Cob cob / ceramics

[Timothy Tikker]

Carol M. wrote:

>Any air bubble at all left in clay that's being fired will cause it to
>explode - in a
>big way.  So if you got the cob hot enough to bake hard, most likely at
>least some of
>the straw would vaporize and the expanding gases would cause explosions
>also.  I sure
>wouldn't want to be anywhere around when you were firing a cob
>structure.<g>  One of
>the most important steps in working with clay is to be sure all
>contaminates (leaves,
>twigs, sticks, etc.) are out of it before you start building a pot.  So
>I'd think
>that firing cob would be a rather hair-raising experience.  And one where
>a lot of
>people could be badly hurt.

This is interesting.  When I went on a Cob Cottage Co tour just over a year
ago, somone cheerfully volunteered that if a forest fire occured around one
of these cob houses, it'd turn into ceramic.  Of course, I wondered if the
cob needed to be wet for that to be realistic.  Now, it seems it'd explode
instead!  But would a dry cob building do that?  I recall the description
of the cob house Down Under which survived a major forest fire in the area,
suffering only a broken window...

- Tim Tikker