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There are 3 types of code approval:

1. Building code approval, which is known as the SABS (South African Bureau of Standards) 0400 National Building Regulations ....do not include straw bale in the codes, however they make provision for the approval of indigenous building materials in their "deemed to satisfy" rules. Thus with the appointment of a structural Engineer to the project, (who carries the structural liability) one can quite easily get building plan approval. We have obtained approvals for at least 10 structures and know of at least 20 other structures approved across the country, in just about all the provinces.

2. The other form of approval used for alternate/new building systems is known as an Agreement Certificate and involves a whole lot of lab testing and large sums of money. This is typically used with various patented systems and is thus not applicable to generic types of buildings like Straw Bale.

3. The third form of approval is known as a Rational Design and would require an engineer to do extensive research around compliance with the Building Codes and how they relate the building methodology. If using international codes or tests one would need to relate this back to all the local SABS codes of practice .This method would require extensive research and an in depth understanding of our various SABS codes of practice.

Unfortunately at the moment the NHBRC is incredibly conservative (the codes do not even allow for structural stone walls!). They will not approve/sign off their NHBRC certificate of compliance unless the construction fits into an incredibly thin rule book. So it is relatively easy to obtain building plan approval despite its absence from our National Building Regulations. However to obtain any kind of bank finance or be free to sell your house in the first 5 years on the open market is pretty much impossible at present. We are trying our best to convince the NHBRC and the Minister of Housing, so hopefully in years to come we can also build Straw Bale buildings which are compliant as it is already the case in the most other countries.

A more recently established government regulatory body called the NHBRC or National Housing Building Regulatory Council...supposedly set up to protect the consumer. What has happened is that this new body has set itself up to insure the banks/consumers against poor workmanship. For all new houses (only applies to new homes!), the banks require that you register with the NHBRC. Should you need to sell your house within the first 5 years of it being built the banks will not finance the purchase of the house unless it carries a NHBRC certificate.

As far as Bank financing goes....you may have a problem. While it is possible to get the councils to approve your plans for straw bale or adobe, it is a different matter when it comes to the Banks. The bank requires you to register with the NHBRC, which in return does not approve of natural building technologies.

The loophole is to finance through extending the bond on another property...or build a starter house in conventional material ...i.e. a bathroom/service core, which is generally safer in conventional masonry anyway, passing this first phase as a finished new house. Then with this complete and signed off by the NHBRC, you then proceed with the rest of you house as an alteration, for which you do not need NHBRC registration.

Council approval is no problem as it has been done lots of times in South Africa. You just need to appoint a structural Engineer to the project (who carries the structural liability), then one can quite easily get building plan approval.

(Also please see “Are there any Straw Bale Codes in place in South Africa?" )

Most natural building systems are cheap when you can get the material locally and readily available ....And you do as much of it as possible yourself.....so if you are prepared to wait and do it slowly, (preferably like on site or near by) and do it bit by bit your self then provided you don't have to pay much for the material then you can build really cheaply. If you don’t want to do it yourself, then eco-friendly buildings can cost as much as conventional buildings.
(Also please see “How much will an Eco Building cost?” )

Our architectural service is either charged as a percentage of the project cost basis or on a time basis. We charge the standard rates as recommended by the Cape Institute of Architects. For more information please send us an e-mail.

It is impossible to accurately answer that question. It is like asking how long is a big ball of string....costs are all project specific.... dependant on the process, size & complexity/simplicity of brief & design, self involvement or not etc.
Some other inputs:

• Time, cost and quality are an interrelated whole....i.e. the faster you want it the more you pay. If you don't pay enough the quality suffers and so on....

• Straw bale is generally very fast and inexpensive....if you know what you are doing, are well prepared and have a good plan....we have a method of pre-stacking and then pre-dipping the bales in a slip to greatly speed up the plastering process. Can be timely or even disastrous if you don't know what you are doing!!

• Walls typically account for 20% of the total cost of a building!!! So you must also be prepared to save elsewhere.

• With the sandbag system the labour need not be skilled (saving cash)...but the bags / fabric is expensive...the "eco beams" in the walls can be replaced by simple timber ladders helping to cut down on costs. Also instead of using wire mesh and cement plaster you can use a primer coat of cob followed by earthen plasters internally and lime sand plasters externally.

• Cob is a very sturdy and versatile medium but can be very time consuming...though it helps alot if you get a way of mixing it real quick.

• Hemp would be quite expensive given one must import all the material at present.

(Also please see “Is an Eco Building cheaper then a conventional building?” )