[Cob] strawbale, geodesic domes, and igloos

[Marlin]

The state of Natural Building is varied...some are professionals and many are learning individuals. Agree that depending on 'professionals' doesn't guarantee that you get what you want, but does guarantee that you'll need a good deal of money = time, in a different way. 

If  the only way that people can build is to do it themselves then it makes sense to do as much education and sharing of labor and info as possible. Thought that was what the Coblist was all about?

I wonder how much of a disaster or disappointment is likely when people learn from working on someone else's project (and making a few mistakes themselves) and thereby understand (again) many intuitive things about building that we knew even as kids?

                       vs.

How much empowerment and sense of belonging here on Earth are gained by building with your own hands, in a style that makes sense for your climate and technical skill level. It's important to be realistic about both...........

WRapup: I think there's ways to build a good solid building that requires fairly low technical skill levels (and associated expensive machinery) and are good for the Earth's future inhabitants. Strawbale might not be for everyone and there's def. a misunderstanding out there in the public about the realities of getting a house made that looks like their favorite coffee table book. But there's NO reason, with local straw, clay, rock, timbers (and in our case urban waste materials) that a group of semi skilled (or uneducated but trained) folks couldn't get together and build a structure that will OUTLAST many 'professional' homes - not too mention their toxic characteristics.


Marlin Nissen
 

           info at outtathebox.org  
           www.outtathebox.org
"There are solutions to the major problems of our time, some of them even simple. But they require a radical shift in our perceptions, our thinking, and our values."
   - [Fritjof Capra]



-----Original Message-----
From:     Dognyard <dognyard at stockroom.ca>
Sent:     Fri, 23 Jul 2004 11:14:31 -0600
To:       coblist at deatech.com
Subject:  Re: [Cob] strawbale, geodesic domes, and igloos



GlobalCirclenet wrote:
> 
> For non-builders to play around with alternative methods and
> materials is inviting disappointment or disaster, and those pushing these
> alternatives without the drawbacks aren't helping the cause of
> sustainability and energy efficiency.

Oh! Oh! 

I beg to differ. What you are calling non-builders, I will, for the
moment call inexperienced builders. And an inexperienced builder is only
that for a short time :-). I am, somewhat, an inexpereinced builder, but
that sure doesn't deter me from learning to do something myself and to
avoid depending on expensive alternatives. Building a house is technical
to a degree, but it isn't rocket science. It can be learned fairly
easily - either hands on (seminars, etc.), or with lots of reading and
research - IF, one is amenable to learning to do it correctly.

When it comes to plastering, though, it is even less technical. There
are things you need to know to do it correctly, but to me it is more
artistic than technical - especially when it comes to the finishing layers.

So owner-built homes may not be for everyone, and some people may indeed
not be capable of learning to do it well enough to pass codes, etc., but
I do believe that MOST people are entirely capable. And even those who
cannot learn, are more likely too stubborn to listen to good advice and
follow it, and not incapable of learning at all.

See, I have a tendency to go against the popular opinion that "the
masses" area an uneducated lot. On the contrary, they are smart enough
to want to build their own homes and not be in debt for the rest of
their lives, then they are smart enough to learn how to plaster a wall correctly.

Oh...and depending on "professionals" if you happen to have the money to
do so, is certainly no guarantee a job is done properly. If I do
something wrong, I have no one to blame but myself, and I just get busy
and fix it. If someone else messes it up, then I have to waste good time
and energy in chasing them to try and get it rectified - often to no
avail. I have way more confidence in myself than I do in any stranger.

I am just now FINALLY getting do something in cob! (YAY ME!). I am
building a pump house (stick built from scavenged material - so far it
has cost me about $18 and I think I have to go buy a bit of plywood, so
maybe another $50 all together), and along one wall, I have put in a
stone foundation and will be building, essentially, a garden wall. It is
not part of the pump house itself, but will lean up against it. So I
will get to play with some finishing on that wall, including the finer
earthen plasters as I finish it.

Karen in Alberta

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