Cob: stop digging clay model

Sun Feb 2 13:01:11 CST 2003

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<P>Cat here, too many particulars on where to live that's all on you.  It took me almost 3 years to find my place and much of the unexpected still had to be dealt with. </P></DIV>
<P> On the clay for the model, If you have a local craft store around you can very likely get a box of clay.  Around here I pay about $18.00 for 50lbs.  it must be kept moist to work with it and it is not going to give you a true reading of what you will be dealing with when you make your first sample cob bricks, since your home will be of the material from your land.  The work of digging holes is the yard is good exercise but unless your going to build where you dig it's not going to serve any purpose.  The clay model is for working out 3 dimensional design, layout, space, roof development, window placement, wall thicknesses(in scale,) ect.  You will not be working with the real stuff until you dig it out of the foundation where you will build.  Here too your model is a rough draft that will help you and your family visualize and work out flow and development strategies.  Much will be modified when your land is under your feet!  Example the window you put in your model may look great until you see the view it misses on your property.  </P></DIV>
<P>tip- one of my clients in a two story home put her laundry upstairs above her kitchen.  Her logic was that, just about everything that goes to the laundry went into the linen closet or the bedrooms all up stairs.  The room was very big and bright, unlike most laundries with a sliding door to a deck.  She is one of a few that still iron!!!  With 6 kids I can't see how! but she also had a pull out cutting table and cubbies for her fabrics, she sews too!  gotta love her !!  She also incororated a dumb-waiter to make carrying things up and down the stairs unnecessary.  It was deliberately proportioned to accommodate a bed tray  she liked to use and had a good locking system so none of the little ones or the poodle would take any rides.  </P>
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<P>When you get to the craft store they could have, gray or red potters clay that needs to be kept moist as you work with it, and different kinds of modeling clays that stay flexible with the heat of your hands.  This is the stuff that comes in colors and they used to use in kindergarten.  It comes in gray 2-5lb blocks for us big kids but it is going to cost more to do a whole model of it.  It is called modeling clay, or brand name, Plastellina.  I used to know an artist that made all her life sized work in it for casting in bronze but I have not found anyone selling it in bulk at a good price even at the whole sale art distributors.  Don't fret about the holes in the back yard!  Put some compost in them that peat and plant some roses.  Grinn  <BR><BR></P>
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<DIV></DIV>>From: "Jill hotmail" <WRITEJILL at HOTMAIL.COM>
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<DIV></DIV>>Reply-To: "Jill hotmail" <WRITEJILL at HOTMAIL.COM>
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<DIV></DIV>>To: "cob list" <COBLIST at DEATECH.COM>
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<DIV></DIV>>Subject: Cob: sandy digging and Kentucky future 
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<DIV></DIV>>Date: Sat, 1 Feb 2003 21:08:04 -0800 
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<DIV></DIV>>I am practicing cob building in my southern California location. I am about 5 miles from the beach, hence all the sand. I went to buy some clay-soil from Home Depot (since I don't need but a bag to practice my model building with) and was told that there was clay under the sand. 
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<DIV></DIV>>Well the kids totally got into digging a hole in my back yard, and it is now about 4 feet down. No clay, all sand. 
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<DIV></DIV>>Today, I am going to either 1. get some clay from the beach (at the shoreline there is clay under the sane after a few inches, I THINK) or 2. go take a look at some of the building sites around here, the construction around here is everywhere. 
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<DIV></DIV>>There is land for sale here, and actually not that bad on price considering. The problem is, it is all "city limits" and subject to the codes, or lack of. We just assume we will have better luck elsewhere. Kentucky seems a logical choice based on cost of living and because it is centrally located to several metro areas. My husband's job is automatic fire sprinkler systems (union) and that would make a lot of work available to him. What do you think? 
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<DIV></DIV>>-jill 
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