Fw: Cob: Seismic Effects

[John Gorman]

> Hi John Fordice and fellow cobbers,
>
> I would very much like to see you re-post the information about
> strengthening cob structures.  I have not yet build my cob "dream" but
> honestly have reservations about going to bed with my head a foot away
from
> a cob wall then being jolted  awake by a 7, 8, or 9 magnitude earthquake.
A
> cob wall falling on me or my family is a horrifying thought. Even though
cob
> is my preferred building material, because of it's eco-advantages and
> affordability, I will turn to straw bale, tires or another innovative plan
> if I can't be convinced that my home won't crumble as those that have
> recently in El Salvador and India (I don't know how many crumbled
buildings
> were earthen structures but understand that many adobe structures in ES
were
> destroyed.)
>
> It seems logical (no scientific basis) that compressing a beam to the top
of
> cob walls which is bolted to vertical steel or wooden supports embedded in
> the cob and fastened to the foundation would help keep the wall together
in
> the up-and-down "wave" motion of a quake and may help in side-to-side
> "whipping" movement as well.  I have seen postings that refute this,
> however.  I have also imagined running rebar through the walls, tied into
a
> concrete or stone foundation.  Of course these measures detract from some
of
> the main benefits of cob...simplicity and reliance on local,
earth-friendly
> materials.
>
> JG
>
>
> ----- Original Message -----
> From: "John Fordice" <otherfish at home.com>
> To: "John Gorman" <johnwgorman at yahoo.com>
> Cc: <coblist at deatech.com>
> Sent: Thursday, March 01, 2001 6:02 PM
> Subject: Re: Cob: Seismic Effects
>
>
> > To John G. & all cobbers,
> > The seismic event in Washington yesterday points out the need to take
> > earthquakes seriously, no matter where you are, when you build with cob.
> >  Western Oregon, Washington & B.C. all fall into the Uniform Building
> > Code classification of Earthquake Zone 3.  While this is not as severe
> > as the Zone 4 classification in California, it is still a high risk
> > zone.  For other areas of a less sever classification, the risk is still
> > there in that there may be unknown faults which could be the source
> > otherwise unexpected earthquakes.  When it comes to building with a
> > heavy and non flexible material like earth, it is best ( in my opinion )
> > to be safe rather than sorry.  An earthquake is potentially possible no
> > matter where you build on the planet.  So don't mess around - build
> > safe.  Pushing the envelope is fine, but do it in a way that won't kill
> > you or somebody else who just happens to be in your building.
> >
> > I'm hopeful that John's query brings info to the list that helps us to
> > see that cob in Western North America has shown itself to indeed be
> > earthquake safe & how this was attained.
> >
> > For anyone who is interested, I posted to the list recently about this &
> > how it is relatively easy to include earthquake stability elements in
> > your cob building. This can be found in the Archive or I'll repost it if
> requested.
> >
> > cob on
> > john fordice
> > maker of cobbers thumbs
> > TCCP
> >
> > > John Gorman wrote:
> > >
> > > Are there any owners/caretakers of cob structures in the Pacific
> > > Northwest that can speak to how the buildings survived the temblor
> > > yesterday?  I am especially interested in knowing about buildings in
> > > the Seattle/Olympia area, which was near the epicenter.  Also, if you
> > > could speak about the foundation type and any structural strengthening
> > > aspects your building may have that would give a more complete
> > > picture.
> > > Thanx
> > > John,
> > > Portland, OR
> > >
> > >
>


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