[Stoves] Briquette stove in cob

[Rok Oblak]

Hey Ron,

2. cob is a natural material building method/ material, composed of clay,
sand and straw. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cob_(material)
It has good heat accumulation properties, while the straw provides some
insulation and durability - so all these make a nice stove structure.
Accumulation can be reduced with a fired ceramic liner,which gives a faster
heat transfer to the pot and it makes it more durable as well, as the heat
would crack the cob eventually. As I've written in the email, i like the
notion of building an extra surface right next to the fire hole, so its
like a modern kitchen stove-top, where you put your hot pots. Cob is a
traditional building method in many countries and its gaining popularity in
Europe and other western countries as moder building materials are getting
more expensive and people are getting sensitive about the materials they
implement in their houses. Natural materials would have better properties,
like sound insulation, air cleaning, heat retention, etc.

I recently started to collaborate at Krater, production space in Ljubljana
/ Slovenia, where we study natural material implementation as building
materials and product design https://krater.si/en We started with invasive
species of plants, like japanese knotweed and have this paper brand
https://notweedpaper.com/ We implemented invasive species in cob material,
like Goldenrod and Knotweed and some others. Also made biomass briquettes
from several different species. We also have a lot of clay and gravel and
sand on site, so its easy to experiment.

I was leading the workshop with https://27.bio.si/ where we are building a
tea pavillion to demonstrate using various 'wild' matrials in contemporary
designs, so we have built the cob stove to show how easy and applicable it
is to almost every living environment in the world

I currently have some other projects on the go, but am looking for extra
funds for development - if any of you happen to know for some we could
apply, I'd be happy to know about. Also specifically regarding the cooking
stoves, designing kitchens, etc. Richard, I have written to Nora Feldmar,
but she did not reply - do you have any contacts with her still? I've had
some corporate work in last 10 years but finally saved some moneys and have
a small support from Slovenia government now for the next 5 years to work
more on development projects.

3. I haven't done any char-making experiments with my stove, but Jed did in
his projects, like you know already.

4. Funding from Finland was only for the short trip to Malawi, where I
started thinking about briquette stoves, back in 2004. Than I got some
support from our university in Vancouver/BC, bt that was it pretty much,
apart from my master thesis on vernacular, open source design of cooking
stoves in developing countries

5. Yes, Joshua really took the idea of the Roket stove to another level!
Joshua, is cob building active in your area?

Thanks to all for the feedback!
Rok

On Mon, Jul 4, 2022 at 4:31 AM Ronal Larson <rongretlarson at comcast.net>
wrote:

> Rok and List:  cc Joshua and Richard
>
> 1.  Thanks for returning to the stoves list.  Yours was a major topic of
> conversation many (15?) years ago.
> I apologize to Richard Stanley and several others for not including their
> later contributions.  Richard and I met at a (forgotten theme) confere4nce
> in Boulder maybe 20 years ago.  Good to hear he also is still active.
>
> 2.  Can you expand on the word “cob” below.
> Some very nice-looking stoves in your photos.
>
> 3.   Many on this list are investigating. char-making stoves these days.
> I remember reading a little about the Roket and char-making.  Anything new
> on the char-making front at your company?  Or in your part of Europe?
> I ask because char is so important for climate and other reasons.
>
> 4.  At your excellent site below (https://briquettestoves.com/ ) there
> was a nice (but to me unknown) story about your receiving  funding from
> Finland to develop the Roket.  Anything more on that we should hear?   Good
> for the Finns!
> 5.  There were also nice tributes to Joshua Guinto and his work with and
> extensions of the Rocket toward char-making and biochar.
>  Like you, I think Jed is the best artist in the whole stove world.  And
> sculptor and designer.
> I was especially impressed at his 2013 paper (new to me) which couples to
> your work.
> I include him to get an update on that very advanced 2013 paper found at:
> https://holeyroket.files.wordpress.com/2013/05/the-holey-roket-stove-and-biochar-project.pdf
> In order to keep this message only to Rokets,  I am starting another
> separate message to Joshua.
>
> Ron
>
>
> On Jun 27, 2022, at 6:17 AM, Rok Oblak <rok.stoves at gmail.com> wrote:
>
> Dear stovers,
>
> it's been a long time since I've written in the list, but we recently
> organized a Building with Earth workshop and one detail in the cob table
> was an integrated cooking stove - a ceramic liner, using biomass
> briquettes, same type as from Richard Stanley.
>
> It showed up as a great update to the holey Roket stove
> https://briquettestoves.com/ as durability is a big issue as ceramic
> liners tend to crack and break pretty easily due to temperature shocks, but
> the cob here is making it last for a long time.
>
> I have mixed local found clay and a lot of fine sawdust in the liner and
> it doesn't make any smoke, only when you push in a new briquette, there is
> black fumes for a few seconds, until a new one ignites.
>
> If you happen to know any projects this principle would be good to
> integrate, even for other types of wood, I would be happy to share my
> experiences and possibly collaborate on redesigning existing stoves with
> this alternative solution.
>
> Happy and healthy cooking!
> Rok
>
> --
> *Rok Oblak, MAA Design*
>
> rok.stoves at gmail.com
> briquettestoves.com <http://www.holeyroket.com/>
>
> Gregorciceva ulica 5
> 4224 Gorenja vas
> Slovenia
> <IMG_1230.jpg><IMG_1191.jpg><IMG_1161.jpg>
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-- 
*Rok Oblak, MAA Design*

rok.stoves at gmail.com
briquettestoves.com <http://www.holeyroket.com/>

Gregorciceva ulica 5
4224 Gorenja vas
Slovenia
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