Foundations Archives - This Cob House

Cob Homes – Are Insects and Rodents a Problem?

by Alex | Nov 11, 2018 | Cob, Foundations, General, Natural Finishing, Walls

I’ve been having a lot of questions come to me recently asking me about cob homes and do they get infested by termites, rodents, and insects. From my experience and from what I’ve learned over the years this this is not a big issue. Termites first...

9 Tips for Cob House Building Code Approval

by Alex | Mar 18, 2017 | Building Codes & Permits, Cob, Designs, Foundations

Here are 9 tips for getting building approval for your cob house construction. Sometimes just doing one of these things can be enough to help. Meaning, you don’t have to check off every one of these tips to get your approval. These tips can apply to different...

Cob House Foundation Design – For the Modern Cob House

by Alex | Mar 7, 2017 | Building Codes & Permits, Cob, Designs, Foundations, Videos

Having a proper cob house foundation design is critical to the success of your cob building! I stress this point every single time I talk about foundations. Its not something to pass over lightly just so you can get to the fun of doing cob work. Take time and...

How to Build a Solid Foundation for a Cob House

by Alex | Oct 11, 2016 | Cob, Foundations, Videos

In the cob building community we have a problem. We are building really bad foundations! I’ve seen some foundations literally “melt” before my eyes. Really sad story there, by the way. But I digress… Its time to turn this problem around. And I want to help all of you...

Cob Ovens Simplified – Part One

by Alex | Mar 29, 2016 | Cob, Cob Ovens, Foundations

Start small and progress to larger projects as you learn. I always recommend for students to begin with building a cob oven. You know, those great little ovens for baking bread and pizzas in! This is a simple project that will teach you the fundamentals of cob...

Do not use earthbags for stemwall foundation

by Alex | May 30, 2015 | Cob, Foundations, General, Materials

This morning, I received an email newsletter from a prominent Natural Builder explaining why they had chosen to build a stemwall foundation using earthbags. I was really surprised when I read this email! Especially when I saw that they were actually filling the...