Arlene Marcia

Thanks to all who posted suggestions here. Great ideas!

Arlene Marcia wrote:"The problem is the solution" is my favorite Permaculture saying, and I'm writing to share a recent way I put this into practice. Before the pandemic, I was using newspapers, gleaned from the local transfer station, to ignite kindling in my woodstove. But with the emphasis these days on keeping germs at bay, I stopped bringing home newspaper. In search of an efficient alternative, I began shredding junk mail. Turns out this is a much better fire starter than crumpled newspaper! The key is to shred it. A small handful of shredded mail is all it takes to get things going! Just be sure you're only shredding paper, not plastic inserts or shiny toxic ad flyers.

Following up on my original post, I have now stopped using bleached paper as a fire starter (due to concerns re: dioxin), but I stand by my assertion that shredded paper works much better than crumpled up, intact newspaper. So I have started shredding newspaper and brown paper bags at the end of their lifespan. And they work great too! Not as thrilling as finding an exciting use for junk mail, but shredding results in less paper used and quicker fire starts.

T Blankinship wrote:I will try this with my rocket stove! Thanks for the idea.

Hi,

Please see the warning posted by Larisa Walk in this thread. Sorry to say that apparently all bleached paper releases dioxin fumes when burned. So my great idea wasn't so great!

Oh no! Really? I hadn't heard this. Is there any paper that would be safe to shred and use this way? How about brown paper bags?

Bleached paper products, when burned, have dioxin left in the ashes. The ashes are toxic to breathe or use in the garden. In Winona County, Minnesota it is illegal to burn junk mail and must be recycled. Please don't use junk mail for firestarting, or office paper either.

"The problem is the solution" is my favorite Permaculture saying, and I'm writing to share a recent way I put this into practice. Before the pandemic, I was using newspapers, gleaned from the local transfer station, to ignite kindling in my woodstove. But with the emphasis these days on keeping germs at bay, I stopped bringing home newspaper. In search of an efficient alternative, I began shredding junk mail. Turns out this is a much better fire starter than crumpled newspaper! The key is to shred it. A small handful of shredded mail is all it takes to get things going! Just be sure you're only shredding paper, not plastic inserts or shiny toxic ad flyers.

Thanks for explaining

R Scott wrote:Instead of going into float, some controllers will divert the extra power to some load.  There are add on controllers that do this, too.  They turn on the load when the batteries are almost to float voltage and turn off when the batteries drop to 95% charge. I plan to use one of those switches to run a coolbot in my root cellar in the summer.

Thanks, Scott.

I have to confess that I'm not very tech-savvy and didn't know what a dump load was. My photovoltaic system was designed and installed by a solar company, and my knowledge of the system is limited. Even after reading about dump loads on several websites, I'm not sure if I understand if I need one and if so, how to use any electricity that is off-loaded. It is true that in the summer, the batteries quickly gain a full charge on most days, and the charge controller often goes into float mode. Is that a problem? I would love to capture any excess electricity generated but don't understand how. My water heater is an on-demand propane model, and I primarily heat with wood.

Thanks for any additional information.

R Scott wrote:Another +1 on the dehumidifier for anywhere but the desert.

If your charge controller can do it, set it up with a dedicated small inverter and use it as a dump load, so it only runs when the batteries are topped off.

Thank you, Anne!

Anne Miller wrote:

Arlene said "How do you distill water on the stove?

You need an oven safe bowl which will fit into a pan with a lid that can be put on upside down to hold ice. The bowl will need to be slightly smaller than the pan and will need to float.

Read more about how to do this:

https://www.instructables.com/How-to-Distill-Water/

Hi Mart,

Thanks for your suggestion. I was thinking that if I buy a device, it would be a designated water distiller.

Mart Hale wrote:Consider a de humidifier.     It does not take long to get gallons of water.      

Hi Anne,

How do you distill water on the stove?

Anne Miller wrote:Is there a reason you don't want to do this on the stove?  That seems the simplest method.  Have you considered a steam juicer might do this also?