Rewire, a lot of cob!

mhar · Nov 23, 2016

Bearing in mind that cob is not a dry medium I tried MK Honeywell and Click Scolmore to see if anybody makes plastic back boxes as the customer wants recessed acessories. No Joy.
What do other people use?
One option I am considering is plastic conduit and recessing the conduit boxes as much as possible / practical. Once secured I would then be able to silicone the screwholes to limit moisture ingress.
I would welcome ideas and other people's experiences

Taylortwocities · Nov 23, 2016

Never done it myself, but being a nosey bar steward I had a look at Google

"wiring cob house"

There quite a lot of useful stuff there.

Andy78 · Nov 23, 2016

I think there have been a couple of threads on this forum too if you have a search mhar

Midwest · Nov 23, 2016

You could ask Kieran from KTEC Electricians, he has rather unique ideas

Midwest · Nov 23, 2016

Or you could try something like this; UNBRANDED - SG218 - 2 Gang AV Back Box, 40mm Black | CPC UK - http://cpc.farnell.com/unbranded/sg218/back-box-2g-black/dp/AV22151

PS or this; http://www.toolstation.com/shop/Electrical/d190/Conduit+&+Trunking/sd2743/PVC+Box/p53404

Will the cob be stable around above boxes?

mhar · Nov 23, 2016

I also googled. A lot of the information is from different countries, drier countries!
These walls appear quite dry but the area is part of a flood plane and it is part of an old mill. All my wiring is going to be 500mm above ground for worst case scenario, a devon bank is being constructed and we are putting in a couple of pumps as per a specialists specification.
The toolstation box is what I think I may end up using as it is a conduit box.
Yes the cob will be stable. Either repaired in cob + lime plaster or more likely Bauwer Standard

Midwest · Nov 23, 2016

If you've googled it, I expect you have come across these people; What is cob building? All about cob, earth houses and eco building - http://www.cobcourses.com/cob-houses/

Doesn't seem damp is your major issue, just what they put in the stuff and reaction to cables etc. Have you tried contacting one of these associations, they might be able to put you in contact with a previous installer, whose overcome any issues?