Bales of Straw Keep Foxwood Resort's New Chinook Cottage Cool & Cozy - By Glenn Hasek
For more than 125 years after Foxwood Resort was founded in 1876 on the edge of Lake of Bays in the Muskoka area of Ontario, there was not a lot that was 'green' about the property - except for the surrounding scenery of course.
That all changed in 2002 when Rob and Julia Wallace purchased the resort that now includes 11 cottages. In 2005, a cottage by the name of Snowshoe was outfitted with a solar thermal system and in the last few days the owners opened Chinook, a new $450,000, 2,800-square-foot cottage built using straw bale construction.
“We are both eco-minded individuals,” Rob says. “We had a vision to make Foxwood an environmentally friendly resort.”
Getting Chinook built took time and a lot of research. Ground was broken for the cottage in May 2009, after which two months was spent digging the foundation. Construction was stopped during the resort’s busy season last summer. It resumed last fall when the roof and walls were added. The Wallaces, who will live in Chinook in the winter months, worked with Evolve Builders Group of Guelph, Ont., to build Chinook.
The structure of Chinook is similar to that of a post and beam building, with engineered studs. It took Evolve Builders Group a month to stack the straw bales properly and finish the walls.
Like Stacking Lego Blocks
“They stacked the bales like Lego blocks,” Rob says. “They put a mortar mix on the inside and outside. It is like icing a cake. The walls are about 16 inches in width. They keep the cottage quiet and very well insulated—at an R-50 level. There is no vapor barrier. The window boxes are deep because of the wall thickness. The home will be cool in the summer and warm in the winter.”
Contrary to what some believe, the walls do not create a fire hazard, Rob says. “I would be more worried about fire in a typical stick-built structure,” he says. “Fire is a non-issue.” Straw also does not attract pests because it has no nutritional value.
Also helping to keep the cottage energy efficient throughout the year is an on-demand, in-floor radiant heating system. Prior to pouring the concrete for the floors of Chinook, plastic pipes were positioned in the floor throughout the home. They connect to a propane-fired hot water system. A pump circulates the water within the floor.
“It produces a very even heat,” Rob says. “You don’t get hot spots. When you turn up the temperature, it gradually increases.”
Sun Heats Snowshoe’s Water
Snowshoe, a cottage with 1,400 feet of living space, also includes heated floors as well as a rooftop solar panel for hot water heating that is eight feet by eight feet in size. The solar thermal system generates enough hot water for heating Snowshoe and for the domestic hot water used by guests.
To reduce waste at the resort, recycling and composting are practiced and low-flow fixtures minimize water consumption. Rob and Julia raise bees and sell the honey to guests. Chickens produce eggs that children enjoy collecting. There is an organic garden and maple syrup is produced during the springtime.
Guests visiting the mostly seasonal resort two and one-half hours north of Toronto are given information upon arrival to help them learn about the property’s environmental initiatives.
All of the Wallaces’ efforts have paid off as they recently earned a 4 Green Leaf rating as part of the Audubon Green Leaf Eco-Rating Program.
This article first appeared on the Green Lodging News website. To sign up to receive the weekly Green Lodging News newsletter, go to www.greenlodgingnews.com. Glenn Hasek can be reached at [email protected].
