Early warning of potential problems
Straw bale houses are usually great places to live, with good acoustics and a remarkably stable indoor humidity due to the breathing walls and the buffering effect of the straw.
But water ingress is potentially a problem for the walls of most straw bale houses. Although good construction techniques and materials minimise the likelihood of the problem occuring, water can enter the wall without the problem being visible from the exterior or interior of the building. Once the moisture content exceeds a certain level, somewhere between 18% and 23%, accelerated biological decomposition of the straw will start, and if the excessive moisture level is not quickly detected, the building envelope will become less healthy. In the worst cases, the structural stability of the wall can be compromised over a period of months or years.
By installing a LongLastStraw monitor/logger/alarm, and placing up to 16 sensors in positions that are likely to be the most moisture-exposed, you will get an alarm if the moisture level at any one of the sensor positions exceeds a pre-determined threshold. This alarm will enable you do do preventative maintenance before any serious damage occurs.
In addition, the logging function will give you a good idea of changes in the moisture content of the walls over seasonal fluctuations, thus enabling you also to see if any gradual changes are taking place in the moisture load of your building.
At any time, you can get a reading of the current moisture levels, or recall the most recent automatic reading. The automatic readings are normally taken either once an hour (for R.H. sensors) or once every 24 hours (for direct reading sensors)..