Cob Re: Carpet/cement per Pat

[Laurie Flood]

Stephen H. Kapit wrote:

> Where in the Sierra's are you? Nevada City?
>
> Stephen
>
> Laurie Flood wrote:
>
> > Don Stephens wrote:
> >
> > > The common confusion with earth is between INSULATION and
> MODERATION.
> > > as
> > > I indicated above, earth has a very poor ability to insulate -
> prevent
> > > the
> > > transfer (escape/intrusion) of heat.  On the other hand it has a
> high
> > > mass
> > > which very effectively moderates temperatures - it takes a lot of
> heat
> > > to
> > > warm it up, a lot of cold to cool it down.  This means if your day
>
> > > temperature is ~ 20 F. but it drops to - 10 F. overnight, the soil
>
> > > surface
> > > in the morning will have dropped down almost to the - 10, but even
>
> > > just 3"
> > > down the soil will remain an AVERAGE of all the temperatures of
> the
> > > past
> > > week - say ~ 15.  So the underlying roof won't "see" those
> short-term
> > > overnight drops.  Likewise, in summer, if you have two or three
> > > blazing
> > > days of + 105 F., under even three inches of dirt your roof will
> never
> > >
> > > "see"  it, instead remaining the several week day/night average of
> say
> > > ~
> > > 75 F.!
> > >
> > > Also the PLANT LIFE on top will reduce windchill and increase air
> film
> > >
> > > insulation factors in winter and the shading and transpiration
> cooling
> > > it
> > > provides will help in summer.
> > >
> > > So plants/dirt on top shield against short-term weather extremes,
> but
> > > to
> > > prevent the slow penitration of outdoors summer heat or the slow
> > > escape of
> > > indoors winter warmth, you want INSULATION, and at R-.2/inch, it's
>
> > > just
> > > too expensive to suport the R-40 (almost 17 feet!) you would
> > > theoretically
> > > need in some northern climates,
> > >
> > > I say "theoretically"  because the soil's thermal flywheel effect
> is
> > > such
> > > that it takes (in dry soil) about a month for heat to travel 18",
> so
> > > in 6
> > > months (9' of soil)  your winter heat would be escaping but it
> > > wouldn't
> > > matter because you'd enjoy that cooling 'cause it would be summer!
>
> > > They
> > > use that principle in Australia (See AUSTRALIAN EARTH-COVERED
> BUILDING
> > > by
> > > Baggs - Rog, have you seen that one?) to let summer sun arrive in
> > > winter
> > > and winter cool arrive in summer, but it means holding up
> hellacious
> > > amounts of dirt with "hell-fer-stout" concrete roofs and walls.
> They
> > > should discover subsurface insulation as a way to hugely deminish
> > > those
> > > loads. (As I've indicated before, I'm into minimizing concrete for
>
> > > eco-reasons.)
> > >
> > >
> >
> > Don,
> >
> > I am interested in this, because it is my situation.  What would you
>
> > recommend in a very cold and wet winter climate (heavy snow and
> rain) in
> > terms of a balance of insulation and moderation?  I notice that you
> say
> > that dry soil has the best thermal flywheel effect.  That is not the
>
> > winter reality here.  How could I best get the insulation and
> > moderation, or is the moderation only possible with dry soil i.e.
> how
> > much subsurface insulation and how much soil on top?
> >
> > Thanks in advance,
> >
> > Laurie Flood
> > 4,500' level in N. Sierra (Thinking of trying to move to 6,000'+)
>
> --
> Stephen H. Kapit
> DreamTime Newsletter
> http://www.dreamtime.net
>
> The DreamTime newsletter is spiritually based and focused on higher
> consciousness and new paradigm living.  Predictions on investments and
>
> global events are also included.

 Yes, same general "spitting distance" - Pollock Pines, along Highway
50.  45 minutes from South Lake Tahoe

Laurie Flood