[Cob] Coblist Digest, Vol 10, Issue 37

[Monica Proulx]

Reinforcement of cob with bamboo


Damon,

The "improved Quincha" building techniques (earthquake resistant building
method using cob in a wattle and daub application) being promoted in Peru
and elsewhere by Practical Action encourage people to use bamboo when they
can get it.  It's so flexible and strong.

I have a really good book on using bamboo in buildings, which also talks
about how to treat it against insects though, (a problem in hot humid
climates, probably still a potential problem even though bamboo is encased
in adobe or cob?). Sounds like a bother to do, but worth investigating if
someone is bent on bamboo in a termite prone zone.  I'm not sure if
termites are as big a problem in the Pacific northwest as they are in the
east and the south:  (Here's the bamboo book:  "Building with Bamboo: A
Handbook.  by Jules J. A. Janssen, 1995, there are some copies on
Amazon.com right now for around 16 dollars.)

Here's a great overview of Quincha building, search the webpage for
"bamboo", it's mentioned several times.  There are also some great sketches
you can zoom in on, which show how they are using it:

http://www.appropedia.org/Original:Earthquake-resistant_housing_%28Practical_Action_Brief%29



> Message: 2
> Date: Tue, 22 May 2012 12:19:22 -0400
> From: "dhowell at pickensprogressonline.com"
>        <dhowell at pickensprogressonline.com>
> To: coblist at deatech.com
> Subject: [Cob] reinforcement
> Message-ID:
>        <4E1B92D4-DF77-486F-8E47-35E53CA9C9F8 at pickensprogressonline.com>
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>
>  I think bamboo would be a good route to go for reinforcement in
> sustainable building, because it is as strong as steel, they say, and
> it's a weed. Although I've heard some say the straw in cob acts as
> reinforcement, I don't think that is why they use it. It's more to
> keep the wet mix from slumping while the material is drying. But if I
> was to take a sledge hammer to a dry wall, I'm betting the straw
> isn't going to provide much resistance, but I could be wrong. It's
> worth trying. That's the kind of testing I have in mind. Numbers mean
> very little compared to real world, hands on tests like that. I have
> a cob storage shed I never finished that has a 3 foot wall. I'm
> planning on tearing it down and I'll probably video myself doing it.
> That's real information!
> Damon
>
>
>
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> End of Coblist Digest, Vol 10, Issue 37
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