Signa Strom

Anne Miller wrote:Glad I could help.

Please ask lots of questions.

This is a really great forum with a lot of knowledgeable people.

Thanks so much!  I'm looking forward to getting involved in the conversations and seeing what others are doing on their permie journey.  

Anne Miller wrote:

Or are you asking why build a wofati greenhouse?

https://permies.com/t/141902/permaculture-projects/wofati-greenhouse-design

Yes, that's what I meant, but Wow, in my very first post I have proven just how bad it is to make assumptions -- I'd read on another website about "wofati greenhouses", and I just assumed that's what they always were.  When I saw the topic here I jumped in with my post -- but I see now that had I done a little more investigation, and a little less assuming, I'd have answered my own question and learned something about Wofati's all at the same time!!

Wow, this is amazing!  I've spent the last five or six years engaging with our homeless population, and my daughter was homeless for the past year as well and living on the streets.  What I'm most impressed with is his ingenuity and the fact that he's taken steps to not only create his own solutions, but that he's effectively created prototypes of products that could be used by other people in that situation.  I lived in a sheep wagon for six months (which was HUGE compared to his) and I'm feeling slightly inadequate in comparison since I simply drove to the farmer's market to get my food and did very little in the way of figuring out how to feed myself.  BUT, living in a sheep wagon is one of the all time best living arrangements that I've experimented with.  I loved it.  I'm not sure that I have enough grit to do it the way he is though.

Well, this is my first post and I'm super excited to be a part of this amazing community!

So my question is: Why a Wofati instead of a Walapini?  
The berming of the Wofati seems potentially problematic from a construction perspective, and while the insulative value of the earth berm could be beneficial, wouldn't having more solar radiation (as is achieved in the Walapini) be more beneficial?  I have sketched out some drawings for alternative variations on the Walapini, but I've intentionally avoided berming (except to increase the rear wall height and increase thermal storage).  The below image is not mine, but it shows a Walapini design really nicely.




_________________________
Attaching my photo here simply to be able to link to it in my profile.