Devon house made out of MUD is for sale for £795,000

A house in Devon built by a local builder who was a favourite on Grand Designs is for sale for £795,000.

The four-bedroom and three-bathroom detached house in Ottery St Mary was built by Kevin McCabe and with its thick cob walls is appropriately named The Cob House.

Mr McCabe lives in another cob house nearby, which appeared on Grand Designs in 2018.

Cob is a natural building material typically made from a mixture of sandy sub-soil, clay and straw.

Cob is a natural building material typically made from a mixture of sandy sub-soil, clay and straw.

(This four-bedroom cob house in Ottery St Mary was built by local builder Kevin McCabe, who is a favourite on Grand Designs)

Mr McCabe spoke exclusively to us about why he likes working with cob and building houses in this way.

He said: 'It was built in 2006 before I appeared on Grand Designs when I built the nearby house that I currently live in.

'Building cob homes is important to me. It is built from the local environment, which means that it inevitably blends with the local environment.

'You are not bringing in designs from elsewhere, which means it reflects a very vernacular tradition. For the cob house, I built it from the soil out of the garden.'

He went on to say: 'There is something like 40,000 cob houses in Devon and people often don't realise they live in one.

(The property in Devon is currently on the market for £796,000 and the estate agent handling the sale is Hall & Scott)

(The farmhouse-style kitchen has bespoke oak units, granite worktops and a Rangemaster cooker)

(The kitchen also has tiled floors and bespoke chestnut wood sealed double-glazed windows)

(The main living room has a multi-fuel stove as well as wooden ceiling beams and a large window)

The estate agent handling the sale is Hall & Scott, which described The Cob House as 'impressive' and a 'superb' property.

As well as the thick cob walls, it includes a ground source heat pump which serves the underfloor heating and hot water system.

The house is spread across three floors and includes a feature oak staircase and oak doors leading to the main living room that has a multi-fuel stove and a large window.

(The property appeared on Grand Designs many years ago showing the McCabe family living there while they built another cob house nearby)

(Mr McCabe appeared on Grand Designs in 2018 to reveal the finished cob house that he lives in called Dingle Dell, which is also in Ottery St Mary.)

(A ground source heat pump serves the underfloor heating along with the hot water system)

(The entrance is via a large wooden door that is surrounded by the curved cob walls)

(The house is spread across three floors and includes a feature oak staircase and oak doors)

(The main bedroom is on the first floor, and has an en-suite bathroom featuring a roll top bath)

(The property is in Ottery St Mary, which is one of the oldest towns in Devon, and is surrounded by countryside views)

Ref: Devon house made out of MUD is for sale for £795,000 (dailymail)