We did build a cob studio in Northern Ontario 3 years ago. And this year after we were satisfied that the cob "cured" and settled on the drystacked stemwall we made our "natural plaster". I posted pics. If you want to check it out, we also have a website documenting the whole process.
This applies to the cold climate where I live, in Northern Canada. Hot climates are another matter.
There are several reasons for wanting to keep the warm air inside the house through a vapor barrier installation; among them:
1.Energy efficiency
2.Heating costs
3.Preventing the deterioration of...
We may have gotten lucky with the building dept. The town we live in is a small community and the regulations here aren't enforced with an iron fist. But more importantly the building is permitted as a "shed". We had designed the building to be just under the minimum square footage to where a...
The vapor barrier is not going on the cob walls. The vapour barrier is going to be used in the rafters, the warm side. We will probably use a 6 mil plastic. Although we did come across a classified ad for a bubble foil from a local florist. The R-value is appoximately 2. My soulmate thinks we...
We finished the gable ends with the loft dutch doors. And we called the inspector for our final. Hopefully, we will hear back from him soon.
In the meantime, we are contemplating on the insulation for the cob home. This weekend we are heading to a sheep farm to purchase a bag of raw wool. My...
Well, we certainly had a very productive weekend. It is so gratifying to know we are almost at the end, and yet so sad, to see the cob studio being finished.
It was very exciting to learn each challenge and embrace it, in the meantime knowing there was another level to conquer. I loved it all...
It took a few weeks, but our roofing material finally made it here!
And can you believe we have a few nice days left in Novemeber to put it up??WOW!
My soulmate thinks we can have it up in one day, only if we can keep out 3 yr old little girl preoccupied with something....
First we lay the foam...
So, yesterday, I was really excited about the possibilityof using cattail for insulation. With this new motivation I pulled on a pair of rubber boots, got my little girl dressed and told my husband to grab a bag and my gardening shears. We only had to walk a brief five minutes down the road...
Things on the cob home have slowed to a crawl, mainly because of the weather, but today we made our own slip straw insulation.
My soulmate created a form that was 8x2. Inside that form he created three sections.
We had to mix clay slurry onto the straw and then place the straw into the forms...
Nice catch Britesea. And no, the 8x10 is the usable space. The footprint is 10x12. I didn't include the loft space because technically it's not usable space. At least as far as the building department is concerned. For them, there isn't enough headroom to be labled as a usable space. So...
The walls are 1' thick. We would have liked to go thicker, but being our first time dry stacking stone 1' is what we ended up with. Next time, if we decide to dry stack again, we will build a wider stone wall.
Sq ft is 8X10 = 80
We had to pay the minimum for the square footage which is $50.
The gable ends are going in this weekend. Our east gable is going to have a dutch door with a very small deck to look over the field. And the west window was orginally going to have a rainbow pattern of glass...
The closest I have come to making my own detergent is by using baking soda and vinegar. I noticed the mosquitoes don't bite as much either! I am a big advocate for vinegar & baking soda. My husband does not like the smell of vinegar, but he agrees with the benefits. Smart man! ;)