2010 Leaf Compost Analysis Results are in.

The information below is a fellow up those interested in my January 27, 2012 blog post.

...in Hot Water

In October we had HALCO (http://www.halcoheating.com/) install a direct solar hot water system on our new roof. The goal is to reduce our annual propane use by 50%.
How it works:
An antifreeze solution is pumped through two solar collector panels on the roof. This fluid is then pumped through a coil inside of a large water storage tank located next to our existing propane hot water tank. If the solar panel temperature is 10 degrees higher than the storage tank bottom's water temperature, a circulating pump turns on. Heat from the solar heated solution is then transferred by conduction and convection within the storage tank. When we turn a hot water faucet on for showers, dish washing or laundry; preheated water from the top of the storage tank enters our existing hot water tank, reducing the amount of propane needed to raise well water to 120 degrees Fahrenheit.  

Two solar hot water panels.

Air temperature - 38 Faherenheit in the shade.

The inhouse temperature probe (left) and various
pressure gages for easy system monitoring.

The above video clip was taken at 2:30 PM local time.

1. The 1st number is the temperature of the antifreeze solution in the panels on the roof. (121 F)
2. The 2nd number is the temperature at the bottom of the water storage tank. (102 F)
3. The 3rd number is the water temperature at the top of the water storage tank, which feeds our existing gas heated hot water tank. ( 89 F)

As you can see the water entering our hot water tank is preheated by the sun. Before the solar water heating system was installed, 56 - 57 degree Fahrenheit well water would enter our hot water tank and then have to be heated with propane to 120 degrees Fahrenheit.

The following video clip was taken later (5:35 PM) as the sun is now lower in the western sky. As you can see, the solar panel temperature is down (47 F), but the temperature at the top of the  storage tank is 97.8 degrees Fahrenheit. Water entering the hot water tank will only have to be heated 23 degrees vs 57 degree water coming directly from the well under the old system.

We will be watching our propane bills, so check back in a few months.

Screening 2010 Leaf Compost

Yard leaves are a terrific source of soil amending compost. Each fall I rake and collect yard leaves into a large pack pile. In our yard the leaves consist of black walnut, white ash, a variety of maples, red oak, and shrub leaves. Below are several photos and video clips of the finishing process for the 2010 leaves into a fine compost that will be added to this springs (2012) vegetable garden.  

Unscreened 2010 Leaf Compost

Screening 2010 leaf compost removes sticks, nut hulls, stones...etc. 



Screened, finished leaf compost



Removing materials that did not pass through the screen for further screening and/or recomposting.

Two Interesting Winter Reads

Just finished reading The American Chestnut: the Life, Death and Rebirth of A Perfect Tree by Susan Freinkel. An interesting read that tells the historical story of the American Chestnut tree and the on going decades effort to restore this tree, that was long gone by my birthday. For a review, click on the link below.

http://www.susanfreinkel.com/books_American_Chestnut.html

The other evening while watching the PBS News Hour I heard Karl Pillemer, Ph.D., (researching gerontologist/Cornell University) give a  review of his new book 30 Lessons for Living - Tried and True Advice from the Wisest Americans. You can listen to the interview by clicking on the link below.

http://www.pbs.org/newshour/bb/entertainment/jan-june12/lifelessons_01-05.html

Both of these books are available in our local Pioneer Library System at: http://www.owwl.org/

...check them out. They are good winter reads!

2011 Notables on the Home Front

Yesterday, I took a little time to review some of 2011's accomplishments.
Here are ten in no particular order -

1. Walked 1,541 local miles ...average = 4.2 miles/day & collected $69.70 for roadside deposit cans...primarily beer cans. ...so why are Gatorade, Vitamin drinks , Brisk Tea, and chocolate milk product bottles NOT returnable? Got to look into this one.
2. We drove 1000 miles less this year than last year...let's see @ $.40/mile that is a savings to say nothing of the into town errands saved by walking instead.
3. $8.36 - the amount of loose change found along side of the roads while walking ...I also found over a dozen, unopened cans of beer ...??? Yes, I know your next question.
4. The Photo Voltaic system generated 8033 kilowatt hours of electricity or over 100% of our electric power needs for 2011 ... enough energy to light 803, 100 watt incandescent bulbs for an hour...right? Oh, incandescent bulbs will soon be history. 
5. Turned and screened 6 cubic yards of finished compost that was used in our garden & flower beds ... that is roughly 6000 calories figuring 300 Calories/hour x 20 hours of turning, screening and loading/spreading.  
6. Collected conservatively 10+ tons of field stone from roadsides, hedges, and the work areas at local cemeteries (NO! not head stones!! ...lets see now ...80 wheel barrow loads @ 250 lbs/load...) used to build a pond and free standing stone walls.
7. By recycling & composting, we are averaging 0.4 lbs/person of solid landfill waste/day. (...the national average is 4 lbs/person of solid landfill waste/day.)
8. Volunteered 383 hours over the past year ...or 7.4 hours/week.
9. We have not purchased any vegetables, salad greens, jams or honey in 2011 ...thinking globally, but acting locally.
10. I've read 25 books from the local library system. (...mostly non-fiction, many from the NYT bestseller list.)

...It is on to the New Year!

Think I will go for a three hour walk before the rains come today.

The Toy Chest

Early last fall I promised my son and his wife that I would make a toy chest for our grandsons. Delivery would be on Christmas day.

....Well last week I could no longer procrastinate on my promise; so work began using the few, crude hand held tools that I had in my unheated log barn. After about '45 thousand cuts (... and recuts)' I put together the 'toy chest barn' pictured below.

Despite cold feet and fingers, it is fun to see the mental image transform into a physical stucture which I hope the boys will enjoy.

Dimensions:

Barn - 48" long x 24"wide x 30" at the barn peak.

Silo - 36" high (top of staves) x 6.5" wide. to the top of the staves.

Storage:

Lift the roof panel off on the facing side and back lean-to section of the barn. I decided against hinges, thinking that little fingers could be pinched.

The barn doors can be slid open or closed.

The silo cap can be lifted off and the top 12" can hold some more 'stuff'. The bottom 24" contain two structural support disks.

How Sweet It Is!

Yesterday I extracted and bottled 30+ pounds of honey. Since I don't have a honey extractor that removes honey from the comb by a centrifuge action, I followed the suggestion by a fellow hobbist beekeeper. I purchased two 5 gallon plastic buckets. Drilled 20 plus 3/8th inch holes in the bottom of the top bucket lined with a nylon, 5 gallon paint screen. This bucket was then placed ontop of the bottom bucket, with a large hole in it's lid. The bottom bucket served as the collecting bucket. A faucet from my scrap plumbing pile was added and wha-laa!

... let the honey extraction begin

The plastic frames loaded with comb honey are scrapped into a collecting pan.

The scappings are added to the top bucket to begin a 24 hour gravitational separation of honey from the wax. The honey drips into the bottom collecting bucket.

While the jars filled, I designed a label.