Coopy-wood

Come on, that's funny! I can't take the credit for the title but I still chuckle over it every time I think about it. Ah yes, the point of my story. When I posted earlier I was fretting over the possibility of the new chicken coop being 800s.f. I am here to tell you however, that this is not going to be an issue. Dave and I were discussing today all the necessities of the coop, electricity for light and possible heat, perches, nesting boxes, etc. You name it and we were talking about it. I think all this enthusiasm over raising animals stems partly from learning to take care of ourselves and being more self sustained, but part also goes to boredom.

Funny thing about all this conversation today is that this whole time that we have been trying to design the coop, there was actually an already made (but needs work) coop in our back yard that we are already paying taxes on! Oh sure, it isn't technically a coop but it could be and much faster than building from scratch!! It needs repair work and rearranging and it desperately needs airing out, although I doubt that the chickens will care much, but its a good size and its already here. Its Dave's playhouse that he used to play in as a child.

All of our research was not made in vain mind you... we have to build a Coopywood at Shmoopywood.... *couldn't resist.

So here she is... Coopywood




(where would we be without a gratuitous "Lisa" shot :)

Dave- Battleship!

More big plans ahead for SW or should I replace big with "HEAVY"... About a month and a half ago, we were searching through Craigslist and came across someone selling un-used 8" insulated chimney pipe, the exterior stainless steel variety. Knowing that our eventual plan was to put an additional heat source in the basement of SW, we jumped on the deal. So then the search was on for "what" we would put in the basement. After weighing all the options, it seemed like the best possible solution for us was some kind of forced hot air furnace that was wood fired. Reasoning was as follows

Requirements/Challenges:

o Camp isn't always occupied in winter, so draining a hydronic system was not ideal, radiant floor isn't really an option either due to risk of freezing as well as cost.
o No pellet stoves, yes they are easier to vent but require constant electrical power and the fuel is very specific.
o No fossil fuels
o Keep the cost down.

Solution:

o Forced hot air... minimal or no electricity required and the possible replacement of motors with DC
o Wood fired. Lowest tech and most readily available fuel.

We looked at some of the new units and found them to be VERY expensive 5K+ as well as the most common type being simply a relatively small add-on wood furnace made to augment existing gas systems.

Craigslist and some internet scrounging comes through again.



This unit was barely used, in super shape and was MASSIVE. Once we contacted the seller, we discovered that it had another huge and unexpected advantage.... There is a coil attached to the firebox which will heat water. The firebox is the "black section" and is surrounded by the orange outer case which is hollow and allows for air to circulate around the entire furnace.

I don't have any specs yet on the approx BTU output of this unit but its firebox is the size of a dump truck and I doubt they come any bigger. Seller was GREAT and helped me dismantle all parts and get it moved out of his basement and onto our small flat bed trailer, no small feat!


Given the intended location of the furnace at SW, pretty sure we can run the small amount of duct work required to heat both the bathroom and the spare bedroom on the first floor. We may even be able to use some flexible duct to run behind the (future) cabinets in the Kitchen. Going to start some research on a gravity/thermal hot water setup for a storage tank. The limited reading so far seems to show that with proper safety precautions we could put in a hot water storage tank nearby and allow the thermal properties of the heated water to circulate through that tank without the use of an electrical circulator pump. We will put a bypass and circulator pump on it anyway, so its available should electricity be plentiful OR have the option of running without. The research will also include replacement of the blower fan as well as any duct fans with DC units.

SO, basically couldn't be happier with the find. The addition of this furnace to SW should allow us to really get the camp up to a comfortable temperature quicker, provide heat in areas we don't currently have it, as well as regulate the heat during the evening. One thing we've learned with the large wood stove is that it does struggle to get the large mass of the camp up to temp (when arriving) but once there you really have to keep it burning hot to maintain the temp downstairs. While doing that the unintended consequence is that the loft is about 150 degrees.

There may be some slightly greener options (radiant floor or a wood burning gasification type furnace which may be more efficient) however... Given the off grid nature of our Cabin, the cost and complexity of those options and our desire to not use any fossil fuel, this was the best we could come up with. I guess we were able to stay somewhat green by finding the perfect unit used, vs. having to buy one new.

Next big challenge, other than moving this battleship into its permanent home will be to get a 12" hole in the concrete foundation wall for the chimney pipe. THAT should be fun!

*publisher's note (Lisa) I am so not making the whole in the almighty foundation. That is going to be all on D :)

What we have gotten so far

I can't believe this week has already passed and we are preparing to head back up to the cabin already! This weekend is the first weekend of the season that the whole family is going (kids this time!). The season started so late due to massive snow fall and we had so much to do most of our time up there has been on weekends where the kids are with their dad. I am excited for the extra help but skeptical. Something about getting a 12 year old and a 15 year old to help build a house is difficult. ;)

Our plan is to complete the screened porch, Dave has been hard at work preparing the frames for the screens after work each night and I am to install them. We also hope (maybe) to start the plumbing process but it really depends upon how everything else goes. Dave drove to Milford yesterday to meet a guy about a couple doors. He had these old salvaged doors and screen doors that he was "trying to get rid of". We scored 2 screen doors for $30! One of them will be for the other half of the screened porch, the part that will eventually lead into the dog's fence and the other is hopefully going to fit the front door. The whole thing really works for me, its not that we cannot afford to buy a screen door, I mean they are relatively inexpensive. The point is, we have set ourselves this goal to use as many salvaged materials as possible and we are pretty adamant about it. You would think that it would be crap and have to be redone completely and in some cases that is true, which I am totally willing to do. There is a guy there who runs a "dump shop" where he sells these items that we have below at an extremely reduced price. Most of the items we have gotten though are in practically PERFECT condition. We have also unintentionally began decorating the house with early 1900's furniture.

Last weekend I took a little time off on a union break to get some photographs of the furniture that we have salvaged read: rescued from landfills. I thought it might be interesting to show you what we got, what it is intended for and where we got it.

This Chair was recovered at the dump store. It was rickety and missing a support, which we replaced and intend on staining. We also re-upholstered the seat with a scrap yard of cloth from walmart and some cotton batting that was left over from my great dane bed making experiment.

This is the vanity that the chair goes with. We found this at the D-store as well and intend on plumbing it and making it our bathroom vanity complete with (someday) running water. This vanity was also a dstore find!






















The chicken cabinet (right) is just fun, all wood, and another d-store find!

The large polka-dotted wooden box (left) was an ebay purchase by me wayyyy before the house was a glimmer in our eyes. We had thoughts of off-grid living and this box is actually an ice-box that someone tried to redo themselves. We grabbed it from them for a very low cost and I am still trying to figure out what I want to do with it.






















This chair is actually part of a pair. We love these chairs and the original intention was to make new cushions for them but after some time, we grew fond of the pattern and felt it really fit with our other 1900's stuff. The pair was recovered from the d-store.























Ahhh the hutch (left). Gosh I love this hutch... its gorgeous. It is also a D-store FIND!! I know... crazy... it even has felt lined drawers (perfect condition).























And below, you have an armoire that we are going to use as a linen closet in our fancy bathroom ;) I got this off of craigslist for $50! It is early 1900's and very sturdy. Again, perfect condition complete with the original leaded glass.

There are more items of course, a craigslist chest of drawers that I just love that we scored for $25. It is also 1900's period and a cedar hope chest dave got at the d-store that is in the bedroom housing our blankets but these ones are my favorites.

We will be back on Sunday and hopefully I will have alot of updates and pictures. Perhaps we will even get some stuff done!

Time flies <-- get it?

Well its the big birthday extravaganza this weekend. This is not a real thing, BUT we are going to the cabin on friday morning to start the screen porch transformation. We will be back on sunday evening and hopefully I will have many pictures to share. Its an exciting weekend because not only will we be up there but so will our other off-grid neighbors on each side (its like an off-grid love fest) one of which we hope to have over for some food.

THursday we hope to go "finding" some more recycled products at salvage yards. Its green because we are not buying new items that use energy to create PLUS we get to have neat furniture and building products that have a story. As you can see from one of our pictures, all of our bathroom furniture is salvaged. We found the neat vanity and intend on plumbing it into the house in order to create a functioning sink! Its very exciting to me to go 'finding'. You can do this too by going to a salvage yard, flea markets, the dump, and even craigslist! If you get something that someone else no longer wants, you save it from going into a landfill and therefore you are doing your small part in keeping our planet safe!

Please also check out some of the links on my list!
L