[Cob] R-values

[Marlin]

This discussion raged awhile ago and there might be some really good info in the Archives on R values etc......I think it's one of the most pertinent issues in talking about the viability of Cob in different circumstances.

I might get flamed by the purists but I'm not at all convinced that PURE Cob works well in COLD climates without the input of large amounts of interior heating to keep the mass from going cold.....this is NOT to say that I don't believe in building with earth (I actually teach cob building classes) but believe that it's outstanding qualities (strength, sculptability, thermal mass, beauty) can be taken advantage of in COLD climates with a slight variation from the PURE cob design. 

We've played around with Cobwood, Interior-room facing Cob walls, Strawbale wraps and of course the non-insulating situations of garden walls, benches and ovens (the more mass the better) and find clay to be an excellent building material, NOT JUST the best choice for all situations, by itself......

My 2 cents,

Marlin



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-----Original Message-----
From:     phil <phawn1 at excite.com>
Sent:     Wed, 28 Jan 2004 12:14:45 -0500 (EST)
To:       louiethefifth at hotmail.com; Coblist at deatech.com
Subject:  RE: [Cob] R-values


My understanding is that you get one R-value per inch of thickness. You also need to figure in the thermal mass but I'm not sure how and if this is for a building inspectors info they probably wouldn't accept that data anyway.


Phil Hawn, President
The North Carolina Natural Building Coalition
http://naturalbuilder.org
cob, strawbale, cordwood and other sustainable earthbuilding techniques

 --- On Wed 01/28, Mary Lou McFarland < louiethefifth at hotmail.com > wrote:
From: Mary Lou McFarland [mailto: louiethefifth at hotmail.com]
To: Coblist at deatech.com
Date: Wed, 28 Jan 2004 11:02:43 -0600
Subject: [Cob] R-values

Does anybody out there have any info on R-values of cob?  How thick do I <br>need to go to get a really good rating and would the addition of perlite or <br>vermiculite to the mix help in uping the R-value?  In s.w. Iowa it can get <br>cold enough that you can damage your skin after five minutes exposure <br>outside and in the summer it can be 100 degrees with 80% humidity, so I want <br>the best possible R-value.<br><br>_________________________________________________________________<br>Learn how to choose, serve, and enjoy wine at Wine @ MSN. <br>http://wine.msn.com/<br><br><br>_______________________________________________<br>Coblist mailing list<br>Coblist at deatech.com<br>http://www.deatech.com/mailman/listinfo/coblist<br>

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