[Cob] opinion on foundation for cob

[Bill Christensen]

At 11:59 PM -0700 6/27/09, phil moulton wrote:
>My big concern is just what the last poster said.
>Putting a gravel trench down means a unstable stem wall.
>Most here might say put in a "urbanite" and concrete stem wall over gravel.
>I just do not feel its stable enough. We are not talking about a stick frame
>wall but tons of material.

What do they use to hold up freight train rails?  A gravel bed should 
do just fine as far as stability.

>Putting a stem wall over a gravel drain trench WILL cause it to crack...
>Put your gravel drain trench OUTSIDE the perimeter of the stem wall so it
>deflects any water around the foundation.
>

Depends on what the pipe is made of and how deep it is in the gravel, 
and how well built your stemwall is as to whether or not it'll crack, 
but it won't hurt to have the drain to the outside and just might 
help.
-- 
Bill Christensen
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