[Cob] Cob Roof

[Marlin]

I'm VERY interested in experiments on locally made roofing using natural materials, probably a clay/fiber shingle or something. I find that one of the most unsustainable parts of natural building seems to be roofing (and foundations), not the wall systems. 

For a Cob/earthen/strawbale building I've looked at thatch, metal, living roof (really very much a buried rubber roof) and have always wondered where the homemade/natural-material shingle is:

Criteria I'd like:

Made with earthen,grown or mineral materials
Able to setup production of them, on a small scale, almost anywhere
Installable with basic techniques AND repairable/replaceable for life of the house
Degradeable at the end of their useful life as shingles
Moderately lightweight enough to not have to create enormous roofing substructure
(Last but not least for me) An aesthetic that will look good for many people so that it is accessible to the public


A new local friend is beginning to convince me that thatch meets most these requirements but I'd like to see more then one option as thatch isn't for everyone/every situation/every aesthetic..


Any ideas would be very helpful, if this topic is drifting too far from Cob walls we could communicate off the list.

Thanks

Marlin Nissen

www.outtathebox.org

-----Original Message-----
From:     David Knowlton <pilot1ab80 at hotmail.com>
Sent:     Thu, 13 Nov 2003 13:18:40 +0000
To:       dealy at deatech.com; mswink77 at earthlink.net
Cc:       coblist at deatech.com
Subject:  Re: [Cob] Cob Roof

if in doubt about your roofing materials - pitch the roof steeper!!!

my shed is 1:1     real steep


>From: "Shannon C. Dealy" <dealy at deatech.com>
>Reply-To: dealy at deatech.com
>To: Mike Swink <mswink77 at earthlink.net>
>CC: coblist at deatech.com
>Subject: Re: [Cob] Cob Roof
>Date: Wed, 12 Nov 2003 23:00:00 -0800 (PST)
>
>On Fri, 24 Oct 2003, Mike Swink wrote:
>
> > Why is there not a way to make our own roofing tiles from cob??
> > Or does anyone know how to make tera carter type.
>[snip]
>
>There is a technique for making unfired adobe/clay roofing tiles.  I'm
>planning on trying it out in the near future, don't know much about it
>(like how well it would hold up to wet oregon weather), but there is just
>enough information on it in the "Shelter" book to give it a try (page 74).
>I have heard of a similar German technique but don't have any information
>on that one.
>
>Shannon C. Dealy      |               DeaTech Research Inc.
>dealy at deatech.com     |          - Custom Software Development -
>                       |    Embedded Systems, Real-time, Device Drivers
>Phone: (800) 467-5820 | Networking, Scientific & Engineering Applications
>    or: (541) 929-4089 |                  www.deatech.com
>
>
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