Cob castle turret

[John Schinnerer]

Aloha, Will,

-----Original Message-----
From:	Will Firstbrook WCB of BC [SMTP:wfirstbr at wcb.bc.ca]
>I am thinking of actually using the turrets as small but usable living
>space. So my idea is getting structural beams to extend from >supporting
>the floor out to be the base of the turret. My rough idea in ascii art
>(not to scale). Convert to courier for correct character spacing. The
>walls in the turret would be fairly light weight perhaps leichtlehmbau
>with a lime-cob plaster exterior and a cob plaster interior.

Wow!  Pretty ambitious!  I get what you mean now.  I'd say the turrets would 
have to be something much lighter than cob (perhaps light-clay, as you 
suggest - but round forms could be a pain to make).  I suspect that a turret 
of cob would weigh far too much for any reasonable size beams to support, if 
it were big enough to be useful inside.  I'd guess the corbelled cob would 
also help support the turret/beams to some extent.  All the load of the 
turret weight will be transferred to the first story cob wall that the beams 
rest in...which might be fine, but you might want to provide for some kind of 
post from bottom of beam to broad load-spreading foundation to share the load 
of the turrets (unless they're really lightweight).  There's my $.02 for 
now...:-)

John Schinnerer