Reid's BRK

BRK #32

hello.


today is Moto Jeff's last workday with us, at least for now. this morning we worked on a library paneling blitz.

and a key to efficiency....having all your tools in the right place.



and that means having lots of extra pencils and tape measures, because youre gonna forget where you put them.

not before long, the pristine organization transforms into the heat of the blitz.



i will miss having Jeff around here. he applies close attention to detail: enhancing sustainability, organization, and efficiency.

and here are my toes



the cold weather keeps my shoes on for the most part, but library paneling is an opportunity to let my feet breathe.

in the afternoon Caleb and i worked at the sawmill.



operating the sawmill strains the upper back. bending low, grabbing the handle, and walking backwards. as much as i try to hinge from the hips, my back feels the strain. squatting isnt completely feasible with the log and sawdust in the way. possibly a solution to this coming down the pipeline, stay tuned!

BRK #33

good morning



today trying something new for my wrists....i found this "kinetic tape" stuff. the idea is that the tape slightly lifts the skin, giving the joint more room to move, more room for synovial fluid to flow. its flexible so it doesnt limit motion or provide support.

i am skeptical of the technology, but its worth a try and couldnt hurt.

my first impressions:
- less clicking sounds coming from my wrists
- increased active wrist extension range of motion
- looks cool


anyways....clearing out the ash from the love shacks "minnie mouse" rocket mass heater.



its been a while, so im expecting this will increase its efficiency.

the drawback to this task....



kind of messy. who wants to get covered in ashes?

i am seriously impressed by the efficiency of rocket mass heaters in comparison to traditional wood burning stoves.

i would estimate this system generating 10% of the ashes that a wood stove would (because im using less wood).

however, this is a flaw of the "J tube" system. apparently there are no tools invented that can do this job well, besides a piece of cardboard.

i used my phone as a periscope to inspect the bottom of the J.



lots of ashes i cant reach.

so i found an even longer piece of cardboard, and got really dirty. theres a reason i chose to do this on the same day that i shower.



so...slightly cleaner. all in all i got MOST of the ashes out and this is going to run a lot better.

but im puzzling over how this can be taken care of.

a vacuum? i just found online specialized "ash vacuums" that could certainly clean out this heater.

a long bendy stick? having a hard time imagining it.

designing the stove with an alternative entrance to reach the ashes?

its clean enough. have a great weekend

BRK #34

gooood morning



i came to the realization that peppermint tea looks and tastes like cat pee. ive never seen much cat pee, but im pretty certain its true.

Jeff left us today to go home. i will miss him.



added some art to the chalkboard in the kitchen. for some reason i spend a lot of time staring at that chalkboard so i thought id spice it up.

for the rest of the day? resting, working on projects like the upper cubby dividers.

also starting off a new spoon.



i really enjoy this process and the result. more spoons!

so this is the way i shortcut carving spoons. power tools. sounds idyllic to be carving a spoon on a top of a mountain for 37 hours, but i am more interested in making spoons. so 3 hours of carving is enough for me.

but once i get the general shape, here are my preferred spoon carving tools (keep in mind i know nothing about carving spoons).



we got carving chisels, carving knife, shinto rasp...and carving spoon thingy.

this is wood from the same branch as the last spoons (harvested last week). from my research it seems that "green wood" that was freshly cut will be easiest to carve. but i kept this branch out in the cold. the cambium is still slightly green, and its still easy to carve!

so it seems that wood carving is not as time sensitive as i once thought.

IMPORTANT note. i managed to eat pizza every single day this weekend!!!

anyways, ive got some carving to do, logging off!

BRK #35



i am ready to measure....anything

this morning was spent doing some paneling in the library ceiling. the end is in sight!

the boots also discussed gardening locations this year, and there seems to be a consensus to focus on a smaller area, and cover crop the rest. due to limited hands and limited water. this is in line with the permaculture principle of using small and slow solutions.

from my experience a surprising quantity of food can be grown from a small area. so personally i would rather maximize a small space rather than giving a "spread too thin" attempt on a large area.

the afternoon was spent at the sawmill.



the sky might actually be a little bigger out here.

speaking of sky, has anyone seen the aurora this spring?

at the sawmill we ran into plenty of problems. its always something new. today it was issues with the solar system, the blade overheating, and the sawmill frame being wonky. as the weather warms up all of it changes.



here is the inverter. today while we were running it, the "low battery" light would come on and the sawmill would stop working. definitely dampered our progress. luckily there are plenty of panels cut to keep us busy.

after work, darning a couple holes in my wool sweater with wool yarn. i obtained this 100% merino wool sweater for $6 at a thrift shop. it keeps me warm as a base layer every day here, and somehow smells fresh for weeks without washing. miracle fabric.

the only issue is the sweater has a good number of small holes (at least 10). im hoping to photograph my next darn so i can share the technique. its extremely simple!

darning a hole a day and it will be as good as new in no time

have a great day yall

Pro tip/koan: two 12' tape measures are more than 1' less helpful than a 25' one.

Has anyone talked to Jeff B when the Leviathan is giving the low battery error? Last time I talked to him when that error showed he said they were still above 90%. He thinks the mill is doing something to draw too much power at once and upsetting the BMS, that the batteries have plenty of power stored.

Have enough 11' panels to do the angled parts of the solarium yet?

Coydon Wallham wrote:Pro tip/koan: two 12' tape measures are more than 1' less helpful than a 25' one.

Has anyone talked to Jeff B when the Leviathan is giving the low battery error? Last time I talked to him when that error showed he said they were still above 90%. He thinks the mill is doing something to draw too much power at once and upsetting the BMS, that the batteries have plenty of power stored.

Have enough 11' panels to do the angled parts of the solarium yet?

thank you, this wisdom has been circulating in my head all day. maybe i will try to use three tape measures next time.

Jeff was out with us doing analysis while we were having sawmill problems. the term "BMS" was definitely thrown around, i wasnt sure what was going on. all i know is we came back to the mill today, and had no problems!

in terms of 11' panels. yes definitely have enough. they are drying out. once the library ceiling is complete i fully expect to finish that area efficiently and beautifully.

BRK #36

today is a special day at Wheaton Labs....because it appears to be the first day of spring!

by that i mean, we started some SEEDS!

there is no kind of set "sprouting station" (a lot of direct seeding is done here) so we set a table up in the solarium. i was stoked to see some soil block making devices!

soil blocks are a technology ive seen on the internet but not in person. its a tool that forms the soil into blocks.

i set out to make a soil block mix using potting soil, worm castings, and clay. my idea was to use clay to help the blocks hold their shape, and prevent them from drying out (who knows when they will be watered).



here are the small soil blocks, device pictured on the right. i used these to plant kale (60 seeds).

though i didnt like these blocks... so small and prone to falling apart with time and waterings.

so i used the bigger blocks. more soil, less seeds....more security.



excited to see how this works out! should the lacinato germinate, i will transfer them into larger soil blocks. they will certainly take up more space, and some time to form good blocks.

soil blocks vs seedling trays....

seedling trays are extremely quick, easy to transport, and reusable (at least until the plastic breaks).

soil blocks are modular, plastic free, and only require a working tool.

so only some experience with both will tell which i prefer. my soil block soil mix could use improvement.

aaand Paul spotted a crocus blooming. the first one in the books. definitely a sign of spring!!!



grateful that the world around me is thawing out


!!!

I’m feeling springy here too and planted the first seeds this year. Tomatoes! I’m also learning the soil block stuff, I got the small and the medium sized soilblockers for christmas presents. I haven’t gotten into making a good mix for them yet, I did try them with coco coir + vermiculite as I had those lying around. It kinda worked but they obviously were really crumbly when they dried at all. Tomatoes went into the good old plastic pots at this time.

The weather is not that promising yet, we just had three days of snow, at least 15 inches. Oh well, this is just first of the takatalvis after couple of weeks of very beautiful spring weathers with lovely plus degrees celcius melting the snow.

The ”official” translation for takatalvi seems to be ”cold spell in spring” or ”recurring wintry weather in spring” but the literal translation is backwinter and here in Finland we consider it as one of the seasons. Winter, fakespring, takatalvi, spring, (possibly another takatalvi and then spring again) and then finally summer.

I hope you are enjoying the real spring!

I have really enjoyed your posts, beautiful pictures and interesting thoughts.  

Saana Jalimauchi wrote:I’m feeling springy here too and planted the first seeds this year. Tomatoes! I’m also learning the soil block stuff, I got the small and the medium sized soilblockers for christmas presents. I haven’t gotten into making a good mix for them yet, I did try them with coco coir + vermiculite as I had those lying around. It kinda worked but they obviously were really crumbly when they dried at all. Tomatoes went into the good old plastic pots at this time.

The weather is not that promising yet, we just had three days of snow, at least 15 inches. Oh well, this is just first of the takatalvis after couple of weeks of very beautiful spring weathers with lovely plus degrees celcius melting the snow.

The ”official” translation for takatalvi seems to be ”cold spell in spring” or ”recurring wintry weather in spring” but the literal translation is backwinter and here in Finland we consider it as one of the seasons. Winter, fakespring, takatalvi, spring, (possibly another takatalvi and then spring again) and then finally summer.

I hope you are enjoying the real spring!

I have really enjoyed your posts, beautiful pictures and interesting thoughts.  

Saana, im warmed to hear from you and know that youre getting something out of the posts.

wishing you luck in perfecting the soil block mix.

information online has too many ingredients - i want to make them using something i already have!

good luck in your takatalvi. the warm weather will be with you soon.

BRK #37

DARNING TUTORIAL POST

darning is a method of mending small holes in clothing, especially socks. instead of stitching the hole closed or patching, darning weaves thread or yarn over the existing hole. darning is simple and stealthy.

1: work from your preferred side of your fabric. whichever side you are working from will have more visible signs of repair.
- with trends in visible mending, some people use a colorful darn on the outside of the fabric
- i want to keep this sweater looking nice, so im mending with matching color yarn on the inside

2: thread your needle. no need for any knots with darning. the weave will secure itself

3: running stitch. the end goal is to stich in a rectangle around the hole
- give an allowance on either side of the hole
- try to "grab" as little material as possible. that way the stitch wont be visible from the other side
- leave a bit of thread hanging out from the stitch- this will be cut at the end

i am repairing 2 holes with one darn


4: running stitch the other way. you will be going back and forth, trying to make each line right next to the last



5: continue this pattern until you are past the holes
- if you are going over a section that has no fabric (ie the hole) skip over it an continue your stitch on the other side
- the idea is to cover the hole with thread, not pull it together

6: repeat this pattern, perpendicular, following the rectangle



7: cut beginning and ending threads

here is the "inside" of my darn



and the outside



pretty invisible.

though the technique is simple, its not all easy. and only time will tell how it holds up.

this sweater i strictly handwash, no agitation.

im unsure how well a darn will hold up with time or versus a washing machine. but i believe in the technique enough do it like 8 times already, so it better work.

it seriously feels like my clothes are falling apart faster than i can repair them.