Cob: Re: Earth Floor!

[dtebb]

Hi Patricia,

Just a short note of caution. It is important to have a much higher
porportion of sand in your floor mix. Sand is what make floors and cob
hard. I have heard of some people who have had problems with their floors
being too soft. I suspect their mix has too much clay. I put just enough
clay in to stick the sand together, but no more. You would be surprised at
how little clay you need. My floor is rock hard but I haven't dropped
anything yet to really test it out.

Ian

>I've done several earth floors using screened road base as the medium.  I
>don't do any mixing of materials at all, haven't tried putting in anything
>to harden the material...  So it is just earth and clay, with a pretty high
>proportion of clay.  My oldest floor is about three years old.  I don't have
>a good basis for saying what chairs moving around on it would be, because I
>have all immovable furniture in my place.  However, I did drop a heavy
>wrench on it while standing up on a ladder once.  It put a little gouge in
>the floor.  It was relatively easy to fix, and the patch I put in there
>hasn't come out since then, but it is noticeable.  I attribute this more to
>my low level of skill in troweling than anything else.  The floor is very
>nice to walk on, in socks or bare feet.  I have several coats of linseed oil
>on it, and it doesn't dust at all.  Most people who look at it can't believe
>its an earth floor - the most common guess is that it's cement.  However,
>it's much softer and nicer to walk on than a cement floor.
>
>Patricia
>
>
>
>
>> To those of you who have or have been on a adobe type floor:
>>
>> What kind of performance are you earth floor people getting?
>>
>> Can you walk on it in socks.
>>
>> Does it chuck off easily when you drop something semi-heavy like a large
>> can of coffee?
>>
>> If so is it easily repairable.
>>