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Appendix AT — SOLAR-READY PROVISIONS—DETACHED ONE- AND

Section AU102

California Residential Code (Title 24, Part 2.5) · 2022 edition · updated 2026-09-12 · California

Italicized text is a California amendment to the model code, as printed in the official publication.

DEFINITIONS

BRACED WALL PANEL. A cob wall designed and constructed to resist in-plane shear loads through the interaction of the cob material, its reinforcing and its connections to its bond beam and foundation. The panel’s length meets the requirements for the particular wall type and contributes toward the total amount of bracing required along its braced wall line in accordance with Sections AU106.11 and R602.10.1.

BUTTRESS. A mass set at an angle to or bonded to a wall that it strengthens or supports.

CLAY. Inorganic soil with particle sizes less than 0.00008 inch (0.002 mm) and having the characteristics of high to very high dry strength and medium to high plasticity, used as the binder of other component materials in a mix of cob or of clay plaster.

Copyright © 2022 by, or licensed to, International Code Council, Inc. (ALL RIGHTS RESERVED); licensed to California Building Standards Commission pursuant to License Agreement. No further reproductions is authorized. Any unauthorized reproduction or distribution is a violation of the federal copyright act and the license agreement, and subject to civil and criminal penalties thereunder.

APPENDIX AU—COB CONSTRUCTION (MONOLITHIC ADOBE)

CLAY SUBSOIL. Subsoil sourced directly from the earth, containing clay, sand and silt, and containing not more than trace amounts of organic matter.

COB. A composite building material consisting of refined clay or clay subsoil wet-mixed with loose straw and sometimes sand. Also known as “Monolithic adobe.”

COB CONSTRUCTION. A wall system of layers or lifts of moist cob placed to create monolithic walls, typically without formwork.

DRY JOINT. The boundary between a layer of moist cob and a previously laid and significantly drier, nonmalleable layer of cob that requires wetting to achieve bonding between the layers.

FINISH. Completed combination of materials on the face of a cob wall.

LIFT. A layer of installed cob.

LOAD-BEARING WALL. A cob wall that supports more than 100 pounds per linear foot (1459 N/m) of vertical load in addition to its own weight.

MONOLITHIC ADOBE. See “Cob.”

NATURAL COB. Cob not containing admixtures such as Portland cement, lime, asphalt emulsion or oil. Synonymous with “Unstabilized cob.”

NONSTRUCTURAL WALL. Walls other than load-bearing walls or shear walls.

PLASTER. Clay, soil-cement, gypsum, lime, clay-lime, cement-lime or cement plaster as described in Section AU104.

SHEAR WALL. A cob wall designed and constructed to resist in-plane lateral seismic and wind forces in accordance with Section AU106.11. Synonymous with “Braced wall panel.”

STABILIZED. Cob or other earthen material containing admixtures, such as Portland cement, lime, asphalt emulsion or oil, that are intended to help limit water absorption, stabilize volume, increase strength and increase durability.

STRAW. The dry stems of cereal grains after the seed heads have been removed.

STRUCTURAL WALL. A wall that meets the definition for a “Load-bearing wall” or “Shear wall.”

UNSTABILIZED. A cob or other earthen material that does not contain admixtures such as Portland cement, lime, asphalt emulsion or oil.

UNSTABILIZED COB. See “Natural cob.”

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▸Contents — California Residential Code (Title 24, Part 2.5)
California Residential Code (Title 24, Part 2.5)
  1. Chapter 2 — DEFINITIONS AND ABBREVIATIONS
  2. Appendix AF — RADON CONTROL
  3. Appendix AI — PRIVATE SEWAGE
  4. Appendix AJ — EXISTING
  5. Appendix AK — SOUND
  6. Appendix AO — AUTOMATIC
  7. Appendix AR — LIGHT STRAW-CLAY
  8. Appendix AS — STRAWBALE
  9. Appendix AU — COB CONSTRUCTION
  10. Appendix AV — BOARD
  11. Appendix AW — 3D-PRINTED BUILDING
  12. Chapter 1 — SCOPE AND APPLICATION
  13. Chapter 3 — BUILDING PLANNING
  14. Chapter 4 — FOUNDATIONS
  15. Chapter 5 — FLOORS
  16. Chapter 6 — WALL CONSTRUCTION
  17. Chapter 7 — WALL COVERING
  18. Chapter 8 — ROOF-CEILING CONSTRUCTION
  19. Chapter 9 — ROOF ASSEMBLIES
  20. Chapter 10 — CHIMNEYS AND FIREPLACES
  21. Chapter 44 — REFERENCED STANDARDS
  22. Appendix AH — PATIO COVERS
  23. Appendix AL — PERMIT FEES
  24. Appendix AQ — TINY HOUSES
  25. ▸Appendix AT — SOLAR-READY PROVISIONS—DETACHED ONE- AND
    Overview
    1. Section AT101 — (RB101)
    2. Section AT102 — (RB102)
    3. Section AT103 — (RB103)
    4. Section AU101
    5. Section AU102
    6. Section AU103
    7. Section AU104
    8. Section AU105
    9. Section AU106
    10. Section AU107
    11. Section AU108
    12. Section AU109
    13. Section AU110
    14. Section AV101
    15. Section AW101
    16. Section AW102
    17. Section AW103
    18. Section AW104
    19. Section AW105
    20. Section AW106
  26. Appendix AX — SWIMMING POOL SAFETY ACT
  27. Appendix AY — AREAS PROTECTED BY THE FACILITIES
  28. Appendix AZ — EMERGENCY HOUSING

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