Alexandra Malecki

Today's the day! Yippee!! I'd like to officially request my PEP2 badge!

Requirements:
1 Wood badge:   Rocket
7 Straw badges: Natural Medicine, Foraging, Food prep and preservation, homesteading, Community Living, Tool Care, Gardening,
14 Sand Badges: Woodland Care, Greywater, Animal Care, Metalworking, Earthworks, Dimensional Lumber, Textiles, Oddball, Nest, Round wood woodworking, Plumbing, Electricity, Natural Building, and Commerce.

100 BBVs: I have certified 102 BBvs to date

I quit my corporate job in March 2024 and committed to completing PEP2. At that time, I had 20 BBs that I had completed for fun but had previously given it up because suffering through an early rejection made it not fun. So when I committed to it completing it, I also knew that there would be many challenges that I'd have to get through. No matter what. There wasn't a choice to give up because my husband and kids were counting on me. Speaking of family, my husband and kids are the best. They have been my greatest supporters. They've literally rooted for me and helped me when things were challenging. They've hustled to get photos for me, read the requirements for me when my hands were full, and, honestly, countless other ways. My name is on here getting the glory but my husband and kids have been along there with me every step of the way. I think, in many ways, I wouldn't have made it this far without them to motivate me. The hope of getting to move to a homestead is a shared dream that we all have.

I've undertaken the PEP2 goal like it was my full-time job. Okay, maybe less like a job and more of an obsession since I also worked most evenings and weekends. I've kept metrics on my progress, assigned time estimates to completion, kept to my timelines, and created many smaller, achievable goals along the way. I've printed updates and posted it to our walls so that my family could also take part in celebrating every row that we crossed off! I've also declined many, many other opportunities so that I could stay focused and committed to this goal. I also want to point out that I have had the luxury of not having to worry about bills, feeding my kids, acquiring all of the tools and materials, travel costs, and incidentals. My husband and I have looked at this process as an investment for our future. I feel fortunate that I have the resources to expedite my journey to PEP2 and I also strategically picked my Straw and Wood level badges based on my goals of expediting my timeline and then feasibility. Going the Rocket wood level route wasn't my first choice, I much prefer to garden, but I wouldn't have been able to guarantee an expedited timeline. As intimidated as it was to do the rocket wood badge, I also knew that it could give me and my family a pathway to a future livelihood and because it wasn't totally dependent on seasonality.

I can also say that my life has opened up new, unforeseen opportunities because of SKIP. It's forced me out of my comfort zone, connected me to new people I otherwise wouldn't have made connections with, given my family (and myself) new experiences, and so many more delightful outcomes. I committed to SKIP in part because I wanted to feel confident that this city gal had what it took to homestead. I feel that I've accomplished that goal and now feel certain that I'm ready. I'm excited, emotional, and hopeful for this next part of our family's journey. I hope it's lovely and that I can give back to those after me.

I'd be remiss to not also acknowledge all of the permies staff that have seen me through this journey. I'm grateful to each of you and the care that you have in other humans that you don't know and, even more than that, each of the individual parts you play in making the world just a little bit better. Many thanks!!

As much as I have looked forward to not doing SKIP any longer, it turns out that each of my kids plan to do SKIP when they grow up. I'm so proud of those little monsters I created. I think this is enough blubbering for now. I guess I'll be continuing to post the next parts of this SKIP journey

Thank you, Nancy, you’re so kind!

Today I plan to meet my husband to camp at a place that I call heaven on earth. It’s midway between my friend’s farm and home. It’s been far too long since we’ve been back there so, for me, it’s a perfect way to relax, recharge, and celebrate!

600 posts? Funny, that is coincidental and feels like a lot and a small amount at the same time!! I have even more to celebrate now ;) thanks Mike!!

I went to Wheaton Labs in October 2022 for a rocket mass heater workshop. I’m so glad that I’ve been able to put all of this knowledge to use! I’ve learned so much in each of these builds:



heat a space with a rocket mass heater for one month

build an 8 inch j-tube rocket “engine”

build a second j-tube style rocket mass heater

build a j-tube style rocket oven

build a j-tube style unpressurized rocket hot water heater

build a j-tube style rocket cook top

build a j-tube style season extender in a hugelkultur

This is so exciting for me to submit for this badge!!!

Thanks for reviewing!

I’m amazed by the amount of food required for this BB! I bet you and your family are loving the fruits of your labor!

Also you caught a lot of fish!! I don’t think my disposition is compatible with fishing though I do love eating fish!

This j-tube style unpressurized rocket water heater was my last BB task before reaching PEP2. Of course, I'll still need to submit for the rocket wood badge then the PEP2 badge to officially have obtained PEP2.

Of all of the tasks I've done, this was the most challenging. I'm so relieved that running this rocket went so smoothly while so many other aspects of the build weren't nearly as smooth.

My BB countdown is now at ZERO!

I'll have to think about what to rename this thread.

Dave Burton wrote:This BB requires you to build a j-tube unpressurized rocket hot water heater.

To get certified for this Badge Bit you must provide:
  - 5 pics of build in progress
  - very clear description of how it is not pressurized (if steam happens it can't blow up)
  - 15 second long video of cold water going in and steaming hot water coming out
  - 2 minute video of starting the fire and proving there are no smoke leaks

I ran about 8-10 iterations of design concepts by my husband and every time my objective was to make it simpler and safer, simpler and safer, simpler... and safer. What I built is essentially a double boiler system. I have a ~20gal stock tank that is directly exposed to the hot air above the riser. I then dropped in a copper coil that exchanges heat with the hot stock tank water. If the stock water were to reach boiling point, the water in the copper coil would reach up to boiling but not exceed it since it isn't in direct contact with the heat source. I also installed a pressure relief valve above the section of copper that takes cold water vertically down as an added safety measure in the event that water wants to rise against the intended direction. Meanwhile, the water on the other side where the copper coils vertically up, the pressure would escape via the intended direction of the hot water. The diaphragmatic pump is on-demand and will turn off when the valves are closed. Until this system can be integrated into the neighboring structure differently, I put the valve in between the pump and the copper coil.

About the rocket: I built an 8in system with a 6in exhaust juice-boxed into the air void next to the j-tube. Take a look at the last photo attachment. I positioned the exhaust as low as possible to make the system as efficient as possible. Because of this, you'll see that I made sure the chimney was very primed before priming the riser in the 2min video below.

Stock tank water and cistern water (water supply) was at 54deg. After 2hrs11min run time of the rocket, the stock tank was at 187deg and the copper heat exchange output was 154deg (as noted in the video). I used about 2 5-gal buckets of wood.

I figured a water temp above 140deg would be considered safe from legionella bacterium and close to 160degFwould be even better.

15 second long video of cold water going in and steaming hot water coming out:


2 minute video of starting the fire and proving there are no smoke leaks:

Everything is complete with the water heater build (minus a bit of cob around the feed because it was slumping). Today, I will finish the cob then fire the beast for the first time. I wonder how hard it’ll be to get it started given how low my exhaust pulls within the structure (for increased efficiency) and because approximately 10% of the mass is still wet.

Last night my son watched the stock tank fill. I told him to watch the float valve to see what happens when the water gets to it. Together, we figured out that it wasn’t a dragon egg, it won’t dissolve once submerged, but, wait, it actually floats and then stops the water! That was fun.  We also got to see all of the insects rise who were trying to make the stock tank their home.

Hopefully things go smoothly today.

I couldn’t find an appropriately sized piece of dimensional wood to mount the plumbing bits to so I took a drawknife to round wood milling scraps that my friend picks up from the local mill for free (he uses it for firewood).

The plumbing part of the system is just missing the water source and power connections, brickwork needs 1-2 more days, and I’d like to also cob around the feed. Tomorrow I anticipate experimenting with a perlite and cattail cob mix for around the feed. I’ll make another mix specific for sealing the bricks to the stock tank.

I’ll also need to work on the stovepipe and not hurt myself again. I’m saving that for the end to allow more time for the mortar to dry. And maybe also because I’ll have to be far more careful this time.

It felt like a project onto itself to get the ladders setup in this tight workspace but it’s now a semi-decent workflow. Each overhead row takes more and more time to complete due to traversing the ladders and preventing the mortar from falling down the air gap. Tricky, tricky!

I only have 3 more days allotted for this trip but I don’t think I have 3 more days of work remaining so I’m feeling pretty good about my progress and buffer time.

I’ve been so narrowly focused on getting these BBs done that, now that I can see the finish line, I often contemplate how I want to spend my time. I’m not sure my days will look dramatically different but I reckon I’ll take far fewer photos.

Last weekend I made it to my friend’s farm to drop off tools and supplies, assess feasibility of rehydrating my mixes that I had to abandon on my last trip, and formulate my plan. Then I left to go to a pioneer themed kids/family gathering. It was such a sweet event where my kids and I could spend time bonding and learning new things together. Now I’m back! My mortar mix is perfect and ready to go.

Today I’ll be getting the stock tank mounted, the plumbing bits in place, and hopefully a few rows of brick placed for the air gap.

I love gardening! I'm very pleased to be able to request this straw badge!

Seed saving
Encouraging volunteer or wild plants
Grow and harvest 100,000 calories
Build a 12' hugel
Direct seed perennials

Thank you for reviewing!