With the depletion of the world’s fossil fuel resources, more and more people have been coming up with alternative ways to generate their own home energy. But more importantly people are coming up with simple ways of generating their own electricity and are not only supplying their own modest energy needs but supplying power back to the grid and joining the growing numbers of people becoming “energy independent” and potentially...

Straw as a building material has been used for thousands of years. Because of its durability and insulation properties, it is still popular as a material used in roof thatching. Straw is a by product from the agricultural production of grain and for that reason it is readily available. In the past straw was used on farms for thatching and for bedding animals. With with the mechanisation of agriculture in the 19th Century straw became more...