Cob do it yourself building codes

[John Schinnerer]

Aloha,

-----Original Message-----
From:	Robert Bolman [SMTP:robtb at efn.org]
 As chairman of the Eugene, Oregon chapter of the Northwest Ecobuilding
Guild, I wish to form a subcommittee to change the Oregon building codes to
allow people to build environmentally appropriate housing.  

Hear, hear!!  And Washington (I'm in Seattle for a while...), and all those other states too!  It can be helpful to realize that the majority of the world is with us - because the majority of people in the world have no building codes or inspectors or fees to pay for such a "service."  Their freedom to provide their own shelter is not restricted as ours in North America and Europe and a few other places is.

One caveat - code approval is a two-edged sword.  If one looks at states (CA, NM, ??) where straw bale construction has been included in codes recently, it is of limited use.  One can use straw bales, but one MUST use concrete stucco over kraft and mesh; earth plasters not allowed!  Foundations must still be "status-quo" methods - no rubble-trench, FPSF, etc..  Debates are raging over forced use of Tyvek and similar materials.  In other words, so far getting strawbale into codes has resulted in one specific (industrial) solution only being allowed.  Any increase in sustainability is negligible (especially with straw bale).  I am interested in broader results.

There is apparently a woman who plans to go through the process of building a fully permitted cob dwelling on Whidbey Island.  CCC has her contact info - I am intending to get in touch with her - she lives quite near me in Seattle.  Apparently the local inspector on Whidbey is supportive.  Her eventual success will not address the issue of paying intrusive government bureaucrats fees in order to build one's own shelter, however...not to mention greywater, catchment, composting privvies, etc. etc.

A cob building that I worked on in a workshop last summer was permitted as a "gazebo" (on a farm on Vancouver island) - before the cob walls were built up, that is.  It was a post-and-roof structure with stone foundation at the time of approval.  I have heard of similar tactics being used elsewhere but don't have details.  There are some areas in some states where there are no codes (usually very rural), or only parts of codes apply (for example, a plumbing and electrical permit is required but no structural inspection, etc. etc.).  Some counties are flexible through the use of "owner-builder" permits and "experimental structure" permits (Humboldt County in N. CA is apparently one such...).

Besides protecting the industrial building industry and related unions, manufacturers, contractors, etc., and providing government with another way to tax citizens, codes and permit processes are also about liability.  The county, state, etc. needs to know who to blame.  For example, some counties will approve most anything that has the stamp of a state-licensed architect or structural engineer.  That transfers the presumed liability from them to that person should there be any lawsuits.  Without the stamp, they (the government) feel liable for anything they approve.

One simple suggestion I have for this problem is a simple waiver and associated "owner-builder exemption" permit.  The waiver would simply release the county, state, etc. from any and all liability for my actions and enable the permit to be granted.  I never asked them to be liable in the first place...

As for the UN declaration of what, 1948?  Well, we can see how much action has been taken on that in the last 50 years...the UN declares all sorts of stuff.  Declarations are not actions.  I feel that local actions, such as working towards the design of new forms of "building codes," as well as building more structures to provide more examples, are more effective.  They establish precedents, which opens the way for broader action, and so on.

OK, end of rant...:-)  Let me know if I can be of service.

Thanks,
John S.
-------------- next part --------------
A non-text attachment was scrubbed...
Name: not available
Type: application/ms-tnef
Size: 4249 bytes
Desc: not available
URL: <http://www.deatech.com/pipermail/coblist/attachments/19971015/9a626c65/attachment.bin>