What Is Adobe Cob?

Poured and puddled adobe (puddled clay, piled earth), today called cob, is made by placing soft adobe in layers, rather than by making individual dried bricks or using a form. “Puddle” is a general term for a clay or clay and sand-based material worked into a dense, plastic state.

Are adobe and cob the same?

The most basic difference is that adobe is formed into rectangular bricks which are dried in the sun before being used, while cob is built wet. Cob therefore lends itself to organic shapes: curved walls, arches and vaults. Building with cob is a sensory and aesthetic experience like sculpting with clay.

What can you use cob for?

Cob is fireproof, while “fire cob” (cob without straw or fiber) is a refractory material (the same material, essentially, as unfired common red brick), and historically, has been used to make chimneys, fireplaces, forges and crucibles. Without fiber, however, cob loses most of its tensile strength.

What is cob design?

Chip-on-Board or “COB” refers to the mounting of a bare LED chip in direct contact with a substrate (such as silicon carbide or sapphire) to produce LED arrays. COB LEDs have a number of advantages over older LED technologies, such as Surface Mounted Device (“SMD”) LEDs or Dual In-line Package (“DIP”) LEDs.

Is cob water proof?

Why doesn’t it wash away in the rain? Cob is very resistant to weathering. Because of its porous nature, it withstands long periods of rain without weakening. However, too much exposure is best avoided by the “boots and cap” strategy: wide roof eaves to protect the walls and an impervious foundation.

What is cob made of?

“Cob” refers to the building material, which is essentially a mixture of clay, sand, and straw. As with bricks or adobe, these earthen components are mixed with water and can be used to construct natural, surprisingly durable walls—no synthetic materials required.

What is adobe brick made of?

Adobe bricks are made of native soil, sometimes with the addition of an organic additive. To make durable bricks, you must know which soil types to use. In New Mexico, soils commonly called adobe soils are not well suited to brickmaking. The proportions of sand, clay, and silt in these soils may vary widely.

Is cob stronger than cement?

Cob has a distinctive marbled pattern and unique colour associated with the clay in your local area. Cob has unique properties which make it as strong and more durable than concrete (see ‘How is Cob so strong’) the oldest Cob building is over 10,000 years old.

Is cob good for cold weather?

Cob is a suitable building material for hot or cold climates due to its ability to keep indoor temperatures stable. Depending on your comfort levels, this can eliminate the need for centralized heating systems and air conditioning. That’s some great energy saving potential right there!

What is an example of cob?

A cob is a round loaf of bread. A cob is a type of short strong horse.

What is cob in simple words?

cob noun [C] (CORN)
the hard cylinder-shaped part of the maize plant on which the yellow or white grain grows: Cut the corn kernels from the cob. See also. corn on the cob.

Why is it called a cob?

According to Wikipedia, the word could have originated as a variant of cop, meaning head. Cob could also have come from the English word cot for cottage, the Welsh cob for top of tuft or the German Kuebel, a large container.

What is the difference between cob and LED?

In a COB light, you’ll have more diodes and a simpler circuit design that produces a compact light. On the other hand, a LED panel has fewer diodes and a more complex circuit design and looks like a collection of small lights. It can also be larger and heavier than a COB light.

What is cob module?

Chip on board (COB) is a method of circuit board manufacturing in which the integrated circuits (e.g. microprocessors) are attached (wired, bonded directly) to a printed circuit board, and covered by a blob of epoxy.

What is COB LED stand for?

COB, or Chip on Board is a fairly new member of the LED family. Multi LED chips are packed closley together as one lighting module. And when it light up, it appears like more of a lighting panel than multiple individual lights if that makes sense.

What are the disadvantages of a cob house?

Disadvantages:

• Labour intensive.
• Relatively slow to build.
• Obtaining a mortgage from lending institutions is difficult.
• Cob walls cannot be laid in wet or freezing weather.
• Insects, notably termites and small rodents can burrow into the walls and weaken them.

How long will cob last?

How long does cob last? The oldest cob house currently standing is 10,00 years old. If this doesn’t speak to how strong and durable cob houses are, then nothing will. Cob houses are built to stand forever as long as their roofs are maintained, and they are properly looked after.

What happens if it rains on a cob house?

Rain can be one of the main enemies to the integrity of your cob structure. But at the same time, cob walls can actually withstand a tremendous amount of water hitting them and still be fine. Its more the slow “drip” and consistent dampness that we want to avoid.

How do you look after cob walls?

To prevent damp in cob and stone buildings the maintenance of rainwater goods is absolutely essential. Gutters should be regularly cleared of debris and downpipes should be firmly connected and must discharge water away from the property.

How thick should cob walls be?

How thick should cob walls be? The thinner that cob walls are the less load bearing capacity and thermal mass that they will have. I recommend the width of cob walls be between 18 to 24 inches as a standard. This gives plenty of load bearing capacity for a one story building and plenty of thermal mass.

What is the mix for cob?

Cob is a mixture of clay, sand, straw, and water. Clay is the binder; sand gives the mixture strength; straw provides tensile strength (think “rebar”); and water helps activate the clay to hold the mixture together while building.