Holly Guerrero

Has anyone built a 2-story cob house? We are running into some difficulty figuring out how to actually support the second story long-term, but the plot of land we have to build on is not large enough to have a single story home. I found a sample floorplan online (the mountain cottage off Clay and Straw), that we were basing this off of, but after consulting with some architects, we were told that there is not enough support for a second floor. =/ Super bummed, and that means back to the drawing board. We have to figure out exactly what is needed on the first floor in order to support a second floor...

All we need upstairs is two bedrooms and a bathroom. Not large rooms but one needs to be large enough to accommodate a king size bed and a dresser. The other will be a kids rooms with bunk beds and dresser.

Can anyone offer some advice or point to resources for this kind of I?

TIA!

We are building a 2 story cob/straw bale home. As I am looking around the forum, I see most people are building small homes, but I am wondering if anyone here has built something over 900 sq feet (84 sq meters)? That is approximately the dimensions on the bottom floor, with the top floor being about half that. I keep seeing photos everywhere of larger homes, but I am having a harder time actually finding a permie who has built something slightly larger.

Is there a specific reason for this (other than just wanting to, of course)? Is there something important I am overlooking or possibly not considering? Aside from time and workforce needed?

There is a photo that I pinned on Pinterest of a cob shower with a glass roof. It is absolutely gorgeous, and I can only imagine how wonderful it must be in the summer months... But what about in the winter? Would something like this be unbearably cold when it is cold and rainy outside?

https://www.pinterest.com/pin/183873597265789845/