beams and cross ties were up we filled the beams with recycled packing peanuts for insulation purposes. The walls were straw bale, all straw coming from local farmers with whom we traded the hay that we had grown ourselves. We then completed the in-fill with cob and applied multiple coats of earth plaster. The roof was asphalt shingles that we bought for a dollar from a commercial roofing supplier because they were leftover partial lots. The upstairs floor was 21/2 inch pine tongue and groove flooring that we had taken in trade for some tear-out work we’d done. It was heated with an old hand-me-down wood burner. The upstairs “studio” was used for artwork and meditation and the downstairs for equipment storage.

We then began work on a “greenhouse”, a kidney shaped structure with an umbrella ceiling support using primarily cob and stacked cordwood on the North facing wall. It looked, in the planning stages very much like a hobbit house. It also had a rubble trench foundation. We to used recycled patio doors for the south facing ceiling and wall.

The next project was in the heart of suburbia. It was a 12x12 utility shed that was built to match the house in design and form. The house itself was an 1870’s vintage farmhouse, many times remodeled and added on to but a beautiful place complete with carriage house. The shed was built using only a small percentage of recycled lumber, however it was built to make maximum use of a relatively small land area and had a south facing roof designed to make maximum use of sunlight for heat and water collection and direction on the lot.

Our last and most ambitious project is the one whose pictures you can view in the photo gallery. It is our hybrid “show piece” built on a 3 acre, hilly and heavily wooded lot. Given the setback requirements for building we had no choice but to do a small amount of clearing so that the barn is set right in the woods. We actually built around one particularly beautiful and older oak. The only cutting was to the non-indigenous fast growth trees.

Because of the slope of the land (a 5/25 drop) we decided to use a cinder block base for our straw bale walls. The structure is post and beam. We were initially unsure whether to make the bales structural or to track down some recycled lumber when a friend of ours asked if I could use any old bleachers; and so started the hauling, stacking, ripping, trimming and planing of thousands of board feet of beautiful ponderosa pine. The whole place, from box beams to floor joists, from floors to paneling inside and out, from decking to trim. Every single piece of lumber with the exception of the plywood and cedar roof is made from recycled bleachers. 

We used about 130 bales of straw for our 16x24 two story structure all purchased locally. The windows and doors were all either recycled or purchased from ReStore, a Habitat for Humanity outlet that sells overstock or donated materials with all proceeds going back to Habitat. To finish the project we had a concrete floor poured over a recycled crushed concrete base. We put in a radiant heat system (trying to avoid burning wood for carbon savings but also for safety with a cedar roof. We laid in the PEX tubing, a simple 2 run design and installed a high efficiency 55 gallon water heater, simple pressure system and low voltage pump. There is a small office downstairs along with some equipment and the upstairs is used for meetings, guests and studio space.