[Cob] temp

[Shannon Dealy]

On Fri, 23 Dec 2011, Glenna Elf wrote:

> Hi folks,
>
> Am stuck at work  and have a question that I know has been answered 
> before.   But can't look it up while at work.  So the question 
> is....what is the coldest you can still mix up cob ??     And tho it is 
> winter time....would like to work on my cob bench on my days off.
> I'm in northwest Louisiana, so we don't get much really cold weather.   
> I mean most Christmas Days I'll have a rose shrub blooming....that type 
> of rare cold days.    But we do get freezing at times.

You can mix it as long as the water is still liquid (though your feet 
might object if you do it barefoot at 33 deg. F.).  You can also apply it, 
the only issue is that the cob doesn't freeze until the moisture content 
has dropped far enough that it won't be damaged.  When it freezes, water 
expands and if it is saturated with water it will expand and break 
up the cob.  Once some drying has occurred, there will be small voids in 
the cob which will allow the water to expand as it freezes without 
damaging the cob.  Unfortunately, though I have done cob in freezing 
weather many times, I don't know any easy way for you to tell what is dry 
enough to be safe.  Generally, if the temperatures are going to drop just 
to freezing, it is relatively easy to prevent the cob from freezing since 
its thermal mass will resist freezing, and rigging a roof or tarp over the 
cob with an air space in between is often sufficient.

Shannon C. Dealy      |               DeaTech Research Inc.
dealy at deatech.com     |          - Custom Software Development -
Phone: (800) 467-5820 |          - Natural Building Instruction -
    or: (541) 929-4089 |                  www.deatech.com