[Cob] The matter of insulation. :)

[Mike]

Hi folks!

I'm in Chapel Hill, NC, where I've gotten permission to build a small cob
workshop in my backyard (12x12x12 max, since they're not going to inspect
the cob - just the electrical and plumbing I'll run to it).  Got the
foundation and drainage trench dug and just about filled.

I (shh) am hoping to be able to stay in this "workshop."  I'm curious what
options might fit cob Besides straw bales... I'm not a total purist (at
least this time), and, for instance, lined the foundation trench inside out
and out to grade with R-5 1" thick solid foam board... more out
of curiosity than belief it's the right application. :) Has anyone had any
experience adding a modicum of insulation into cob - I've heard of
sandwiching foam board slices with wire to hold it together in the cob
walls, though I worry about anything that might lessen the monolithic
quality to the walls.  And while one cob book mentions you can plaster foam
board, I just can't see that working with how the boards resist moisture.
 Just curious, any hybrid thoughts?

Best wishes,
mike

-- 
-------------------
"The greatest achievement is selflessness.
The greatest worth is self-mastery.
The greatest quality is seeking to serve others.
The greatest precept is continual awareness.
The greatest medicine is the emptiness of everything.
The greatest action is not conforming with the worlds ways.
The greatest magic is transmuting the passions.
The greatest generosity is non-attachment.
The greatest goodness is a peaceful mind.
The greatest patience is humility.
The greatest effort is not concerned with results.
The greatest meditation is a mind that lets go.
The greatest wisdom is seeing through appearances."
~Atisha

"Most of the luxuries, and many of the so-called comforts of life,
are not only not indispensable, but positive hindrances
to the elevation of mankind. With respect to luxuries and comforts,
the wisest have even lived a more simple and meagre life than the poor."
~Henry David Thoreau