J. Syme

search Youtube for air lift pumps, or tiger air lift pump for examples. Basically you take long water up hose and attach a 2-3 foot pvc pipe with end cap on it with some stilts on its side to let water in (large sediment rock filter pickup tube). The long water hose needs to be long enough to get to bottom of well and have an air line running along side it.  On the top half of the pvc pipe, above where the water intake slits, you will need to pipe the air line into the side of the pvc pipe. The airline makes bubbles inside the column of water in the long water pipe creating upward current. The current is eventually enough to raise the water to the surface. This system it quite tolerant of sediment and particulate that normally chews up standard submersible well pumps. note the water coming out the top will at first be quite muddy and full of bubbles because the pump usually stirs up the bottom of the well when started up. normal use for this system is in areas that wells are not real clean and the water is pumped into a non pressurized holding tank, like an open livestock water tank. these pumps are not as energy efficient as standard pumps but durable in harsh conditions.

my setup for a sump area is an 8" ball float on a vertical threaded metal rod running thru a plastic pipe. The plastic pipe is the guide for the float rod controller setup. The plastic guide pipe is clamped in place so it doesn't wiggle.  Near the top of the threaded rod a large washer (about 4 inches diameter is held in place with nuts) as the water level goes up and down the washer rises up and down. When water is near top of tank the washer hits a proximity switch which turns on the sump pump. As the water level goes down the washer bottoms out hitting a switch that turns the pump off. Yes a clever person could rig up similar system with cheaper common house 3 way light switches, but i used commercial switches As for making sure the system doesn't over flow the cistern rig up a float switch in the cistern to only power the well when level is low. I like to keep the electricity out of the water all together so you don't have to rely on water tight fittings/barriers.

about 15years ago, cousins of mine ran missionary hospitals in Sierra Leone area used 1980's land rover 2.5  non turbo diesel and also had a Toyota land cruiser of similar age in gasoline. parts were easier to find since locals had them and they proved to be resilient to the environment. be aware of your surroundings while making roadside repairs cousin had a strange feeling while changing a tire and turned to find a lion sneaking up on him. he and his wife decided to wait in the car until the lion left later that evening. best advice I can give to you is see what the locals are driving (not the rich folk) because they will know what is frugal to maintain in the area. the small Toyota pickups were becoming popular about the time they were rotating back to USA.

Jane Meyers wrote:I like the idea 0f the bucket trap. I wonder if the mice have to climb up the outside of the bucket to get to the plank it seems that they could climb up the inside to get out just as easily to get out.  What am I missing? JCT

The mice bucket filled with 4" water makes them drown. The bucket with bird seed on bottom keeps them fed till you walk them to another location. I place my bucket next to a place where mouse can easily walk a short board to the top...  
You can place ramp with small snacks on it to encourage mice traffic to the magical bucket relocater device...

Hope this helps you find home for wayward mice

winter wear, hmm i usually run a bit warm since i'm naturally insulated (fat).  For the brisk 5am walks with dog it's usually boxer's & tee shirt (what i roll out of bed in) boots if snow is deep, if snow is low, slip on shoes are sufficient. The dog is only interested in <5 minute walks in the early morning.  For daily outdoor extended chores:  deer skin gloves, wool hat, dry boots, jeans & i choose to light layer the upper half so i can un button waxed cotton jacket and or flannel shirt as i warm up. if it's below 20 deg f  I'll add scarf, flannel lined jeans, and wool liners to oversized leather gloves. The trick for me is keeping feet dry and warm. Head warm but not too warm, and the rest of the body seems to regulate to the temps.

Yes  https://permies.com/t/9580/Rocket-mass-heater-converts-cooler   basically close windows in heat of day. leave feed tube open to let air flow thru RMH and open windows to cool air at night. See link to a nice movie to explain it better than I.  https://youtu.be/xo9xJo6dTxE

I like the make it soggy and then squish it into usable blocks of biomass. I was envisioning myself pouring the slurry between two pieces of plywood then running it over with the tractor while my wife watches shakes her head and walks back into the house.

workie job has about 400-500 banker boxes full of "unclassified" documents that need properly disposed of. It would be Very cool if I could use them to heat stuff without smoking out the neighborhood. Has anybody converted stacks of copy paper and file folders to heat things or recycle without doing the Shred/paper mill toxic chemical bath then mix/blend into pulp thing??

I want a more permie style use of this resource that can destroy the sensitive/controlled words on the paper yet not kill the environment. I'm open to any & all suggestions.
90% of said stuff falls outside of Department of Defense or Department Energy jurisdiction but sorting them requires time, so complete burn or decompose is optimal to eliminate regulatory concerns.

I read normally 3 books at a time, one new, one old, and one for fun...here's the current winter rotation. SourDough Starters by Kate Downham. Willow Feeders by Paul Wheaton. re reading the literary works of Abraham Lincoln * Curry.  rereading Zen and the art of motorcycle maintenance.  John

wow 11mil + visits, the server upgrade was just in time, does it need any expansion? I'd be willing to invest $$ if it helps spread the permie word.