Cob: Couple Of Questions

[lavenderskies at juno.com]

Sorry I haven't made an introduction to the list, but thought I might
comment.

Becky Bee's "The Cob Builders Handbook" (pgs 90-91) talks about adding to
cob.  In a nutshell leave the top of the walls rough (she says "lots of
humps and holes and valleys"), "make the rewetting holes extra wide and
deep," "cover the top of the walls with wet burlap sacks and let the rain
fall onto the walls," and "You can push small sticks or bamboo into the
cob on the tops of the walls 4 or 5 inches down, leaving 4 or 5 inches
sticking   up.  Put them every foot or so and poling out at different
angles.  The sticks will be burried in the new cob when you continue
building."  When you return to cobbing, rewet the walls and "knit" (using
"cobbers thumbs") straw into the tops of the existing cob and then add
the new cob.

This reminds me of Michael's description of using rusty bent nails to
marry cob to a wooden post for a "wooden keyway" pg 76 of "The Cobber's
Companion" (hi Michael Smith).  On a quick skim of the book I couldn't
find his description of adding to dried out cob.  I am pretty sure that
both of these books talks about ways to slow down the drying process if
things are drying too quickly or you don't plan to return for awhile. 
And also about leaving surfaces so that you can structurally add to it as
time, energy, or finances allow.

I know you'll hear more from the list, but I hope that this helps.

Blessings,
Elke------>in Alaska, studying and making plans for my cob garden cottage
when I get my 3 little helpers old enough to stomp cob with my hubby and
I <grin>

 
On Wed, 17 Jul 2002 21:52:24 -0400 (EDT) snakedancer at gulftel.com writes:
> Hello all. A couple of questions here. It looks as though this may 
> become a 
> reality. Anyway, my father brought up a question. Little 
> background....my Mom 
> and Dad were really sad to hear about me selling our house since we 
> all built 
> it until I told them about doing a cob. LOL kinda like Tom Sawyer 
> and white 
> wasging the fence. Anyway he was wondering how long can the wall you 
> are 
> working on sit like between building. What if it dries before you 
> egt back to 
> putting more cob on it. Is this something that once you start you 
> must saty on 
> it or can it go two or three days between applications of cob. Will 
> it make it 
> weak. Like pouring concrete letting one section dry and pouring the 
> next. It 
> becomes weak at that point.
>     Next, I was looking at some of the sites when I first started 
> out on this 
> quest and ran across a home in Tennessee that sits on 59 acres I 
> believe and 
> was being sold for 259K. It was very beautiful and sitting in a 
> valley. I 
> wanted to show my family but I can't seem to find it again. If 
> someone knows 
> about it would you let me know where to find the pics so I can show 
> them. 
> Thanks. CJ
> 
> 

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