Cob: steel reinforcement

[Kyle Towers]

    This same method is recommended by Gernot Minke in his book on earthen
architecture.

----- Original Message -----
From: "Patrick Newberry" <PNewberry at HFHI.org>
To: <coblist at deatech.com>
Sent: Friday, May 23, 2003 1:33 PM
Subject: RE: Cob: steel reinforcement


> My brother-in-law once was doing a cob dome, in a very arrid area.
> He decided to use some rebar, but the mud did not stick to the rebar very
good.
> He then would coat the rebar in cement, which stick quite well to the
rebar. Let it dry,
> then use the mud. He never used it in the walls, only in one overhead dome
section.
>
> Pat
> www.gypsyfarm.com
>
> -----Original Message-----
> From: Taylor Publishing-DirtCheapBuilder [mailto:tms at northcoast.com]
> Sent: Friday, May 23, 2003 1:25 PM
> To: Brad Calvert
> Cc: coblist at deatech.com
> Subject: Re: Cob: steel reinforcement
>
>
> My opinion---why mess  with  good thing?  adding metal to a natural
> material that has been used for thousands of years by itself , is
> proven  (ala' 5 story earth walls in Yemen, Africa, and elsewhere) and
> simple, very low cost to do... K.I.S.S ( the last S = sweetie). ya know.
>
> Metal will rust over time, so why have the expense and trouble of using
> it, plus the aggravation of future  people to come upon metal eroding
> away as the building goes back to nature.
>
> Papercrete builders found placing pole, rebar, rods, etc inside walls
> only served to break the uniform mass, and the papercrete pulled away
> from the embedded material.  this  weakens the wall at that point,
> allows moisture to collect ( metals do not absorb moisture as wood does,
> allowing water to soak onto the cob, straw or paper wall)
>
> Is your concern for code approval? mistrust of   cob wall strength?
> earthquakes?
>
>
> Ms. Charmaine  Taylor/ Taylor Publishing
> http://www.dirtcheapbuilder.com    http://www.papercrete.com
> PO Box 375, Cutten (Eureka) CA 95534 707-441-1632     tms at northcoast.com
>
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