[Cob] pipes

[Amanda Peck]

Too true.

I can remember in the early 90's getting a roll of it, with some connectors 
to replace the PVC stuff that was just about solid splices by then.  The 
next year when I looked for it couldn't find the connectors, store had 
recalled/discontinued the whole line.

But PVC splits at the first sign of freezing.  Easy to fix, but....  500 
watt halogen bulbs in the crawl-space worked pretty well in my way too low 
crawlspace in Nashville.  When I remembered to turn it on.

If you've got decent water pressure it won't matter--much--if your supply 
pipes go up or down.  Waste pipes need to go donwards, but really quite 
slowly, so the solid bits get washed down and don't solidify in the pipes 
because the water can bypass them easily.

I've always thought that a large u-shaped channel into a central utility 
core would be a good idea.  It could be covered with wood, or even wood 
covered with the same material your floor was made of.  Won't work for 
radiant heat, though.

I read about people who LOVE radiant floor heat.  And I did read that the 
late Ken Kern was NOT one of them.  He thought that the rising heat put lots 
of dust into the air.  It may depend on how much of a neat freak you are.  
No shoes (or dogs, or cats) inside, twice daily mopping, not to mention air 
cleaners, would make a difference.

Has anyone seen the "building with awareness" DVD.  In it we get to watch 
them nonchalant laying the pex for the radiant underslab (after a long song 
and dance about minimizing concrete) system.  That and the plastering bits 
are worth the cost.
............
Shannon cautioned with respect to pex:
There is no panacea in piping, pex has at least some history of recalls,
lawsuits, and catastrophic failures, particularly when used to transport
hot water.  It's use in plumbing is relatively recent, and we don't know
what the ultimate long term issues might be (my brother was one of the
unlucky ones who used it in the house he built in the early/mid 1990's).
It is generally a good idea to assume the worst when using a new material
for a long term application, because accelerated material life testing
does not have the greatest track record.  My personal approach is avoid
routing water anywhere you don't have to (imagine the work involved in
replacing failed hydronic piping in a cob floor, or even worse, a cement
one), and make provisions to minimize the damage elsewhere (drainage
and/or routing through areas where the damage will be minimal).