[Cob] Why bother with Building Inspectors

[joe r dupont]

As much as I'm sure that Tom Johnson is good intentioned and most likely
somewhat correct.  That does not really
address the fact that the laws are more interested  in keeping property
values up or raising by making replacement cost so high
that you need insurance. The whole point of this exercise is that
supposedly we have the right for the pursuit of happiness
which should include making shelter the way we want it.  This is not to
say if you see a house  that is not inspected/approved that you should be
able to pass your dinosaur to someone else.  But by god you should be
able to build your own private home the way you want it, especially
when you look at how much energy is used to heat big homes that are
totally legal.
I am really tired of .. as Jimmy Durante use to say..  everyone wants to
get into the act.

We are allowed to smoke, drink, live on junk food, and practice dangerous
sex. and they are worried about us?????
Please..  if they are worried about us.. then we should all wear
motorcycle helmets in the car.. It would no doubt save thousands of
lives.

The best thing is to find a place where the fascists won't bother you...
I don't want to be safe.. If I wanted to be safe i would not drive a
small car, fly Cessnas and drive motorcycles I would not canoe.
If you want us to put a mandatory warning sign on any home made shack
fine...  thus if you come in.. it is at your own risk.
Yet  every year Americans spray the hell out of their homes to kill bugs
and those households have a much higher rate of
cancer than those who don't spray. Does that bother the government.. Hell
no.. more medical expenses the save the damned..
Our food is full of neat stuff that will mess us up.

Natural building like COB is the last frontier of our freedoms and we
can't accept the justification of inspectors lightly.
Yes I'm sure that they are nice people , but they work for the MAN  and
are out to get you.
On commercial buildings  go bless them.. anyone paying for some service
should be entitled to some assurance of safety..
like they were in the world trade centers...
But for private homes  for self use..  for the most part... unless the
builder is a total idiot  are just another way to take bread from
your mouth..

Building your home .. your way is a form of expression under the first
amendment...  maybe you could call it civil disobedience..
if you can burn a flag you should be able to build an simple shack that
burns..

I'm not venting.. and as I stated before this tirade that most likely 
Mr. Johnson might be 100 % correct.. as to how wonderful
having a 100% to code structure is.. But  jails are up to code too.   I'm
sure that Moslemism where they intern bodies  and morgues are too.
I'm not impressed..  I just feel that  we should not take establishment
comments lightly..No from the stand point of not having to
have your shack demolished at your expense.. that is another issue..  and
it is a matter of practicality.. and  Mr. Johnson's advise
will eliminate worrying about that..

but for us dreamers.... looking for that last chance of self
expression...  if we wanted it simple and safe we would by a condo
and live in hell.

73's
joe dupont
 
On Tue, 1 May 2007 13:38:03 -0700 (PDT) Tom Johnson <arlintj at yahoo.com>
writes:
> Building Inspectors are there to keep us safe: Sometimes from 
> ourselves and sometimes from the less than honest.  It is true that 
> we can find throughout the world excelllent examples of what a well 
> built natural building can do, however that is not enough to give 
> the powers that be confidence in something they know little about.  
> The law says to occupy a dwelling you must have a certificate of 
> occupancy.  In order to get one of those your building must meet 
> code.  An inspector is not going to came out to your site and pass 
> your building because it is so artistic and natural and you like it 
> and thats how they built them long ago so it must be good.  They 
> will want to see some objective facts about your material in a 
> language they have been trained to understand.  How strong is it in 
> shear and compression.  What are the physics of how it keeps you 
> warm.  While they may care about how environmentally sound it is 
> that wont be enough for them to issue you a permit.  
>    
>   Also consider those who may be more burdened with worldly goods 
> and may feel the need to purchase insurance, even if just on the 
> contents of their home.  Do you think the insurance company will be 
> inclined to insure valuables stored in a structure which is not 
> certified to be safe?  And what about the family who must move and 
> decides to sell their home of mud. Leaving behind the things you 
> have worked hard for may be ok for some but most will want some 
> return on their investment.  Since a substandard structure will have 
> little value how do you think it will be viewed by those who levy 
> taxes on our property.  Actually we lease it from them, try not 
> paying the taxes and see how long you last.
>    
>   Being able to build a home in your own style and with the 
> materials you choose would certainly work out much better if it could 
> be certified as conforming to a building code.  No fear of 
> bulldozers.  Build a home and build equity.  No reason to worry 
> about whether the neighbors will turn you in.  
>    
>   With regards to building materials: The material for walls was not 
> what I had in mind. What about all of th systems people will use in 
> their homes. Like electricity, heating, plumbing, etc.  Surely some 
> opportunities would exist for cob or adobe or strawbale specific 
> hardware.  Imagine what would happen to the market for natural 
> plasters if diy'ers could just go buy is at the store instead of 
> having to do it all yourself.  How about specialty furniture which 
> would accomodate those slightly uneven floors.  From need comes 
> opportunity.
>    
>   Mostly my thought revolve around the idea that the more we can 
> have in common the easier it will be for us to do things the way we 
> want and the easier it will be for others to come over to our way of 
> thinking.
>    
>   Tom
> 
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> Today's Topics:
> 
> 1. cob code effort (claysandstraw)
> 
> 
> ----------------------------------------------------------------------
> 
> Message: 1
> Date: Tue, 1 May 2007 09:54:45 -0500
> From: "claysandstraw" 
> Subject: [Cob] cob code effort
> To: 
> Message-ID: 
> Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii"
> 
> 
> 
> -----Original Message-----
> 
> 1. Re: Cob code effort (Ron Becker)
> 
> I fail to see why building codes are a problem. Cob is very very 
> old
> technique. We do not need any new research to demonstrate the 
> earthen walls
> are capable of supporting themselves and a roof. And Ron, building
> inspectors are not naturally close minded. We all need to be careful 
> about
> pre-judging everyone, people will tend to live up to whatever 
> expectations
> we place on them.
> 
> In reguards to Tom's question about what interest building material 
> supplies
> have in cob: "cob" is not simply a building technique its a gateway 
> to a
> paradigm shift. Part of that shift is learning, looking and 
> experimenting
> with what is most avaliable at your site. Why would I pay a 
> "building
> matieral supplier" to come harvest soil from under my feet? Ideally 
> there
> is no role for such a person on a cob site.
> 
> Now the reality... where do you keep your muddy shovels in a high 
> rise
> condo? And what happens if I have to spend two days and a tank and a 
> half
> of gas driving across the country side to get the perfect color of 
> clay, the
> right sand and a bale of straw for my plaster... wouldn't it have 
> been less
> impact to just get the bag of kaolin and pigment or American Clay?
> 
> The other thing is that for better or worse, advertising is a 
> powerful force
> in american culture - can we get building suppliers to recruit for 
> our
> cause? Maybe a bag of ready mixed branded plaster is the first baby 
> step
> toward the journey of making a full paradigm shift. Baby steps, 
> despite
> their imperfection, are a crucial part of any journey.
> 
> Kindra
> 
> 
> 
> 
> >>
> >>
> >> On Fri, 27 Apr 2007 12:54:58 -0700 (PDT) Tom Johnson
> >> 
> >> writes:
> >> > Please pardon if my ignorance is showing I am new around here. 
> I
> >> > live in Western Washington. Cob does not seem to be getting 
> much
> >> > exposure around here. Any "cobbers" please respond.
> >> > Is there currently a unified effort to crack the building code
> >> > problem? Who is on board for research and engineering? Are 
> there
> >> > municipalities willing to risk being front runners in the 
> search for
> >> > a greener way, not in Oregon?
> >> >
> >> > Are there any pilot projects currently ongoing with the
> >> > participation of government, education and business partners. 
> Most
> >> > importantly is there money available to do such a thing.
> >> >
> >> > Since cob creates a monolithic structure it seems to me that 
> it
> >> > would be a likely candidate for computer modeled analysis.
> >> >
> >> > Most joe lunchbuckets out there are stuck in the ordinary and
> >> > conventional. How does cob appeal to them? While I appreciate 
> the
> >> > uniqueness of many of the cob structures available for view on 
> the
> >> > internet I don't see how they would appeal to most of my 
> neighbors.
> >> > How does cob create an opportunity for builders and suppliers 
> of
> >> > building materials.
> >> >
> >> > Acceptance and integration of natural building materials into 
> the
> >> > conventional building industry would certainly make it easier 
> for
> >> > those of us who would like to live a more natural life.
> >> >
> >> > In short how do we go about selling NBM to the overcarbonized?
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
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> End of Coblist Digest, Vol 5, Issue 25
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