Berkeley Cob Project

[vtrac]

>
>the berkeley cob project is going slowly - we've been limited to cobbing only
>on weekends & have gotten about 1/2 way thru the cob in a month
>-we're having difficulty getting a consistent turnout of experienced cobbers
>-we're mixing the earth, sand & water in a small cement mixer & foot mixing
>the straw into this on tarps - it cuts the labor way down - i recommend it
>over all foot stomping
>- its quickly becomes very clear to anyone building with cob that some form of
>mechanized mixing is key to getting the building done with any thing
>resembeling efficiency of your personal time expenditure
>-I envision some forward looking production cobber to be inventing a cob
>machine run by some quiet form of alternative energy (electric motors powered
>by solar panels) or (a horse ?) or (a wood fired steam engine) that you can
>back up to your material source & which will extrude cob out the other end
>faster than you can build with it
>-when this happens - well - watch out. the muds gonna hit the fan & we'll see
>cob take its place in the competative world of making buily shelter for
>people.
>-make you the mud
>cob on
>john fordice
>otherfish at aol.com

Hey John,

I'd love to help you down there in Berkley where I think the weather is a
heck of alot drier and warmer than on the mid Coast of British Columbia. I
can certainly relate to how slow the building can be. We will be going into
our third building season next year on our 900 round ft cob cafe. Hopefully
we can finish the bulk of the work next summer but probably only if we
employ some mechanical mixing to speed up the process.

I would like to know more about the cement mixer you are using - its size,
how well it works and any other info you can share with us. I have heard
mortar mixers work better, then I have heard that stucco mixers are the
best, and recently I found out that at the art college here in Vancouver
they use a large dough mixer for mixing potter's clay which works very
well. We are going to be looking out for a machine to possibly
purchase/rent for next spring so I am gathering whatever info you can share
with us.

Thanks so much and good luck.

Ian Marcuse
Down to Earth Building Bee