[Cob] fleas/ticks in sand (Udit)

[Don Jackson]

Re: "The real reason I'm writing is because the local sand which is readily available has a lot of sand ticks/fleas"

An internet search turns up no relevant results for "sand ticks".  Looking up "sand fleas" shows these are distantly related to fleas, and live at the beach, but also that some people call every creature that lives in sand a "sand flea".  
http://edis.ifas.ufl.edu/IG132

So first I wonder, is this a real concern, or do you have a general fear of insects?

Second, if this is a real concern, heat kills all insects.  If you could mound this sand in a pile and cover it with black plastic in the summertime, temperatures above 140 degrees kill all insects within a couple of hours, and temperatures of 120 kill most insects similarly (probably the extended period it would be in the sun), so the temperatures required aren't really all that great.  I've seen steam sterilizer units that fit in the back of dumptrucks that nurseries used for sterilizing 10 yards worth at a time, so this couldn't be too difficult.

Once it's in the wall, the dryness of clay would suck the moisture out of insects.  Look how many insects infest clay dirt in the ground - I can't think of any.

I don't see any one address this on the cob list (maybe it doesn't matter), but I would suspect the differences between washed river sand and sharp crushed sand might be more important, if you were really to examine the part that sand plays in cob house strength.

Don Jackson  




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