M Monroe

Hello all, I appreciate so much the time spent giving advice and thoughts, ans sharing your wealth of knowledge and experience!

I have a 2 story unfinished garage with a loft upstairs I plan to make into a living space.  Located in SW colorado altitude 6800 ft.  
There is an existing woodburning stove that is pretty old and ineficient.  The heat does not get upstairs or really even past 6 feet around the stove. There is currently only insulation in the roof.  The upstairs floor is just a layer of plywood.
I had this idea that i could use input on:

 If I replaced the woodburning stove that is downstairs with a rocket mass heater, and ran the ducts along the downstairs ceiling, would it work to heat the place?  Maybe 2 along the inner area. I mainly want the upstairs warm but the downstairs is a workshop so it would be a bonus if all were to be heated.  I want to make a plan before installing electrical, plumbing and insulation.

Floor area is 25x 29 ft.
The  ceiling/floor beams give me 9" of working space for duct and thermal mass.
The current exhaust pipe size is 8"

Do I have enough room to properly insulate the ducts to keep the heat going?
What would be the reccomended exhaust duct size and what would be the recommended insulative material?
Please see photos for more detail.  If more info is needed, I will provide.

I thought some might be interested to see this simple alternative I've been using for years to make my T.P. last longer.  I cut up old t shirts, flannel sheets, etc. and keep them in the bathroom.  I use them only for wiping pee or blowing my nose.  I toss them in with the laundry and reuse them!  it's much cleaner than T.P.    

hi, please see my post:

https://permies.com/t/209645/Seeking-experienced-growers-live-grow

Hello,  I am looking for a person or persons to come stay on my land next growing season in Southwest Colorado and make use of my large fenced irrigated garden.  I work long hours in the summers and am not able to tend it. The ideal situation would be someone who has a camper or wants to camp.  There is an incinerating toilet and outdoor solar shower available on the property. There is a beautiful hilltop private site near the garden.  Could possibly get electric supply up there.  The land is 40 acres of juniper forest, altitude about 7,000 with 180 degree views of surrounding La Plata Mountains.  Semi arid climate. 35 minutes from Durango.  Peaceful and mostly still wild.  4 wheel drive vehicle is recommended for the dirt/gravel roads. The garden is well established and the soil has been amended. There is a 3000 gallon cistern with a pump for watering.  A trade for fresh vegetables and flowers is what I am hoping for.  Possibly tending quail for eggs. There are 4 sweet dogs and 2 cats at my home, which is a ways away from garden/camp area.   I could also use landscaping/firewood cutting/other project help. Open to discussion and negotiations! Just be kind, trustworthy, and well intentioned.  There are a few others on the property besides myself, but plenty of space!

Wow this is all such great and valuable information! Thank you so much to everyone!  Eventually I will update with progress reports!

Thank you to all of you for your input!  Yes, I will definitely be extending the eaves.   From your advice,  I am hoping to be able to get enough material to slowly add layers and build up the wall, adding stone in the hollow parts.  Plumbing was recently intalled in the room in the photo, requiring jackhammering to get some cement up from the floor, and the vibrations caused some inside cracking. I also will be putting better roofing on that side of it.  Again, many thanks!!!

I didnt have the time to read all of the previous feedback to your original post so apologies if this is redundant.  
I think the advice on watering the weeds may have been along this line:  "Weeds'' are pioneer plants.  They will provide what nutrients the soil needs based on the state of the soil. Different plants have different nutrient properties. They come before and help prepare and amend the soil health.  So by seeing what weeds come up with watering, you can get an indication of the state of your soil.  Hope that is helpful!

Hello,  I am looking for a person or persons to come stay on my land next growing season in Southwest Colorado and make use of my large fenced irrigated garden.  I work long hours in the summers and am not able to tend it. The ideal situation would be someone who has a camper or wants to camp.  There is an incinerating toilet and outdoor solar shower available on the property. There is a beautiful hilltop private site near the garden.  Could possibly get electric supply up there.  The land is 40 acres of juniper forest, altitude about 7,000 with 180 degree views of surrounding La Plata Mountains.  Semi arid climate. 35 minutes from Durango.  Peaceful and mostly still wild.  4 wheel drive vehicle is recommended for the dirt/gravel roads. The garden is well established and the soil has been amended. There is a 3000 gallon cistern with a pump for watering.  A trade for fresh vegetables and flowers is what I am hoping for.  Possibly tending quail for eggs. There are 4 sweet dogs and 2 cats at my home, which is a ways away from garden/camp area.   I could also use landscaping/firewood cutting/other project help. Open to discussion and negotiations! Just be kind, trustworthy, and well intentioned.  There are a few others on the property besides myself, but plenty of space!

Last year I bought a property that has a lovely little earthen building on it.  It is made of a combination of straw bale, rammed tires, wood, cement floors, and i think some clothing in some of the walls.   I have made it a guest house/tiny house.  The exterior is weather worn and crumbling apart.  I dont know what was used as mortar but I'm guessing it is local clay and dirt from the property.  The walls seem pretty unstable inside and out  on one side and I'm hesitant to add anything over what is there for fear it will fall right back off!  One idea I had was to cover what is there with plywood and just start a new layer with  lime plaster .  Another was to build up the bottom and sides with stone and lime mortar, possibly over the plywood.  But it is so lumpy and uneven there would be significant spaces behind the wood for the mice to live in.  Any great ideas? I'd love to preserve how cool it is!

Hmmmm, really great point! I'm not positive it is the base of the house causing the heating/cooling issue.  I guess I assumed it because of it being on top of a hill with major gaps in the siding to the crawl space. The summer heat is more of a problem than the winter cold.  I heat the house mainly with a small wood burning stove, and supplement with a baseboard heater and a portable electric oil heater. I use fans in the vaulted ceilings  on low to push the warm air back down. The majority of the outside of the house is covered in corrugated metal: roof and sides with some wood.  There are 2 skylights that beam sun in and roast the place.  I had to cover them last summer.  This is my first year in this house so I am still learning how the seasons are.  I don't know what kind of insulation the ceiling has. I will see if I can find out that info .   It is covered in wood T&G, so not so easy to access.   There is a small loft on one side of the house, above the woodburning stove that collects heat year round.  The house sits in full sun.  I love my little house so much and have been working hard to make it more efficient and less energy consumptive.  I am definitely open to other avenues of solutions.  Thank you!