[Cob] cob - insulation and permits?

[bonetree]

Hi - 

My wife and I will soon (I hope) be building a house in New Mexico. I've been trying to find how much insulation cob provides. I understand it has great thermal mass but the only information I've seen on its capacity to insulate suggested an R rating of 1 per 1 inch of wall thickness. That sounds great, but I don't know what it was based on. Wouldn't the amount of straw determine the R value as earth has so little? Anyone know what kind of insulation we could have if we built a thick (18 to 24 inch) wall? Any ideas for increasing insulation without resorting to foam?

Also, anyone know of successes in getting a permit for a cob house? Particularly in this part of the world, the southwest U.S?

Thanks for any and all help. 

Mark

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