Cob: Re: Cob

[Darel Henman]

To get back to the subject of cob as a building material.

All buildings make of whatever materials have to be maintained.

I've not yet seen much written about what goes wrong with cob and how
repairs and maintenance should or could be performed.

For wood, we now how to repair it, paint it, oil it, or what not and
about its disadvantages and problems such as termites, fire, dry rot
etc.

We should discuss cob as well, especially if more people use it, it will
become essential information.

First off, for example comes repairs.  Inevitably a nick, a scratch, a
gouge, a really big gouge or hole in cob will happen.   Is the simple
pluggin in of a new cob plug sufficient in strength for repars. 
Coloring is a different issue.  You'd want the same color.

What about maintenance?  Depends on the surface finish I'd think.

What about for a pure cob exterior surface... after say five years it
gets worn down by the elements wind and rain.  How can this be
maintaned.  How did the old timers do it for the last eight hundred or
so years.   A new layer somehow keyed in and plastered over the one
being eaten away by the elements? 


Darel