[Cob] coating The mobile home...

Fri Apr 7 23:40:56 CDT 2006

Having never tried to cob myself (just lurking on this site for a long 
time), I would have to say that cob is very heavy and if you cob the 
walls sitting on the trailer frame, it will be too heavy for the frame.

If I were to imagine doing your project, I would consider building the 
walls from the ground up on the outside of the trailer (with the tin 
removed) and then maybe extending the cob into the framework.  I would 
think then, that the wall itself would support the part infilling the 
framework. But that is just my amiture opinion.   :-)

Sharon

-----Original Message-----
From: Lee Courtney <heylee34 at hotmail.com>
To: dirtcheapbuilder-Charmaine Taylor <tms at northcoast.com>; Teresa 
Banks <tbanks98926 at yahoo.com>
Cc: coblist at deatech.com
Sent: Fri, 7 Apr 2006 22:59:28 -0500
Subject: Re: [Cob] coating The mobile home...

   Oh the ideas that are forming in my head! I can't wait to get started 
and thankfully, it's supposed to be a very nice weekend. Just as a 
thought, what about the other idea? Say removing a section of the wall 
(let's say a 4' x 8' section at a time), leaving the frame work (though 
it may be thin, the reason for only a section at a time) and infilling 
the existing framework with cob? Will this keep the integrity of the 
structure? When done it will basically be a cob house with a 
conventional roof and I think the cob would then take over the load 
bearing. I could make the walls thick still (about 2' I'm thinking) and 
can carve the niches and arches on the interior wall as well as use the 
glass bottles in different colors (I really love that about cob 
building). However I don't want the house falling in on me so the 
suggested way with the mesh and clay plaster is a very good idea. 
Thanks so much for understanding what I'm trying to accomplish.

 Blessings
 Lee

  ----- Original Message ----- From: "dirtcheapbuilder-Charmaine Taylor" 
<tms at northcoast.com>
 To: "Teresa Banks" <tbanks98926 at yahoo.com>
 Cc: <coblist at deatech.com>
 Sent: Friday, April 07, 2006 9:36 PM
 Subject: Re: [Cob] coating The mobile home...

 >
 > On Apr 7, 2006, at 6:27 PM, Teresa Banks wrote:
 >
 >> Hi Lee,
 >>
  >> I don't think you are as wacky as some have perhaps made you feel. 
I >> used to live in an old mobile home also, and if I had owned it, I 
would >> have been exploring the idea of covering it with cob also, 
perhaps.
 >>
 >>
 >
  > On the thin metal walls Lee will actually be adding a clay finish > 
plaster rather than heavy cob I would think..... it cant be more than a 
> couple inched thick or it will start pulling off of the walls.
 >
  > I have used ladies dress netting ( an open weave polypropylene) as 
the > fiber layer attached to old drywall before plastering with lime..
 >
  > You can also use onion sacking, cut open, flattened, or other 
sacking > that holds vege, potatoes, etc.
 >
  > my latest "find" is the action-back mesh webbing that is on the back 
 > of carpet. I go to the new carpet store, and in the dumpster van are 
all > the long strips and left overs
 >
  > the grid of mesh on the back of carpeting is polypropylene, is free, 
 > clean and new, and I get dozens of yards of it by just pulling it 
away > from the carpet. widths of 6"-15" are average. ( more than 20" 
wide is > too hard to pull off )
 >
  > This mesh would be attached tightly to the metal walls, and a thin 
layer > of clay , or clay-lime smeared over, then more layers can be 
added using > more netting or sacking. The open weave is important so 
burlap doesnt > work as well.
 >
  > there is a guy in TX building a ferrocement home, he used the dress 
 > netting as the final fiber layer to do a thin finsh coat of cement on 
his > walls. Netting provides a surface grid, and gives "tooth" to any 
alien > surface... since cob-clay will not stick straight to the metal, 
an > in-between is needed.
 >
  > I did this to make a flower planter using a cast off metal dryer 
drum. > dress netting is only .70 a 6' WIDE yard, so it goes a long 
way, and is > perfect for plastering on (non natural) walls
 >
 >
 >
 > Charmaine Taylor Publishing
 > www.dirtcheapbuilder.com
 > PO BOX 375 CUTTEN CA 95534
 > Tel: 707-441-1632 Venetian Plaster DVD in stock
 >
 >
 > _______________________________________________
 > Coblist mailing list
 > Coblist at deatech.com
 > http://www.deatech.com/mailman/listinfo/coblist
 >
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