While there’s been somewhat of a lull in the activity out at Cob Haven, things have nevertheless been puttering along the last few months, so it seems like a good time to provide an update.
The main emphasis has been on installing a “rocket mass heater”. It’s the cob enthusiast’s version of an integrated wood heater and furniture dynamic duo. For a few decades, those interested in this somewhat enigmatic creation turned to Ianto Evans, the founder of Cob Cottage out in Oregon, and a more recent collaboration between Ianto and Laura Jackson. I went ahead and got the third edition of their book to prepare for this part of the project, which is a worthwhile read. Greg shortly thereafter passed on “The Rocket Mass Heater Builder’s Guide: Complete Step-by-Step Construction, Maintenance and Troubleshooting” by Erica and Ernie Weisner which was my inspiring evening reading for a week or two, and resulted in a more detailed plan and shopping list and some additional details and practical/expert advice on how to pull this invention off. I’ll spare you the many details, other than to say assembling the parts and tools is rather more involved than a trip to Lowes or Home Depot (although a few items did come from each). It also seems that building the RMH requires a decent dose of on-the-fly learning and improvisation.
First up was a couple barrels found on Craigslist. The barrels basically serve as the shell around the heater, which is made of fire brick. They need to be free of paint so the paint doesn’t off gas when the heater is fired; a non-trivial amount of head scratching and effort has been pursued in figuring out the best way to achieve this. As a result, I have less hair, shorter fingernails, and a new torch. Here they are after their first torching. To date, there have been three torchings and an hour or two of mechanical abrasion, and there is still a bit of paint to remove. So next up is engulfing the barrels in a bonfire.
This photo shows a mock up of the guts of the mass heater. The part of the fire brick in front is where small pieces of wood are fed and the tall part in the back is the “heat riser”. The pile of brick and pipe to the left is the beginning of what will be a bench that will provide much of the mass for storing the heat generated.
Here’s what it looks like a bit further along as the combustion unit is being set with clay slip.
A key part of the whole system is called the “manifold” which is the transition between the wood burning part and the mass heater/ furniture part. Here’s Greg working on the custom fabrication.
Eya took special interest in the lunch part of the day, but for the most part, saw it as an opportunity for a nice long nap in the sun.
When all is said and done with the mass heater, it will look (and feel) something like this.
Randy, Greg, Matt, and Tain all pitched in this past weekend on to make this happen. Kudos to all for the many collaborative elements that came together, including good humor, flexibility, masonry and steel cutting expertise, and perseverance, dedication, and willpower.
This bright, cool afternoon was perfect for planting our first crop of garlic on the land. Jeffry and Tain, encouraged by Eya, planted about 900 garlic cloves (one 100-foot bed, with 3 rows, approximately 3 cloves per foot).
It’s a rare moment for Paul and me: sitting on the back deck in the afternoon calm, gazing at the tall oaks and fluffy pines just beyond the backyard fence. Serenaded by the quiver of fading autumn leaves brushed by the breeze, the ever-present insect drone, bird calls and chirps. All is quiet and calm; a welcome respite after two months of nearly constant motion as we all settle into this house with a big footprint and mission to match. 
n September, we greeted a steady stream of visitors for the Hart’s Nest Open House (or “Hart-warming”). Guests enjoyed tours of the land, good food and drink, and a spirited performance by Jewelsong, a women’s vocal quartet which includes Marilyn as a member. They filled the Nest with sweet harmony.
A major meeting on Sunday, 24 September marked the successful culmination of an intensive research and planning phase as we organize ourselves to head again into architectural design work with professional Design Partners.
official community meeting there. Question rounds included all members who attended, many of whom were active on the Working Groups and had followed proposal development carefully online. General Circle made the ultimate decisions. Discussion was grounded and immensely aided both by the coordination and parallel structuring of proposals – credit PDD and the Working Group conveners: Christina, Charles, Hope, Katy, and Anthony – and by skillful facilitation both by our impressive inside talent (yay, Maria!) and an outside facilitator, Mark Molitor, who joined us for the day as well as offering h
is sage counsel in numerous lead-up planning sessions (with Maria, Hope, Jeffry, and Anthony). Most of all the success of the work was a credit to the focused intent of all who attended – many thanks to all!!!
x” design. Inside layouts remain to be decided, but one natural floor plan places living & dining rooms under the lower end of the big roof, with its sloping ceiling creating “lift” above. Under the upper end of the big roof could be a half second floor with bedrooms and a bath, over a downstairs kitchen and another BR or study. (This is the basic 3 BR version.) Stairs rise from the living/dining “great room” to the second floor, allowing for a balcony overlooking the lower area. A detailed and illustrated Sunslope proposal can be found 
least impact on the environment, the longest life, lowest maintenance, greatest damage resistance, lowest cost to maintain, maximum attention to the human factor, and reducing toxicity as much as possible. A detailed proposal breaks down sustainability goals by major categories: Energy (ways to get at least to net zero and hopefully better); Water (self-sufficiency in the long run); Materials (major durability and longevity with least impact, and highlighting some highly attractive potential new options); Appliances and HVAC; Lighting; Food (permaculture zones 0 / 1 would be our porches!); Waste; and other Design Features. We reaffirmed our intention to design and make full use of Common House facilities and community wide solutions to reduce individual house space and appliance requirements, and to promote life style changes to assist in that goal as well. A full and consented-to Sustainability proposal can be found 
diversity, and social and ecological justice for ourselves and the land. Housing affordability—short and long term—is a paramount (though not sole) concern if we are to be able to attract and retain members across spectrums of age, race/ethnicity, gender, agrarian skills, etc. The Equity Working Group therefore brought a specific proposal to GC whose key features include pegging our house cost goals to affordability for people earning 85-100% of Area Median household Income (about $46,000-$54,000 for two people in Orange County in 2015), along with flexible housing options, such as shared housing and farm housing, and energetically pursuing sources of subsidies and alternative financing. The GC discussion was highly supportive, and fertile, leading to development of the proposal, with final consent pending adjustment and further development. A detailed background report can be found 
This Labor Day’s work weekend began with a tractor workshop led by Jeffry on Saturday afternoon. Tain, Margret, and Virginia were given a very thorough and clear explanation of all of the red beast’s bells and whistles—well, more like levers, pedals, knobs, fluid reservoirs and quirks.
have another workshop later this year.
onna, Virginia, and An
thony.
at Hartery improvement and brush clearing along the dam, which now included Lisa and Amy, the weekend was deemed a success. Many thanks to all who participated!
