Edward Lye

I just retort-biochar anything organic. Fruit rinds. Shellfish. Bones. The rest are composted. The garbage collector essentially has nothing to collect. And all these go into static-deposit-and-forget wire mesh enclosures. If any plant wants those nutrients, they can send roots out. I don't measure anything and then fret over the numbers. But then again, I don't operate a farm or food forest.

Plastics - bags, drinking straws, one-time-use-food-containers, coffee cup lids, blister packs - are all forced into plastic Ecoladrillos . . . but that is another story for a later thread/post.

Cécile Stelzer Johnson wrote: At the time, they were practical and inexpensive even though they required real artisans who would fashion a shoe to very exactly match each foot of their customers.  Poplar and willows were used because they are easier to carve from one piece of wood and they resist water.

It is what it is.   The inexorable march of progress and economics

I have seen Youtubers wield all sorts of equipment and technology.
Steel cutting lasers, 3D printers, metal forging hammers to name a few.

So while artisans lack apprentices to pass on the knowledge, it is not
impossible that someone with a router can carve out a cavity conformal
to your foot on two pieces of wood that can be joined together. Some sort
of robot can adjust the depth and smoothen the edges.

There are devices out there that can capture a 3D point cloud
of your foot to direct the robot.  

The blocks are mailed to you and you can make micro adjustments
with a carving set. You can glue on a rubber sole if you wish or attach
another block of wood or plate just to crush biochar.

David Wieland wrote:  It's hard to think of situation in any modern environment in which wooden shoes or wood-soled shoes -- any rigid.shoes -- have an advantage over ones that can conform to natural foot flex.

I wear Chinese wooden clogs - just a shaped slab of wood with a plastic strap.

They dry well and might appeal to those who want to "ground" themselves.

Safer than going about barefoot.

Sometime in the late 70's I came across this
Firestorm Apparatus
as it was called in some Encyclopaedia.

It was made of clear plastic with some liquid
fuel in a container - something like this YT video.



It was just a piece of lab demonstration equipment.
It shows how some building fires get supersized.

But I saw things differently. I made variations
of this to burn garden refuse and played around
with various dimensions and sizes.

The most promising was a large tin used to store
biscuits. I carved a flap into each face and bent
them inwards to direct the airflow into a combined
counterclockwise direction as seen from above.
A chimney improved combustion.

It was successful but lacked a means of clearing
out the ashes and embers. This accelerated the
wear and tear as the walls glowed cherry red and
quickly rusted.

Then I was seduced by the rocket stove. I could
never find enough clay pipes and this too wore
out by expansion cracks.

My last attempt was the ARS-C.

I am moving back to the Firestorm Apparatus.

It has noticeable advantages over the rocket
stove:

- silent
- the entire inlet runs the length of the apparatus
 so it never chokes
- the swirling incoming air helps to cool the walls
 of the chamber
- If I affix a yoke at the top and suspend this
 with a chain, I can lift everything an inch
 or two to clear out the ashes and coals
- it works with blocks or sticks
- since the hot coals are at the bottom, anything
 dropped in is sure to ignite
- the YT video shows his glass variation with
 two inlets working, a 4 inlet version will catch
 the wind coming from any direction to supercharge
 the flame.
- It is super simple to build - just a rectangular
 sheet of metal approximately 21 x 24 inches rolled
 up. To keep the inlet from closing or adjusting it,
 you need a stone at the bottom or long screws at
 the top and middle. Just drill two holes smaller
 than the thickness of the screw and force the
 screw in thus carving its own thread. This way
 you can set the size of the inlet and adjust it
 before the next burn. The overlap is also adjustable
 if you drill extra holes in advance.

 Or you can make this out of individual panels  
 attached to a chassis. The panels do not need
 to be curved.

 Feel free to innovate.

 Whatever design I try next depends on the trash
 my neighbours throw out. The unit you see in
 the 2023 videos has rusted to pieces.

 The best fuel is of course blocks or sticks of
 wood but this can handle scrunched up newspaper
 but then you have more ash to clear.

 You can also use this to light your barbeque
 charcoal or start a campfire.

 I will append new developments as they arise.

 A further development will be to capture the heat for cooking
 or heating but first a means of suspending it so it does not
 topple.

Here are 6 views for two separate burns:











[youtube]https://youtube.com/shorts/lvxio7gs3Q8[/youtube]

You are so LUCKY.

I once tasted this as a salad dressing at a family dinner
and it has an unusual and exceptional taste.

My niece-in-law brought it from Singapore.

I have been looking for this ever since.         No joy.

None of the supermarkets. None of the Oriental specialty
shops like Don Don Donki stock this. You can get Miso paste
and the like but not Yuzu.

3-minute sauce and variations.

DIY or find someone who can make and ,market this sauce.

Sample YT video:







Bon Appetit.