# Cob House



## DCLyle (Oct 22, 2013)

Has anyone built a Cob/Hobbit House? I have been doing some research and it seems to be the best option for my family. It has great geothermal properties and can be built with very little money. It also seems like the info is pretty limited on actually building one. If you guys have some resources, it would be greatly appreciated.

Danielle


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## cowboyhermit (Nov 10, 2012)

Cob is great to work with, have quite a bit of experience with it, mostly smaller scale and combined with other materials such as logs and strawbales. There is so much information out there, many good books, blogs etc on the subject but it is a pretty straight forward material, especially if utilizing a timber frame which is typical.

http://www.motherearthnews.com/green-homes/cob-building-basics-zm0z13onzrob.aspx#axzz2iQ8Ownfc

http://naturalhomes.org/cobhouses.htm


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## DCLyle (Oct 22, 2013)

Have you seen the ones that use Hay bails for the structure and cob on the interior/exterior? This is really what I am looking to build. That is why I was having trouble finding info.

http://www.simondale.net


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## cowboyhermit (Nov 10, 2012)

DCLyle said:


> Have you seen the ones that use Hay bails for the structure and cob on the interior/exterior? This is really what I am looking to build. That is why I was having trouble finding info.
> 
> http://www.simondale.net


Sometimes people refer to cob by other names, for instance sometimes straw bales are covered with "earthen plaster" that is essentially cob, same with traditional log cabins for chinking or plastering.

So looking for information on straw bale building might be more rewarding, I have a few really good books on the subject.

I have to say, using straw bales for the structure is a bit tricky to do well, working with a frame makes things a lot easier.


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## goshengirl (Dec 18, 2010)

I found the information limiting, too. With a home, one concern I would have is 'selling' it to the county engineer so it would pass building codes. (just a fact of an over regulated society...)

In the next year or so I'm going to see if I can get a little hands-on experience with cob by building a cob/cordwood outbuilding (using cob for the mortar instead of cement): cordwood construction


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## DCLyle (Oct 22, 2013)

Thanks guys I found all kinds of information on it searching straw bail homes. Also we are not going to get any kind of building permission for it. It is gonna be in the middle of no where and they would have to be let on our land to even know we have it. Does that sound wrong? I, like you, think the county is too regulated. As long as I am not hurting anyone, I don't think it should matter. Also, it is gonna be completely off the grid, so they won't have a reason to go out there. If they want to see something, we can show them the RV! lol


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## boomer (Jul 13, 2011)

Be careful with straw bale construction. They are vulnerable to wind/fire. And unless you use flax straw bales they are vulnerable to rodents.


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## cowboyhermit (Nov 10, 2012)

boomer said:


> Be careful with straw bale construction. They are vulnerable to wind/fire. And unless you use flax straw bales they are vulnerable to rodents.


If build properly those issues do not exist.

For fire in particular a straw bale wall is essentially a fire wall if build correctly, this video is not showing the most resilient designs and yet it shows how amazing they can perform against fire.





Wind is a complete non-issue, building to hurricane and earthquake standards is not difficult.

Rodents are also not an issue, all that is required is to use hardware cloth as the mesh, just at the base of the structure or over the entire wall (preferred).


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## DCLyle (Oct 22, 2013)

The idea of not getting a building permit was so they wouldn't know the bug out shelter was there. Also, we are planning to build the shelter in the side of a hill with a sodded roof to catafalque it's location.


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## goshengirl (Dec 18, 2010)

I say more power to you.  I couldn't get away with it here - they use satellite photos. At the county fair the assessor's office had a booth and was showing off their satellite images (just plug in your address and see what the assessor sees). The guy was telling me they have a computer system that calculates all lengths of structures digitally, and a red flag goes up if a roof is even 6 inches different than it was the previous year. He said they're always finding things that people thought they could get away with. So I asked all sorts of questions verifying what gets taxed and what doesn't.

I know that here there is a 200 sq ft rule - if it's less than 200 sq ft, no building permit needed. Do you have anything like that? I love the idea of building it into the hill - maybe that would conceal full size. Just throwing out ideas. I'm sorry, I know that doesn't really address your cob questions. 

Interestingly, the day after I talked to the assessor at the county fair (and asked all those questions about what doesn't get taxed), a car was parked on our rural road in front of our house with someone inside looking at our property and taking notes.


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## DCLyle (Oct 22, 2013)

I just found out that any improvement under $20,000 doesn't require building permits on rural land. Yay


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## Tirediron (Jul 12, 2010)

Have a look on this site http://www.permies.com/ there is all kinds of information on building construction.


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