[Cob] using hay instead of straw

[howard at earthandstraw.com]

I think the critical factor is the dryness of the grasses.  If dried well there will be no problem but green is more likely to rot.  So hay is okay if its been in the barn a few years or was very dry to begin with.  We want the cellulose and the lignin mainly, not the oils which can be the problem.  Wet hay will spontaneously combust and is notorious for burning down barns if put up wet.  We used to help local farmers get there hay in before a rain but sometimes a bale can get wet and you can feel the heat and sometimes even see the smoke but I've never seen that with straw bales.  Straw does not have that reputation.


Howard Switzer, Architect
668 Hurricane Creek Road
Linden, TN 37096
931-589-6513
www.earthandstraw.com
  ----- Original Message ----- 
  From: Kristen Davenport 
  To: coblist at deatech.com 
  Sent: Monday, July 20, 2009 9:26 AM
  Subject: [Cob] using hay instead of straw


  HI there
  Most of the cob books and experts have said we should not use hay for building with cob, rather than straw, but I'm completely at a loss about WHY. I've received all kinds of different answers.... "It will sprout" (so what)... "It's not as strong" (huh??)

  To me, none of this makes any sense.

  For instance, in the Becky Bee book she says "Do not use hay. It decomposes." Yet a few sentences later she states, "If you're an ambitious purist,  you can gather your own grass stalks or experiment with other plant fibers." Well, HELLO, what do you think hay is? Grass stalks. Not to mention, as an avid composter, I can tell you that "straw" decomposes just the same as "hay"... and "hay" can mean anything from brittle stalks with seed heads to thick straps of wide grass to bales of weeds and wild rose stalks and willow branches..

  Can anyone give me a reason that makes sense to me why we shouldn't just use my neighbor's weedy hay for building with cob?

  Thanks.

  Kristen
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