[Cob] mold or fungus?

[Henry Raduazo]

	I have been making plaster from mixes of clay, shredded paper and  
sand. This mix is very smooth and crack resistant (once I got the  
proportions of sand and paper right), but it is very susceptible to  
mold growth. There are several; things you can do to stop or prevent  
mold growth.
	1, Add Borax to the mix. I have also used or added paper used for  
blow-in-insulation. It already has borax added. The advantage to  
borax is that it stays in the wall and keeps working if for some  
reason the wall gets wet. Also, it does not become an unhealthy vapor  
that you must inhale during application and before drying.
	2. Plaster only after the wall is completely dry The dry cob will  
wick off the moisture before the mold takes hold.
	3.  Providing ventilation perhaps even a 20 inch fan. In the winter  
this is a little tough because it is cold out there.
	4. Provide a 6 miil plastic vapor barrier under the floor. One thing  
that can cause a problem is moisture from ground water, and most  
building codes require a six mill barrier above the earth and under  
the floor surface.
	
Ed
On Jan 4, 2010, at 9:02 PM, Bryan wrote:

> Bleach is likely more toxic to people than the mold.   But Baking  
> soda &
> vinegar are excellent for killing mold.  I would use baking soda and a
> little water to wash it off.  Then soak some vinegar on it.  It is not
> possible or wise to kill all mold as it lives everywhere.
>
> Check out my site-> www.BryanTree.Com
> Bryan Hilbert
> 552 3rd Av S. #1
> St Petersburg, FL  33701
> 727-386-8733 or 386-Tree
> 727-804-7268 cell
> 727-489-1009 Fax
>
> Buddha: Consider others as yourself. ...
>
>
> On Mon, Jan 4, 2010 at 7:38 PM, GUY L PROUTY <guyprouty at msn.com>  
> wrote:
>
>> But what if you are very allergic to mold like I am?  I cannot  
>> live in any
>> cob structure that has mold or else I become quite ill.  So will  
>> the bleach
>> water solution really take care of it?
>>
>> Thanks,
>>
>> Guy
>>  ----- Original Message -----
>>  From: howard at earthandstraw.com<mailto:howard at earthandstraw.com>
>>  To: Christopher Reinhart<mailto:sandymud at gmail.com> ; Tys  
>> Sniffen<mailto:
>> tys at ideamountain.com>
>>  Cc: coblist at deatech.com<mailto:coblist at deatech.com>
>>  Sent: Monday, January 04, 2010 3:43 PM
>>  Subject: Re: [Cob] mold or fungus?
>>
>>
>>  I've experienced this and the mold disappears once the wall dries
>> completely.  The bleach is not necessary and you should wait for  
>> the walls
>> to be dry before plastering.
>>
>>
>>  Howard Switzer, Architect
>>  668 Hurricane Creek Road
>>  Linden, TN 37096
>>  931-589-6513
>>  www.earthandstraw.com<http://www.earthandstraw.com/>
>>    ----- Original Message -----
>>    From: Christopher Reinhart
>>    To: Tys Sniffen
>>    Cc: coblist at deatech.com<mailto:coblist at deatech.com>
>>    Sent: Monday, January 04, 2010 2:58 PM
>>    Subject: Re: [Cob] mold or fungus?
>>
>>
>>    Tys,
>>
>>    I experienced a similar issue with small patches of white mold  
>> growing
>> on
>>    cob walls before they were completely dry.  I live in south- 
>> central
>> indiana,
>>    in a heavily wooded area, and it can be quite muggy in the  
>> summer time.
>>  I
>>    thought similarly to you, and sprayed the areas with a bit of  
>> bleach
>> water
>>    once the walls were completely dry and before plastering them.   
>> Haven't
>> had
>>    any problems since then.  I do wonder if the mold would have  
>> disappeared
>> on
>>    its own without the bleach water, but I was impatient to begin
>> plastering
>>    and didn't want to take a chance.
>>
>>    -Chris Reinhart
>>    Bloomington, IN
>>
>>    On Sun, Jan 3, 2010 at 9:22 PM, Tys Sniffen <tys at ideamountain.com
>> <mailto:tys at ideamountain.com>> wrote:
>>
>>> Hey all,
>>>
>>> As we keep cobbing here in Northern California into the winter, I  
>>> see
>> some
>>> strange white mold or fungus patches showing up, generally on the
>> inside of
>>> our walls.  That seems pretty odd to me, but of course, here in the
>> woods a
>>> wispy white spider-web-like mat of mold is not uncommon.
>>>
>>> This is on the cob wall itself, right about where the wet part meets
>> the
>>> dry
>>> layers from batches past.
>>>
>>> Any thoughts on this? We're thinking of going around with a spray
>> bottle
>>> with bleach-y water in it, but I'm also thinking that a couple  
>>> plaster
>>> layers will take care of this... but I don't want mushrooms popping
>> out of
>>> my walls later on.
>>>
>>> Tys
>>>
>>>
>>>
>>>
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