Jimmy Burt

Luke Bryan wrote:

Have you considered https://frame.work/ ?

Yes Dell xps or similar high end laptop should last 10 years or more...
Windows 7 I hope is not connected to internet??

I had not heard of the Framework until today.  I have looked at it today.  That is a very interesting platform.  I am planning to replace my wife's SSD next month, with one loaded with Ubuntu, and just tell her to learn to swim  She is actually expecting it, I wouldn't risk my marriage (or at least where I get to sleep) on a surprise like that.  Her laptop, has 16 GB RAM and an early i5, but all she uses it for is downloading photos from her camera and playing DVD's for the kids.  Her laptop is old enough to still have a DVD drive in it.  Her laptop is also a 17 inch display, and she likes the bigger screen.

My 3 daughters have bought their own used MacBooks over the last few years.  The Oldest now has a MB Pro Retina from about 2015, to finish her College with.  Younger 2 daughters both have purchased MB Airs, and I believe both of those are 2015 model.  Middle Daughter just started College 2 weeks ago, and youngest is in High School.  All of them use these for internet browsing, streamining, and school work.

I will definitely consider the Frame.work in the future, but I will not need a new system for me for several years at least.

Add me to Team "Business Grade Laptops with Linux".  My work laptop policy is every 4-5 years.  I have been using Dell Precision mobile Workstations for the last 5-6 years.  My first unit was the 15" model 5520, which is in the same "family" as the Dell XPS 13 mentioned above.  The XPS 15 looks identical to the 5520, except for the model label.  When I got my new unit at work, I was able to keep the older unit to wipe and load Linux for Development projects.  This unit has 32GB RAM, M.2 SSD and 7th gen i7, as well as a 4GB Nvidia Graphics, and running Ubuntu, it out performs, in my personal testing, my newer, bulkier Precision 7540 with newer but similar specs, running Windows.

The biggest issue that is manageable for laptop longevity, in my opinion, is cooling.  Many people unknowingly damage their laptops by setting them on soft surfaces, like blankets or beds, and leaving them, while they are running.  This will block vents and cause the life of the laptop to shorten, sometime drastically.  I am a big proponent of lapdesks and/or cooling pads for laptops.  My Wife is still running one of my Dell Latitudes that was bought new in 2010, though the RAM has been Maxxed, and it now runs an SSD.  I have not convinced her to move to Linux yet, so she is running Win7 still, SMH.

A slightly used Business Class Laptop, Memory upgrades, SSD Upgrades, and Linux, along with keeping the laptop cool is a pretty good recipe for laptop longevity.

gimmie dammit!

Forest, Thanks for reaching out.

We have not yet purchased a "real mill" although my Father-in-law has purchased an "Alaskan mill", one of those frames/guides that mount to your chainsaw and lot you cut slabs.  He wants to try that out for a while before we put in the kind of $ it would take to get a band-saw mill.

With "the rona" and all that has gone on over the last year, we have done nothing with any of the mill stuff.  His Alaskan mill has not even been taken out of the box he ordered it in.  We have only seen him in person 1 time since March of 2020, even though they only live about an hour and half away.  They live in the Oklahoma City area and we are just outside of Tulsa.

With all of the crazy, we have just been focusing on getting our garden stuff ready, and getting ready to get chickens this spring.  We have ordered chicks from a hatchery that several local friends highly recommended. I'm not sure which hatchery though, my wife is leading that effort :-)  I am gathering materials to setup a small greenhouse to do our early season starts and some season extension, but I haven't began assembly yet.  

Thanks for reaching out, but we likely won't be making many trips to the Southeast, although I do wish the best to your friends there.

The latest discussions that I've had with my F-i-l is that we may shift plans and try to get a shipping container first to serve as both a storage unit, and possibly his "rough cabin" when we are able to forget about the rona and get back on with life.  Our family (me, my wife and kids) are treating everything essentially normal now, but with the In laws being a little older, they are understandably being a little (lot) more cautious, and we respect that.  I do believe that my F-i-l is getting quite stir-crazy though to get back out and work on projects.  He didn't even get to go hunting this year, which is one of his favorite activities.

Andrea Locke wrote:
One of our future projects will be a passive solar greenhouse built into the side of the hill. For that one we would run tubing into the hill for geothermal heating and maybe put in a trench or pit for diverting the cold air. Looking forward to seeing what comes out of the Wheaton Lab greenhouse experiment which should be completed before we're ready to make plans.

Thanks for sharing!

The idea of having the chickens (I assume in pens) under the benches is definitely interesting.  I had not thought of that previously, but I am looking at low raised beds in the hoop house, and likely primarily Aquaponics in the PSG "of my future plans". But we will see what happens as we keep moving forward.

I LOVE the idea of the PSG built into the side of the hill.  My property is very flat, and that is why I eventually plan to go with the Berms on the West, North and East sides of my later Greenhouse plans.  Having the Cold sink "trench" to pull the cold air away from your crops is also a great idea, or so I have read.  I have yet to actually build any greenhouse. :-) But I am getting close.

thomas rubino wrote:Hey Jimmy; I vote for a RMH!
We have been using one here in northern Montana in our greenhouse for 7 years!
The only way to go!
I just recently switched from an 8" J tube to a 6" batch box makes things even easier.

Are you thinking just shoulder seasons or all winter long?

Ideally all winter, but that may be more for the later, more developed greenhouse, and the hoop may only serve the shoulder seasons.

Do you have any posts sharing your greenhouse RMH? I would love to see how you’re utilizing it for best effect.

Dan Chiras wrote:

Hi Jimmy,

Personally I’d strongly consider two earth cooling tubes run six feet under ground. I’d recommend run lengths of at least 100 feet and six inch PVC.

As you know, they will heat outdoor air to ground temperature of about 50 degrees F. This will help warm your greenhouse.

I’d also recommend earth sheltering and insulating the greenhouse. Although that may be a project you’ll complete in years to come. At the very least be sure to insulate the structure at night—that is, install Aluminet shade cloth that you can pull into place at night to hold the heat in.

It does a great job of reflecting infrared radiation that’s trying to escape from your greenhouse at night back into the greenhouse.

My book on Chinese greenhouses describes a number of other steps you can take to keep the greenhouse warmer at night.

If you just want to grow lettuce and other leafy vegetables throughout the winter, I’d strongly recommend you employ the Four-season harvest technique. All you need to do is install mini hoop houses over your grow beds within the greenhouse.

Thank you.

I am a big fan of the earth tubes idea.

This greenhouse will just be a hoop house, likely using foil backed foam sheeting on the north side (foil side facing inward to help reflect the low angle light from the south back into the house). The end walls will be well insulated also.

I had not heard of the Aluminet before was was looking into have an additional tarp layer to roll over the hoop at night. I will definitely look into that though.

Sena Kassim wrote:Hi Thomas and Jimmy, we are in a similar conundrum. We want a greenhous and will likely have to provid supplemental heat for a few days each year.

W be considered diverting rain water to barrels for thermal mass. How about the days in a row that not much sun enters?

https://bradford.missouri.edu/passive-solar-greenhouse/

Not sure where you be. The above site is something to consider

Looking forward to hearing more solutions.

Thanks for the info.

My long-term plan is for a passive solar design, but my near term reality is starting with a simpler hoop house.  The hoop house is what I’m seeking the heat suggestions to support.

I do love the passive solar designs.  Www.FriendlyAquaponics.com recommend a Chinese style passive solar greenhouse as well. That was the first place I heard of passive solar or Chinese style greenhouses.

I live in Oklahoma, so we do not get extreme "Northern" winters here, but we do get a lot of nights in the teens and even down to single digits a few times each winter.  I just recently purchased a Hoop bender to turn my old chain link fence top railing into Greenhouse ribs.  I am weighing my options between the less expensive poly wrap and possibly something better like ETFE film.  I am hoping this hoop house will serve me for several years while I work to build a more long-term Greenhouse that will likely have Insulated North, East and West walls, if not even earth-bermed walls.

I have looked at lots of different possible ways to heat my hoop house, but before I try something I have never done before and end up learning "the hard way" I would much rather ask advice from folks who have already be down this road or one similar to it.  I do not plan to run a Propane line into the greenhouse to heat with.  I may consider some form of small heater on a 5-10 gallon propane tank for emergency overnight help, but would prefer suggestions that are more sustainable than Propane.

I have looked at various configurations for earthtube, and I do have access to a Backhoe to make the digging a lot easier, and we have good sandy loam here, without much rock, so digging is not an extreme problem, as it may be in some places.  I have also looked at a couple different Rocket Mass Heater applications that seem plausible.  But whether or not I have looked at or mentioned an idea doesn't matter, because I KNOW that I am (at best) a Newbie extraordinaire.  

So please, offer met suggestions for heating my greenhouse.  I do have plenty access to firewood, although I would prefer not to be setting an alarm to go out to the greenhouse overnight if possible.  Please educate me on what my options are.

Thanks in advance for your advice!

Welcome!  Your book sounds very interesting.  

We are looking to build a greenhouse on our farm/homestead in Oklahoma for at least season extension and early starts.  I would love to be able to grow all winter long, but I have not yet found a good, while still affordable, solution to heat the greenhouse threw the winter.  I am looking at options with Rocket Mass Heaters and ground tubes, and several other things, but I haven't yet decided "THIS is the solution that I want to build"

Thanks,

Jimmy