Cob Archives < Natural Building Collective

Understanding earth III: Plaster and mortars mixes

Peter McIntosh — Sun, 09 Nov 2014 13:45:57 +0000

(Please note that in order to understand what is written here you will need to have read my previous posts on understanding earth and testing earth) Plasters and mortars are by far the process that I get asked about the most, and for good reason as plasters are what protect the building from the elements […]

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New directions in informal settlement upgrading and community-led sustainable building practices – The Freedom Square shack replacement project – Day 18 (Thursday 2 Oct’14)

QPT Qala Phelang Tala — Sun, 26 Oct 2014 09:32:06 +0000

I came to learn how to build a cob wall; instead I learned the story of my life before I even stepped onto the building site. It was day 18 at the Freedom Square shack replacement building site in Bloemfontein, but my first day on the premises. The walls of Lientjie’s new house were already […]

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Lebone Village launch

QPT Qala Phelang Tala — Tue, 30 Sep 2014 10:20:26 +0000

Imagine being outside on a chilly Free State winter morning with the sun just coming out and starting to gently warm your body. Now imagine being told to take off your shoes in order to trudge in icy cold mud. I glanced at my fellow volunteers and I saw a collective dissent quietly dawn on […]

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Understanding Earth II: Testing earth

Peter McIntosh — Tue, 03 Jun 2014 12:28:47 +0000

By Peter McIntosh (Please note that in order to understand what is written here you will need to have read my previous post on understanding earth) Earth requires two properties to make it strong enough for building, compressive and tensile strength. In much the same way that steel works in concrete they can’t be […]

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Understanding Earth: The beginnings of a Natural Builder

Peter McIntosh — Sun, 20 Apr 2014 13:29:37 +0000

By Peter McIntosh One of the challenges of working with earth is that no two sites are the same. The recipes one learns on one site may not work on another, because the earths’ found there are composed differently. Most earth building relies on a mix of sand and clay, which may be present in […]

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Using natural materials: A comparison

Peter McIntosh — Sun, 09 Mar 2014 09:51:49 +0000

by Malcolm Worby Using natural materials for construction of dwellings and community buildings, is the oldest method of building since humans moved away from caves. In fact, more people in the world live in houses built of natural materials, than any other type of building material. It is therefore the most common method of building […]

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