Sharon Reece

Hi!
Im a little over an hour north west of Charlotte. In the foothills.
Sharon

HELP!!!
OK, i know most of you will not think this plea is a hill of beans, but the fact is i have desperately trying for the last few years to get my little urban permaculture off to a good start. I live in the middle of a one stoplight town on less than half an acre. I bought this old antebellum boarding house about 10 years ago. I have finally after many years got her to livable conditions. I was diagnosed 5 years ago with congestive heart failure. Ive been doing the best i can since then. I put an ad in permies 3 years ago requesting help and was thrilled that a young couple responded and seemed to be eager to move in and help me with getting the place back in shape. After months of correspondance they disappeared. Just poof! My health issues totally suck, but i still need some help. I have fruit trees, garden beds and berries in place. I can offer an upstairs apartment. partially furnished and pay utilities but thats about it. The area is over 1000 sq ft 2 bedrooms with bath, laundry and mini kitchen. I work 12-16 hour shifts and have very little time off. Hoping to retire in the next 3 years, but who knows. I am totally alone except for my 80+ year old mother which is not a plus, lol. I need someone to help me with water issues, putting in new beds etc. Im sincerely hoping theres a person out there who is willing to to help me make a dream come true

Jon,
Google automatic foundation vents...they open at 70 degrees, close at 40 and do not require electricity. Prices are from cheap to very expensive. Hope this helps.

Wow, i just checked the prices on these doors...the cheapest is over 600. and does not even include the steps. That's probably a good 2-3000. to get the area dug out, the cement base installed and labor. Way out of my budget. Guess i am out of luck. It's just frustrating knowing its there and not being able to use it. Thanks anyway.

The photo is what i wish it looked like, except with a single door. The ground is fairly level at that spot.  Thanks for your input, i appreciate it.

The bottom of the 2x3 door is ground level and yes there is cement block on each side. I could put a ladder inside to get down, it would be very difficult. Believe me i have heard that numerous times from repair guys that have had to navigate the area, lol. That being said, i just need a safe way for me to access and use the area for an actual root cellar.

Well, i don't have any photos, but the root cellar is under a portion of my living room on the north side of the house. The 2x3 opening is just a wooden door adjoining the underpinning of the foundation with a 8 foot drop if you go in. There is no basement. At one time, i am sure there was a door to the root cellar that was filled in when the underpinning was done or perhaps before, who knows? There are no traces of a stairwell.  It is an antebellum house and i have very little history on it. It just makes sense that this area was probably used for a root cellar in the past. It has a compacted dirt floor with huge timbers lining it. Much to the chagrin of the plumbers i have had doing repairs, there is another "door" to access the underneath of the house in the far corner. Thanks for your thoughts.

I have a 200 year old house which originally had a root cellar that was about 12x15 ft.  Sometime in the last 30 years the house was underpinned with cement block and there is only a 2x3 ft entrance to the area. The drop is about 8 ft. My problem is finding a cheap way to access this area. At my age (almost 60) i can't see me digging this out. Everything i have researched has been extremely expensive. I am also concerned with support to an entrance. I thought about an interior access, but there is no where in that space that  can be accessed from the main floor. If anyone has an idea about a cost effective way to gain entrance to this area i would love to hear it.

Thanks Bob, i had thought about cattails. I suppose i will try just digging the pond, stocking it and see what happens. They have stopped spraying along the fence line (I actually asked them to last year) which helps some. I prefer with starting out simply, hopefully they will take me seriously.

Bob

Thanks for the article on your dams and ponds. I know i told you i would like to have two mini ponds here, but i didnt go into the problem i have with runoff from two adjoining properties. Since my soil is nothing but clay, i get standing water in the back part of the property almost all summer. I actually had a small, 12x8 natural gold fish pond abt 20 years ago on another property with a similar problem and it worked great. My biggest concern now is all the "sprays" used on those manicured lawns. Even if i divert the water to a pond, will the plants and fish be able to tolerate the toxins? Is there any cheap way to filter the water? Any thoughts would be appreciated.

Thanks
Sharon