UPDATE: Unfortunately, this rocket stove design has proven to be a failure, and I have since deconstructed the stove. I cannot recommend that someone follow these plans. You can read my original post below for what not to do, though.
The rocket stove and cob bed and bench are essentially finished. The rocket stove (which I will detail more in yet another post) has 25 feet of horizontal run that wraps through the bed, into the bench, and out the southern wall of the house.
I am pretty psyched right now because it appears that my rocket stove, complete with nearly 25 feet of horizontal run (including two 180 degree turns) and no vertical stack, is successfully drawing.
More on that later.
A few days ago, I finally began building my rocket stove. A rocket stove is a high efficiency, low cost type of homemade mass heater. The advantage with rocket stoves is being able to run the stove pipe through cob furniture such as benches or beds. Instead of sending the stove pipe straight through the roof (along with the heat) as is typical in conventional wood stoves, most of the heat can be captured in the cob thermal mass. Rocket stoves typically burn way less wood than typical wood stoves, and you can make them out of recycled and salvaged materials that are pretty widely available.
There are a few natural buildings that stand out in my mind as some of the most beautiful examples. One of them is Meka’s cob cottage. Meka Bunch of Wolf Creek, Oregon built this stunning cob house over a four year period. Complete with hand-sculpted furniture, shelves and nooks built directly into the walls, arched windows, and a killer custom staircase, his cob building is a divine artistic achievement.
Check out the photos of Meka’s cob cottage for yourself.
Today I heard a funny story from Ashley, a guy who passed through Dancing Rabbit last September on the Superheroes bike ride.
He told me that while he was here, he and his then-girlfriend were looking for a peaceful, quiet location to have a challening conversation. They decided my house would be a good choice if it was empty, and it was, so they had their talk there to discuss ending their relationship.
We joked about how my house could serve as the go-to place where couples could break up thanks to its soothing atmosphere.
I was amused.
Hi there, I’m Ziggy. In 2008, I launched The Year of Mud while building my first natural home. This website is a collection of personal stories and experiences building with clay, straw, and wood over the past 15+ years. A few of the things that get me fired up are natural plasters, timber framing, & Japanese architecture. In 2012, we started offering Natural Building Workshops, so you can learn essential hands-on skills to build your own natural home.
