Scott Maxfield

First of all you should know ALL cast iron is somewhat porous. But not all are the same level of porous. The old pans that you speak of that are smooth only APPEAR to be machined. They were cast in a ceramic mold and come out smooth and only need to have the mold sprue ground off of the edges. The new pans like the ones from Lodge, are Sand cast and come out rough or grainy. It is better for mass production. Lodge did offer a machined line of fry pans for a while but I don't know if they still do. The cooking surface only was machined very smooth. Some of the real cheap stuff that is made in China and India should be avoided as it may have voids in the casting that can cause it to crack or maybe even "pop" when it gets hot. I have a griddle that I can make over easy eggs and they wont stick at all.

Not sure if this is the right forum for this but it seemed right. There is a book titled "Everything I want to do is Illegal!" It was written by a Virginia farmer and he tells a lot about food production in the US and exposes a lot of things like how "Organic" Food is a huge hoax. I recommend it to anyone.

I have spent a lot of years in the forest and its various jobs and currently work for a tree service around chippers all the time. I will tell you that in my opinion any small chipper is going to be next to useless. Chipping takes a lot of power and unless you are doing awful small stuff don't waste your time and money. The chippers intended for home owners are of little use except maybe grinding up leaves or pine needles. Most people around here simply burn the stuff they don't want in an out door fire pit during barbacues and such.

Yurts are expensive and tiny homes even more so. If you look around you can often find a travel trailer real cheap. They will have all you need to start and you can ad little rooms and extra insulation as you can afford it. I believe this is the best option. be sure to get one with a decent roof then put a secondary roof on or over it and it will be cooler in hot weather and warmer in the winter.

The frost line where I live is much deeper than yours is but I do have a fair amount of building experience and wit say this. If you just build on grade you may or may not have an issue, I kind of doubt it because of the small size. The other thing I have done is a pole building with treated posts sunk 3 ft in the ground. a gas powered auger is a big plus if the ground is hard.  

I bought the Humanure hand book about 20 years ago and have done pretty much what the book says since then. I saw a lot of logs into lumber so sawdust is what I use and it works just fine. I personally don't worry about the laws on this as I don't believe in the Government telling me what I can do On my place. The one thing is Ill say that you have to replace the bucket every once in a while as it gets a rough surface on it and is harder to clean and empty.

Hello everyone, I am new to this site so I thought I would introduce myself. I have lived off grid for about 30 years or so. I am not Typical in my thinking of methods in this stuff. I don't like crowds and prefer to live away from folks so that's my main reason for going off grid. I am not your typical "green person". I have been a logger most of my life and where chainsaws are concerned I am well versed. I have milled LOTS of lumber with a chainsaw. And have drilled 5 wells myself. I am a fairly accomplished Blacksmith and have had to make do with a lot of what seems like nothing. I own 20 acres in central Oregon. Growing things here is VERY hard and I really don't have the time for it right now. I have had a lot of dealings with Chickens and am an accomplished hunter though I don't do much anymore as I am divorced and am alone much of the time. I have a lot of experience with a lot of things so if any one has a question I can answer Ill be glad to.