Pouring cob?

Hi everybody.

Well, my first time out of the alternative energy forum.

I did a litle search, to no avail.

Is it possible to pour cob between shuttering, like we do over in France with concrete? Has it been done before?

Here, we erect shutering with rebar grid in the middle of it, and then pour concrete in it. You might argue concrete is not green, but at least thoses buildings will last for several hundred years Same as building with stones, which we used to do before over here.

But i'm intrested if it could be done with cob. I would do a post and beam frame, so no structural, mind you, if i could do it structural, that would be even better. Less joints and work than moving the wood about. It's for my workshop, within 1500sqft i think. Tall walls 11.5' No choice i have to comply with this. And then a 700sqft, or may be bigger flat above. Most certainly made with stub tie beam frames.

That's my day job, so i'm equiped for woodworking from small to big scale.

Thanks.

Max.

Have not heard of cob being poured, but doesn't me it can't. Papercrete, sawdust-clay slip and slip straw may all be poured. Might look into those.

For some reason what you mentioned made me think of the traditional Japanese earthen walls, though they are plastered on to a wood & bamboo frame, rather than poured:

nhk video clip on tsuchikabe, interesting demonstration of moisture regulating properties of earthen walls

and:

more tuschikabe

Thanks Yukkuri.

Well, that looks a lot like the colombage and torchis traditional in France.

Sorry videos are in french. But you can see what they're doing.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=N4O9HPeHdk8

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yQNadIjK_yI This one, nothing intresting before 45 seconds.

If you are using shutters, you may be able to pour the cob or at least have the mix much wetter than freestanding type. I have been thinking of building a gravity placement box with a 4" tube drop out of the bottom and trying to pour some cob between pallets as a rapid way to build smaller structures.