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BB clarification thread

 
steward
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Yeah, either electrical or homesteading oddball could be good fits.
 
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For the dry 6 things bit ( https://permies.com/wiki/150148/pep-food-prep-preservation/Dry-Types-food-straw-drythings ), does dry mean dehydrate?
 
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Dave Luke wrote:For the dry 6 things bit ( https://permies.com/wiki/150148/pep-food-prep-preservation/Dry-Types-food-straw-drythings ), does dry mean dehydrate?



Yes.
 
Mike Haasl
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Yes.  There might have been a case where the word "dry" made more sense so that's what was used.  But dehydrating is the idea.  Remember that plastic can't touch the food so be careful with the dehydrator tray material!
 
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Neither Paul not Mike have mentioned chinampas in their PEX BBs as an alternative to hugelkultures or berms. I wonder if chinampas could be worked in as an option instead of a hugelkulture (Garden BB for PEP) or berm (Earthworks BB for PEM). I struggle to find a sensible location for a hugelkulture or berm - especially given the required dimensions, but can see lots of opportunities for chinampas on my property (Maine).
20231113_120813.jpg
area for potnetial chinampas
 
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BB in reference - https://permies.com/wiki/211857/Sheet-mulch-area-PEM-BB

I am putting together my documentation for this BB and I want to make sure that it will be kosher. It mentions scavenged cardboard/newspapers as being okay. I have access to long kraft paper sheets that are scrap from the industry I work in. They are untreated wood pulp without any additives or gunk. They otherwise would be sent to the dump. Would this be acceptable as a smother layer?
Kraft.png
Smother layer in question.
Smother layer in question.
 
Mike Haasl
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Hey, that's for PEM which is my program.  Yes, I'm fine with kraft paper as well :)
 
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For straw in Nest, clean a carpet with water and suction, can it be two or three carpets that equal the sq ft amount? We only have 5x8s in our house.
 
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R West wrote: For straw in Nest, clean a carpet with water and suction, can it be two or three carpets that equal the sq ft amount? We only have 5x8s in our house.



Yes, it can be multiple carpets as long as it totals the 100 sq ft.

Thanks for asking!
 
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In the PEP Gardening Hugelkulture BBs -- at least the first two (e.g. https://permies.com/wiki/98574/Build-Hugelkultur-PEP-BB-gardening), it says to "mulch it with at least 4 different kinds of mulch". Is anyone in a position to expand on the goal? Is that four parts of the mound mulched different ways as a test? Or four mulches in layers everywhere? And what makes one mulch distinct from another? Is grass-clippings a different mulch than chopped comfrey leaves or are they the same?
 
Mike Haasl
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I believe the goal is to just mulch it with different things to provide some variable conditions for different seeds to prosper.  I think you can do it evenly everywhere but it's better to do clumps or patches to give that variability.  I think grass clippings and comfrey leaves are sufficiently different enough.
 
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My 2 daughters and I are building a hugelkultur in our backyard for the gardening badge. Can we work on this together as long as we each do every part of the process? Thanks, Katherine Quick
 
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Katherine Quick wrote:My 2 daughters and I are building a hugelkultur in our backyard for the gardening badge. Can we work on this together as long as we each do every part of the process? Thanks, Katherine Quick



I believe you would each need to create a hugel of the required size, and each plant all the seeds/buds required. It says in the BB the following:

 
- 7 feet tall, 7 feet wide, 6 feet long
 - mulch it with at least 4 different kinds of mulch
 - seed/plant at least a dozen different species
 - seeds are mostly nitrogen fixers (>75% by volume)
 - at least three comfrey plants
 - at least three sunchokes
 - at least a dozen sepp holzer grains (currently available as a prize for anyone who reaches BB20)



So you would each need to make a hugel 7 feet tall, 7 feet wide, and 6 feet long. And each need to plant at least three comfrey plants, three sunchokes, a dozen sepp holzer grains. And each mulch with at least four different kinds of mulch.

When I earned this BB at the SKIP event, four of us did it at the same time by making a very long hugel - it was 7 feet tall and wide, and 24 feet long so that the total size could be divided into four portions, one for each individual.

Beyond that, I think it's okay if you help each other with some of the physical labor involved, but each individual should do the mulching, digging, etc. on their section.
 
Christopher Weeks
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My impression is that the kind of help you're allowed to get when doing BBs includes only very distant things like: handing you tools, holding a light, steadying a ladder. I don't think helping with the substantial labor involved in building a hugel (unless tripling the size -- that seems like a good idea) would be considered legit.
 
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Malek Beitinjan wrote:When I earned this BB at the SKIP event, four of us did it at the same time by making a very long hugel - it was 7 feet tall and wide, and 24 feet long so that the total size could be divided into four portions, one for each individual.

I can see distinct advantages to having one 24 ft hugel rather than four 6 ft hugels in many places. In Katherine Quick's case, it could be one 18 ft, since it's 3 people. However, I will suggest that one of the things that bugs the people who have to verify submitted BB's, please make sure you're measurements are *very* clear and well documented, and I recommend you be generous, so there is no need to wonder if it really is big enough. For pictures, I'd recommend that you use some sort of temporary way to mark the hugel as to the three sections. It could be as simple as a row of flowers planted for the bees!
 
pioneer
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Hi All,

Thanks to Timothy Norton for pointing me to this thread.

Of my three queries, two have been resolved:  I'll use wool instead of acrylic, and I've found a sofa-bed which should count as something upholstered to clean.

However, I have an objection to the pickling requirements:  Why is a water canning bath a requirement for the pickling BB?  Surely making pickles is the point, and not owning/being able to operate specific equipment?  What's the reasoning behind the requirement?

Cheers for now,

- Jojo
 
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Please share a link to the bb.
 
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water bath canning is the simplest and often safest type of canning as I understand the world of canning (limited though it is).  Any stock pot can do the job as long as the glass is not in contact with the pot and the water covers the sealed jar.
 
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Sorry for the delayed response Katherine Quick. I would reject it for sure. It would make all the work done to build Humphrey to minimum BB specs pointless. I could have easily made it in an hour or two with machinery if I had wanted to.

 
Jojo Cameron
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Hi, r -- here's the link: https://permies.com/wiki/105851/pep-food-prep-preservation/Pickle-vinegar-brine-PEP-BB

Opalyn, I'm not really sure what you're describing, but I'm happy to follow an alternative, equivalent method.  Do you have a link to anywhere describing how to do water canning without a bath?

Cheers,

-- Jojo
 
Opalyn Rose
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https://permies.com/wiki/105851/pep-food-prep-preservation/Pickle-vinegar-brine-PEP-BB

Opalyn, I'm not really sure what you're describing, but I'm happy to follow an alternative, equivalent method.  Do you have a link to anywhere describing how to do water canning without a bath?


If you look at the submissions, there are lots of examples. Few of the submitters have a complete water canning setup.
 
Christopher Weeks
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This is one of the many articles teaching how to water-bath can without much special equipment: https://abetterwaytothrive.com/using-a-large-stock-pot-for-canning-and-getting-more-jars-sealed/
 
r ranson
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It looks like it's not a fermented pickle, but a vinegar/brine pickle.  Putting this in 'canning' jars and boiling the heck out of it is pretty standard for that kind of pickle as (when done right) it can keep safe at room temperature for many months/years.

This link is from the first post of the BB and shows what is ment by "water bath" canning.
https://www.ballmasonjars.com/water-bath-canning.html
 
Jojo Cameron
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I'll try to find a quart canning jar somewhere around.
 
Katherine Quick
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Hi! I posted ā€œclean four windowsā€ in the Nest thread over 2 weeks ago but havenā€™t been approved nor rejected. My post shows up fine but isnā€™t approved. Thanks, Katherine
 
r ranson
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Katherine Quick wrote:Hi! I posted ā€œclean four windowsā€ in the Nest thread over 2 weeks ago but havenā€™t been approved nor rejected. My post shows up fine but isnā€™t approved. Thanks, Katherine



Link?

I'm not seeing anything foe you in the pending list.
 
Opalyn Rose
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Katherine Quick wrote:Hi! I posted ā€œclean four windowsā€ in the Nest thread over 2 weeks ago but havenā€™t been approved nor rejected. My post shows up fine but isnā€™t approved. Thanks, Katherine

could you share the link?
 
Katherine Quick
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Hereā€™s the link and Iā€™m at the very bottom of the page:  https://permies.com/wiki/28/119017/pep-nest/Clean-Windows-PEP-BB-Nest
 
r ranson
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this one? https://permies.com/wiki/28/119017/pep-nest/Clean-Windows-PEP-BB-Nest#2352298

It wasn't submitted as a BB but as a regular post, so it didn't make the list.  

I'm not sure if I can convert it for you.  Can you edit the post and turn it into a BB submission?  
 
Jojo Cameron
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I'm not sure there's much point in posting this, but I'll do it anyway.

In the dairy product making BB, has the no-plastic requirement not gone a bit far?  Cream isn't sold in anything but plastic, and I don't know any dairy farmers personally who'd let me take a glass bottle full of the stuff.  I've seen good butter production failed because the cream came in plastic, but we don't have any control over this.  Is it not enough that no plastic be used in the buttermaking process?  In that sense, we're actually rescuing the cream from plastic and giving it new life as plastic-free butter, via the catalytic alchemy of the application of permaculture principles.

Otherwise, it's one more BB I can't do, which is quite disempowering, and seems to miss the point of the SKiP program, a bit.

Cheers for now,

-- Jojo
 
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I think the whole point of the SKIP program is to prepare you for running a homestead. So maybe it's time to make friends with a dairy farmer. Or someone who keeps goats. Or find a local club that could point you in the right direction of someone who makes their own cream or butter and lend them a hand for a day.

It's also about problem solving and thinking outside the box.
 
r ranson
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Interesting,  even though milk is sold here in recyclable waxed or plastic containers, there is a huge resurgence in glass containers.   So much that many of the local big milk producers are switching back to glass.

Have a look for dairy produced within a days travel,  as glass is heavy to transport, and ask where they sell.  Ours started in niche health food stores but is now just as common as wax containers for milk.  Plastic containers are harder to find these days.  All responses to customer demands.   Voting with wallets is a popular past time in this part of the wold because it can have such a big influence.

Buying direct from the farm, most prefer glass as it's one of the easiest to clean so the milk doesn't contaminate and go sour faster.
 
r ranson
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Coffee and proof glass packed milk is still a thing.

One of the things that brought it back is the expiry dates.  Since it's more local and the glass keeps the milk cooler on the trip home from the store,  it keeps longer and upto a week past the best before.

The hardest part was at the start and finding those niche grocery shops that carry it.  Buy it and brag about it.   Then more shops started carrying it.  Now even some of the local corner shops has it in glass as an option.
mmmmm-cofeeeee-and-glass-bottle-cream.jpg
Mmmmm cooofff3eeeee and glass bottle cream
Mmmmm coffeeeee and glass bottle cream
 
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Cream is certainly less easy to find in glass bottles in the UK (your profile says you're based in Scotland - Hi Jojo!) You could try looking at this resource: https://www.cowcalfdairies.co.uk/directory which links to ethical dairies (calf with mothers) in the UK. I couldn't find any selling cream North of the border, but there are several that sell non-homogenised milk, which might be an alternative starting point.
 
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Two local farmers here offer non-plastic options. One sells her milk in 2qt canning jars, and when you bring back the (clean) jars, she'll swap full ones for the empties, so you don't have to buy anything but the milk. The other one has 1gallon plastic jugs for sale, but strongly encourage folks to bring their own containers. Most farmers who sell directly will be more than willing to work with their customers.
 
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I'm feeling guilty - I've done a pile of Textile Straw badges, but haven't finished the Sand level.

The small pillow - I just don't have a use for a 10"x10" pillow. I also don't currently need any larger ones.

However, I regularly use 10 1/2" by 8" pillows to support my back in a healthy position in cars or on seats where the seat-back doesn't work with my narrow frame.

So may I be allowed to make two slightly smaller pillows, instead of one 10"x10" pillow? I *really* need it a narrow 7 or 8" width, to do it's job properly.

https://permies.com/wiki/102584/pep-textiles/Sew-small-pillow-PEP-BB

 
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