Ben's Blog

Category: self sustainability

565 Articles
self sustainability, solar power ben December 27, 2017

x1.5

Another Winter another solar upgrade. Short overcast days are good at exposing a lower limit. After having lost power a couple of days it was time for an upgrade. The house is growing and so it our consumption, especially on the Summer months when we get used to abundant electricity.

Bringing the panels on site, I always said my son would make a great draft horse.

I’m becoming good at building in the cold, my fingers are not thanking me though.

All I need to do now is prop it off the ground and anchor it for heavy winds.

 

I like this frame, it takes 6 2x4x8 and this is the only scrap lumber left.

I did some quick back of the envelope math and so far our setup costed about as much as what we would have paid for grid electricity these past 2 and a half years. Seems like it costs about as much to learn how to fish than it does to buy fish, at least at the beginning. We have now entered the gravy zone.

self sustainability ben November 26, 2017

Protected: The dry space race before the snow

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aesthetics, agriculture, apiculture, apple, canning, maple syrup, preserving, self sustainability ben November 26, 2017

Food Pantry Rainbow

self sustainability, wood ben November 13, 2017

Protected: Stocking up on kindling

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agriculture, self sustainability ben November 13, 2017

The garlic is in

A bit late and not super well done but we don’t want to skip a season. We planted ~400 cloves.

 

We got leaves from the forest, one the of many things trees give us.

 

Today’s insulation is tomorrow’s soil

maple syrup, nature encounters ben November 13, 2017

Must have been here a while

building, self sustainability ben October 22, 2017

The house addition has a roof

As for the gambrel, we outsourced this work. By the time I get to a roof, I’ve completely had it with ladders and I would never be able to do as good a job as professionals with standing seam tools.

apple, self sustainability ben October 21, 2017

2nd cider batch bottled

We are at 10 gallons for the season. I wish I could say they suffice to our yearly consumption.

apple, self sustainability ben October 03, 2017

Cidre

Hard time taking pictures of the process, we’re at 15 gallons of cider, 5 of which are now laced with the inebriating nectar of the gods :). We followed an extremely simple farm recipe, the cider is good but not great. The 2 gallons with honey tasted best, maple syrup left no particular taste but did make the cider a little stronger. Good stuff!

 

Every batch labeled with a picture for the story of the tree it came from.

“Old man’s arch”, “Maple ghost moon”, Honey third from the left” are all there.

apple, self sustainability ben September 18, 2017

Protected: Soft Cider -> Hard Cider

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apple, self sustainability ben September 06, 2017

Apple droppings

Every day we pick up droppings from a tree that is a bit early. We make just enough applesauce for a day, just enough for the house to smell incredible.

 

the nice ones are saved as they keep really well

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the ugly ones are cooked immediately

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building, self sustainability ben September 06, 2017

Rafter vents, insulation, vapor barrier, walls

Racing to a livable room.

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agriculture, self sustainability ben September 05, 2017

Garlic Galore

600 bulbs dried & cleaned. we’ll definitely have enough for our consumption.IMG_1399IMG_1402

self sustainability, wood ben August 27, 2017

Protected: First fire of 2017

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self sustainability, solar power ben August 22, 2017

The eclipse as seen through our solar array

in blue, the curve for a normal day, in red, the moon gets in the way.

solar_eclipse_production

building, self sustainability ben August 22, 2017

The light at the end of the tunnel

I have been pushing hard for days to get to a point where we can start using the new space. I can see that the rough construction is almost over and that things get easier from then on. In fact, I can see that I will never push as hard as I did these past couple of years. This Summer has been incredible in that the land and the house are really taking shape into the dream we are pursuing. And also because we know the hardest is behind us after more than 2 years of ruthless efforts. And so, while it’s psychologically very hard to muster the resolve to spend days working to exhaustion on ladders in the Sun, I also know this is the last such sacrifice I’ll be doing. Future projects will have a much saner rhythm to them because our livelihood will not depend on them. It is with the knowledge that it only gets easier from this that I plowed through 5 more days of construction.

To finish the sheathing of the second floor I’ve received help from Chris & Lou. Bringing 4’x8′ half inch sheet of wood up ladders is both tricky & tough. Both Chris & Lou are experienced carpenters, I’ve learned a whole lot from them, including how to make this hard task as easy as possible. They showed me many other tricks.

It kind of looks like a bunker without windows.IMG_1144

FlashingIMG_7195

Insulation & vapor barrier, it’s a very nice feeling to start thinking about the inside.IMG_7188

self sustainability, wood ben August 22, 2017

An addition to the family

Of wood stoves. This little Alpiner will be in charge of the house addition although it will probably not be hooked up to a chimney before next year.

The tractor is once again proving itself invaluable. The front loader fits right in the truck within 0.5″.IMG_1091

My new hobby: taking wood stoves for a ride.IMG_1094

After an hour of trying various techniques, Justin & I give up for the day. The stove is just too heavy to get up the steps.stove_push

It’ll sit outside until next time.IMG_1131

Take 2, with a come-along. Same awesome tool I used to move 2 trees a while back.IMG_1141

Easy as pie.IMG_7197

I love the Alpine landscape decoration.IMG_1146

self sustainability, solar power ben August 21, 2017

New inverter

The old inverter I bought second hand for $20 bit the dust. In part due to my lack of cable strain relief which created contact between ground and negative, oops :\ lessons learned. I bought this new guy which works so much better I think the old one was on the way out anyway. I especially love the fact it comes with a remote start/stop. Since we rarely use 110AC and the solar shed is 50′ from the house, it’s perfect to remove phantom loads. It’s not like we remember to ever turn it off, but we can 🙂

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building, self sustainability ben August 21, 2017

Time consuming

Throughout building the addition, an inordinate amount of time was spent joining is to the existing structure. This is compounded when reaching the roof. This critical part where to roof lines join was done, redone and re-redone to satisfaction. Here having been demolished for the 2nd time.

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foraging, self sustainability ben August 17, 2017

Protected: Wild berries coming to ripeness

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building, self sustainability ben August 14, 2017

Closing the rakes

Several tasks were accomplished today in preparation for a big sheathing push, and to get everything ready for the roofers.

Making holes to allow the air to flow under the roof.

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Insect screen

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Nice, tight & aerated IMG_1083

agriculture, self sustainability ben August 09, 2017

600 heads of garlic unearthed

There will be no vampires tonight.

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An unfinished house is perfect drying space.

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building, self sustainability ben August 06, 2017

Haven't touched a hammer in 10 days

And it’s time to get back into it. This flight of stairs shall serve as a warm up.

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