Cob: $500 ??#$"#$!

Thu Jan 31 10:45:02 CST 2002

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<P>Thanks for all the great feedback, and answers to my questions. I did not mean to provoke even a mildly heated discussion. Sorry! I didn't think that I could build my own house for $500, but this is the only price I have seen placed on a cob structure, and I wanted to determine approximations for my own needs. I am very open to scrounging salvaged materials, but there are two difficulties in that 1) I currently have no idea how to distinguish quality materials, or even what materials I will need, and 2) I am staying with my parents to save money, and I don't think they are open to me creating a storage facility out of the lawn. =) My difficulty is that I work and live 5 hours from my building site, so building gradually is not as much of an option without moving to the area. I am still recovering from a very debilitating illness, but I feel confident about my ability to build with cob, just not while I am working at paid employment at the same time. This means that I would have to quit my job to build, thus necessitating a projected cost, and as I have absolutely no building experience, I need as much help as possible in determining a realistic amount. I would really appriciate any books or resources that could help me to estimate this. </P>
<P>I have a good suggestion for possible volunteers for anyone beginning a structure- college students! There are a lot of people my age interested in sustainability, and would have summers off to pursue whatever they wish. When I begin my planning, I intend to advertise at local universities and offer a free workshop for anyone who wants to learn what to do. I also know a lot of displaced homeless who have remarkable building expertise and scavanging ability- it might be nice to invite them to learn new skills, or even to pay a fair wage for their labor. Local church and youth groups could also get involved, as many travel far distances to do the same thing in developing nations. Anyway, just some labor pool ideas.</P>
<P>I am in the Denver area if anyone needs help or would like to show off what they have done. I currently can't volunteer to help outside of my area, until I work out the job situation, but I would be thrilled to work on such projects in the future.</P>
<P>Thanks all,</P>
<P>Jennifer<BR><BR></P></DIV>
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