Cob Zoning . . .

[Shannon C. Dealy]

On Mon, 28 Jul 1997, Holly ;-D wrote:

> I want to build a cob or cob/strawbale home and I'm curious
> as to what problems,people have had getting building permits,
> both for the cob building itself and for other not-the-norm
> options such as earthen floors.
> 
> Also, for those building in cooler, wetter climates than NM,
> Arizona, or Texas (such as Oregon or Iowa) what special building
> practices have you used that wouldn't have been necessary in
> dry, frost-free zones?  What kind of foundations would be used
> in a cob dwelling in a frost area - since cob walls are typically
> much thicker than conventional housing, do you just use the
> same foundation recommendations expanded for thicker cob walls,
> or do you do something different that would be more appropriate
> (and hopefully cheaper?)

Cob buildings have received agricultural building permits (i.e. you're not
supposed to live in it though people do anyway), but I am not aware of any
cob buildings in the U.S. that were built using a regular residential
building permit.  In some areas, no permits are required, in other areas
some people decide to go renegade and don't bother with the permits.
While there is no garantee they will get away with it, usually the worst
that can happen is that the local courts will make you tear it down.  If
you do go renegade, this means that you cannot hook up services directly
to your building, since power, water, gas, etc. are required to get a
permit in order to provide you with the connection (telephone does not
require a permit in at least some areas) and if there is not
(officially) a building there, then what is it they are connecting to?  I
have heard that some people have used an old existing building or mobile
home on their lot to provide the legitimate connections which they then
hookup to whatever experimental structure they are building.

If you live in the Southwest, I would imagine that earthen floors shouldn't
be to much of a problem, since they are traditional in that area and are
still being used (I could be wrong, anyone who actually knows?).  In other
areas of the country, it might be more difficult since generally building
officials don't seem to interested in approving anything new to them (the
burden is generally on you to prove that no one will get hurt and the
house won't fall down).

For foundations, Cob Cottage Company generally likes to use a rubble
trench with a stone wall that extends about 1 foot above grade.  The
foundation at the top is the same width as the base of the wall (usually
about 14" to 20") and is somewhat wider at the base (below ground).


Shannon Dealy
dealy at deatech.com