Building a Geodesic Dome Greenhouse Part 2

Here is the second video in the series of building a geodesic dome greenhouse.  It covers 3 different hub designs (and failures) along with the details of how they are assembled.  I’m trying not to make them too boring, but after all, its just a bunch of diagrams, cutting and welding.  At least you can see some sparks fly!  There’s a couple of bloopers at the end too!
 

Below is the transcript from the video:

In this video I will discuss the hub design for this dome and the next video in the series will detail the strut design.  This is 3V 3/8th dome so it will require a total of 46 hubs consisting of twenty-five 6-way, six 5-way and fifteen 4-way hubs that will be used along the base.  Because of the large span, this dome is going to need a hub that can withstand a great deal of compression force.  Plus, it must be able to withstand the downward force from heavy snow loads during the winter.

The first hub design had hanger bolts anchored into the end of each strut.  The end of each bolt would go through a hole in a piece of schedule 40 3-1/2” steel pipe which was used at the hub.  The strut was tightened to the hub with a washer and nut.  This is the first prototype using the hanger bolt method and a PVC hub.  The triangulation between each section was extremely strong.  When I created a full scale prototype, the leverage of a full length strut and removal of the triangulated pieces cause the hanger bolts to easily pull out of the end of the struts.

The second hub design was similar to the hanger bolt design, except a hole was drilled through the strut and a washer and nut was inserted.  This was to create enough surface area to prevent the bolt from pulling through the wood.  However, testing a full scale prototype proved to be too much force against the strut and the bolt acted as a level and split the wood.

The third hub design is completely different. The strut is sandwiched between two spokes.  Flat bar-stock is welded to the hub at the appropriate angles and a bolt is placed through the top spoke, through the strut and fastened with a nut under the bottom spoke. This full-scale prototype shows how 4 spokes of a 6 spoke hub would be assembled.  A load test shows it can support my body weight on only 4 spokes, plus none of the other struts are used to strengthen the legs.  There was some slight bending of the bolts from my bouncing but there was no hardware failure.  Regardless, the final design will use 3/8th inch bolts instead of 5/16th.

The central hub is made from 3 ½” galvanized rigid conduit which is about ¼” thick.  The conduit is cut into 3 ½” lengths.  The galvanized zinc is ground off wherever the spokes are to be welded.  Please note that working with galvanized material, especially using abrasion cutting equipment or welding should be done in a well-ventilated area.  Also, you should always wear gloves and safety glasses.

I made up a jig that will safely hold the bar stock to the drill press.  It allows me to consistently drill a pilot hole in the same location near the end of the stock.  Since I have 480 holes to drill, creating jigs and templates is crucial for building an accurate hub.  Once the pilot holes are drilled, I switch over to a stepped bit that will finish the hole at the proper size.  I then flip the piece over and gently remove any tear-out from the bottom of the hole.  Once the holes are in the end of the stock, I then cut it to the correct lengths.  I built a stop for my abrasion saw so I could cut each piece to the same length.  After cutting off the ends, I can go back to the drill press and drill a new set of holes for the next set of spokes.

Now it’s time to start assembling!  This template has markings on it so I know where the locations are for the 5 spoke or 6 spoke hubs.  I just place the hub over the template and draw a small mark on the hub.

This jig is used to accurately weld the spokes to the hub.  The hub is placed over the post and each spoke is held in place with a pin.  By using this jig, I can weld a complete hub in less than 15 minutes.

All the pieces are welded together with a standard MIG welder.  Another safety note:  Please weld in a well-ventilated area and free from items that can catch on fire.  Also wear the appropriate gear to avoid burns from the hot metal and use a welding helmet to prevent blindness.  Keep fire suppression equipment nearby at all times.  No one else should be in the area while using a welder.

When each hub is complete, any dirt and rust is removed by sandblasting and is then painted with cold-galvanizing paint to prevent future rusting.  I hope you enjoyed this video on making a hub for the geodesic dome.  The next video will show how the struts are made.  Thanks for watching!

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How to Winterize Your RV Travel Trailer 5th Wheel MotorHome or Camper

Check out this video for a complete walkthrough on how to winterize your RV, travel trailer, camper, 5th wheel, or motorhome. When the leaves start to change up here in Michigan, I know I have a few main preparations to make for the coming winter. One of these is to get the travel trailer ready for some cold weather and snow. In this video, I go through that process step by step and offer some pointers and advise for protecting the exterior, water system, and preventing mice from invading!

When we  purchased this used trailer, one of the first repairs I had to make was to correct some damage from the previous owner not winterizing the water system properly. The p trap on the bathroom sink had cracked from freezing and it was a pain to repair. With different types of pipe (ABS,CPVC, and PVC used in this trailer it took a few trips to the hardware store to get the random parts that were needed. This was a lot of work that could have been avoided with a proper winterization the year prior. I hope that this video can help someone out and help prevent extra repairs before the camping season begins next year!

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Operation Rescue Fox

Less than two weeks ago, we spotted a very small, grey, dog-like animal in broad daylight rolling around in our street.  We took pictures and grabbed the binoculars.  The little fox was so skinny and had sores all over its body.  Its eyes were barely open.  I honestly thought this was going to be Operation Put-This-Poor-Animal-Out-of-His-Misery.

We have the most awesome nature center approximately 30 minutes away from our house.  I called them to get their advice.  And thanks to them, our rescue mission began. 

1.  Live trap  (local TSC sure does come in handy at times like these, heres the one we picked out)
2.  Cat food (what they feed foxes in care)
3.  Bacon (just because)

We placed the trap in our front yard under a pine tree.  Days went by and still no fox.  Thankfully, our outdoor cats stayed out of the trap.  I put the trap away when we went out of town for Labor Day weekend, and put it back out when we got home but I moved it just a bit.  I hid it under another pine tree in the front yard, and sprinkled cat food at the opening on the grass.  That did the trick because we caught him on Saturday evening.

Because the nature center was closed for the day, we had to keep him with us overnight.  We put a dish of water in the trap and placed it up by our house, and gave him more cat food.  We also covered the trap with a blanket.  I worried about him so much that night!  This truly was his only shot at survival.  He was living on bugs at this point. 

The nature center called me in the morning and, based on the symptoms I gave them, diagnosed our little fox with mange over the phone.  Mange is nasty, itchy, painful, and transmittable to other animals.  But it is treatable, and those awesome saintly nature center people wanted to make him well again. 

So Kayla and I had the honor of delivering him.  They thanked us for bringing him there when we got there.  Saints, I tell you.  Sometimes in a world where there is so much bad, good things really do happen, just for the sake of being good.  I love animals, and I love people that love animals.  And I hope that my daughters take notice of every spider I put outside, every worm I move off the driveway, every turtle I stop and help cross the street, and the little fox we saved.

We were told we are welcome to call and check on his progress, and our fox might even come back to our neighborhood to be released when hes well again. 

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Then God blessed them and said, “Be fruitful and multiply. Fill the earth and govern it. Reign over the fish in the sea, the birds in the sky, and all the animals that scurry along the ground.”  Genesis 1:28

"Whoever can be trusted with very little can also be trusted with much" Luke 16:10a

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Blessings,
Lisa




This post was shared at:  Homestead Barn Hop, The Backyard Farming Connection Hop,
HomeAcre Hop, Simple Lives Thursday

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13 Creating a Greenhouse out of Electric Metallic Tubing EMT

Picture of EMT frame, draped with plastic
So how do you grow 365 days a year when you have cold winters? A greenhouse is a big part of that answer. [In fairness, 365 Aquaponics also requires attention to fish selection and plant choice, but that’s for another post.]

The lightbulb went off for me when I saw a video of Michelle Obama’s hoop house garden, at the White House. An evening of internet surfing later, I knew all kinds of information about high tunnels, aka hoop houses.

But a standard hoop house wouldn’t work for me. The typical cross section of a hoop house is a circular arc, 12 feet wide if it’s 6 feet high. Not bad for crops grown in the ground, but murder if my crops are sprouting 3 feet above ground level, as in an aquaponics system that’s wholly installed above the surface of the ground. Besides, all that area at the edges is practically useless for either growing plants or allowing the gardener to walk around.

There are some nice greenhouses available for sale. Harbor Freight has an inexpensive 10’x12’ model that is used by many gardeners. But my townhome community has covenants that limit how tall my backyard structures can stand.

Besides, I wanted to see if I could come up with a sturdy greenhouse someone could build themselves from standard materials available at local hardware stores.

Now that I’ve lived with such a greenhouse for a summer, I prefer a simple hoop house over standard greenhouses. When it gets hot, you can simply remove the plastic from the hoop house for the hot months. If you need shade, drape shade cloth over the hoops. Nature takes care of ventilation and pollination. When the days and nights start cooling, put up the plastic again. 6 mil plastic will be stronger and provide better insulation, but 3 mil plastic lets in more light and still keeps things moderately toasty in the sun.

I used Electric Metallic Tubing (EMT) rather than the more typical PVC pipe because:

• EMT allows me to achieve a precise shape
• EMT is stronger
• EMT won’t break down under UV sunlight the way unpainted PVC does.
• EMT is sold in 10 foot lengths, allowing me to create an arched form that is 8.5 feet wide and around 7 feet tall from just two 10 foot lengths

Pictures (better, moving pictures) are worth thousands of words, so here is a movie showing how to set this up.

 

 

This post has been shared at:  Homestead Barn Hop



 

Aquaponics Systems Ontario DIY and Complete System Kits Easy Setup See Now! Learn more

Aquaponics is an easy activity which will provide you with the necessary vegetables and fish in a short amount of time. Read More!

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Advantages of Aquaponic Farming

Aquaponics can be a new way of approaching farming. Unlike classic agriculture where you necessary plants to grow vegetables, with aquaponics you will need water and fish to be able to have healthful meals on your table every single day. Generally, aquaponics relies on the interdependence among fish and plants: the fish produces bio-nutrients for the plants, even though the plants clean the water, making a perfect atmosphere for the fish to develop and create. It is a blend of aquaculture and hydroponics which has lots of benefits. In the event you require some motives to obtain your very own aquaponic system started, then listed here are several of the benefits youll get when you assemble it.

For starters you may have fresh organic meals on your table every single day, regardless of the hour when you determine to cook your meals. You just take your tomato, cucumber of the basil from the aquaponic "field" and use it for your meals. It is as simple because it sounds.

The second greatest thing about it really is that you simply not just grow vegetables, but you also have lots of fish. Whether or not you would like them for cooking tasty meals or just for the d?cor, they may be a great addition in your residence! Additionally they possess a practical purpose, as you will in no way need to use chemical fertilizers in your plants, as a result obtaining true organic meals.

If you ask how tough is this program to place in practice, the answer is extremely easy. Not merely will you be capable of assemble it all by oneself, without having the aid of your loved ones or neighbors, but youll be able to also put it wherever you would like. In the event you move from one house to one more, then you definitely basically disassemble the program and take it with you! What can be simpler than that?

Yet another excellent benefit on the hydroponic farming is that it delivers you financial independence and control more than your income. You realize specifically how much you should invest on your food and also you will no longer rely out there for your veggies supplies.

Final, but not least, it involves no dirty hands and garments, no bending and digging, no land and small upkeep time, so it is going to be like your veggies and fish develop all by themselves! Quite a simple to place in practice technique, appropriate for all forms of men and women, even for busy and impatient ones!

You can find plenty benefits that the aquaponic system can offer you! Your overall health and your comfort will be enhanced, even though your savings will considerably develop together with the continuous use in the aquaponic kind of farming! If this really is what you desire, then why not give it a try?

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Fish Scales Can Not only Beautify The Futures But in addition Provide Calcium

Fish scales account for 2% to 3% in physique weight. Scales are transparent in look and like petals. The edges are tiny curly with white luster. It has slightly fishy and soft texture. Moisture content of scales is about 16.4% to 17.8% as well as the typical price is about 17.5%.
Nutritionists found that scales are unique well being food. It includes astaxanthin and much more fat egg scales, there is enhanced brain memory, slow extension of cellular senescence. Fish is rich in phosphorus and protein, fat and vitamins, iron, zinc, calcium and a lot of essential micronutrients, including calcium, phosphorus content material is higher, and can stop rickets in children and osteoporosis in the elderly Fractures. Experts have located that a variety of scales contained inside the unsaturated fatty acids, might be combined with protein inside the blood to pass in the type of aid emulsify fat and minimize cholesterol deposits in blood vessel walls, can avert arteriosclerosis, hypertension and heart illness prevention multiple roles.
Dermal layer of fish scales is generated bone collagen, learning the challenging protein referred to as scales, it shows the extraordinary in the healthcare field impact. Extracted from fish scales six - sparse generation of guanine, the clinical treatment of acute leukemia, the effective rate of 70% to 75%; and gastric cancer, lymph node tumors also miraculous. Scales contain big quantities of collagen. Collagen is frequently present in peoples mouth within a hot subject of beauty, cosmetics from topical to oral liquid, capsule, powder, it may be stated, and one can see its shadow. Collagen also known as collagen, is actually a filamentous collagen fibers, the principle physiological function is always to make connective tissue adhesive material, make the skin sturdy and elastic, it exists inside the human skin, bones, tendons and also other components. On the skin, which constitute with each other with the elastic fiber network to help the physique, to supply stability for the dermal layer of strong assistance. With age, the physique will progressively decrease the collagen content, network help physique will steadily drop their elasticity, flexibility and moisture truly the cortex was reduced, the skin will be wrinkles, spots along with other old-state phenomena . Skin would be the epidermis, dermis, subcutaneous fat and other components from the skin from the physique is leather, collagen dermal cells in total protein content of 70%. Youll find two key wholesome skin - anti-wrinkle and moisturizing, collagen, the cells turn into complete, complete, sustain skin elasticity and moisture, stop aging. Fish scale collagen protein and collagen than the other, its simple to break down protein, very easily digested, absorbed. After individuals employing it, it has clearly effects. Inside the identical time, it could increase blood amino acids, whilst promoting biotin collagen production.
Scales also contain a higher chitin. Chitin on human overall health has the following rewards: 1 to strengthen the part of chitin assists to decrease the immune harm to tumor cells and new cells and to market the normalization of liver harm. 2 Non-toxic anti-cancer impact. three reduce cholesterol, so for the prevention of atherosclerosis and cardiovascular illness possess a very good impact. four to improve digestive function and avert constipation. 5 fat loss, beauty. Chitin weight-loss, is carried by its own constructive and damaging ions and negatively charged meals automatically attached to the mixture of fat, the role of blocking lipase, creating the fat inside the intestines with no becoming absorbed straight in to the physique. Chitin combined with the fat from the physique, but is not going to, and crucial nutrients like protein binding, so it will not trigger harm to humans.
All in all, the scales possess a number of nutrition, health care materials. So foreign countries use the fish-scale therapeutic a whole lot. Scales, especially the huge fishs scales, theyre great things. It could boil jelly, supply calcium if men and women eat them, beauty and anti-aging.

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Aquaponic Greenhouse Fall Update

I finally had some time to make another video update of my greenhouse. As you can see, I’m still suffering from a white fly problem and the strawberries just aren’t strong enough to survive. They’re starting to succumb to the flies and are getting mildew on them. I’m probably going to rip them all out, and this winter drop the temp below freezing to kill off the bugs. Bring back DDT! ;-)

There are some stats near the end, so you may want to watch it in full-screen hi-def so you can see the info!

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Making an oil lamp

Two DIY Oil Lamps - Soot is from blowing out the wick instead of dowsing it in oil
Hurricane Sandy is hovering over us at the moment. Since we expect power to go out today (and stay off for several days), I thought Id share how to make a simple oil lamp from materials most people have at home.

Youll need:

• pliers (needle nose pliers are best)
• a thick glass jar or glass (works with goblets as well)
• oil (olive oil is ideal if you have it)
• wick (can make from cotton cloth if you dont have wicks)

1. Twist a coil in the end of your wire. This will hold the wick and prevent the flame from burning down the wick.
2. Bend the wire so the wick is held in the center of your jar. It helps to bend a small loop in the wire where it will be outside the jar to help you lift the wire out of the jar for lighting your wick.
3. Push the wick up through the coil. Pull the wick so it is only an 1/8th of an inch over the wire coil. The end of the wick should be long enough to reach the bottom of your jar.
4. Place the wire and wick in your jar.
5. Add oil to your jar so it comes just below your wire coil. You can pour the oil over the wick if you want.
6. Pull the wire/wick up and light it. Oil doesnt like to burn, so it wont catch very quickly.
7. When the wick has caught, lower the wire/wick down into the jar.
8. If the flame is too high, life the wire/wick out and tug gently on the bottom of the wick to reduce the amount of wick sticking out above the coil.
9. When you want to extinguish the flame, dip the flaming end of the wick in the oil. The oil will not catch on fire, but will immediately cool the hot end of the wick. This will prevent the wick from smoking, which it will do if you just blow it out.

If you dont have wicks in your utility drawer, you can cut strips of cloth from either a cotton t-shirt or a used tea towel. These home-made wicks will last longer if you lay them in a shallow dish of water, then sprinkle liberally with salt. Let them soak for an hour, then let them dry. For more information, read Ruth deJaureguis article on How to Make a Wick for an Oil Lamp Using Recycled Materials.

Here are some more pictures.

Materials you can use to make your oil lamp

A closer view of the wire/wick assembly

Lighting a second wick from a lamp that is already burning

PS - As always, be careful with fire. The top of the jar will get hot.

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Pollinating Indoor Plants Without Bees Cloning Tomato Plants

Have you ever wondered how plants in an indoor aquaponics system get pollinated?  This is a bit of an issue because no one wants bees living inside their house.  Well, my husband has found a very simple way to pollinate the vegetable plants growing in our basement using a tiny paintbrush. 

He is also "cloning" the tomato plants in our aquaponics system and planting the new plants in our outdoor gardens.  Tomato plants have a unique quality which allows you to clip their branches and replant them to start a new tomato plant.  We have been very successful cloning the tomato plants growing in our aquaponics system. We automatically have a jump-start on our outdoor tomato plants because the new cloned plants start out around 8-12" tall. 

In his latest video, Todd will show you how he pollinates and clones our plants.  During the video he also, ironically, gets stung by a random bee that made its way into our house!

Aquaponics Walkthrough Episode 9 - Pollinating and Cloning Indoor Plants





This post was shared at:  The Backyard Farming Connection, HomeAcre Hop, Simple Lives Thursday, Homestead Barn Hop

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Bell Siphon the Parts List

Folks have been asking for parts lists and drawings on how to put this together. So Ive (finally!) put together a parts list, complete with links to the product pages for these bits on the Home Depot website.

Bernoulli Standpipe

• 1" slip to 3/4" male pipe thread (MPT) adapter - $0.77
• 3/4 in. Sch. 40 PVC Pressure Slip x FPT Adapter - $0.44
• 5.5 inch length of 3/4 in. PVC Schedule 40 Pipe - $1.97 for 10 feet, $1.15 for 2 feet

Inexpensive Bulkhead Fitting

• 3/4 in. Male Terminal Adapter - $0.46
• [A 1 inch diameter hole drilled through the bottom of your grow bed]
• #18 O-ring - $2.27 [for Box of 10]
• 3/4 in. Female Conduit Adapter - $0.50

Coanda Discharge

• 5 inch length of 3/4 in. PVC Schedule 40 Pipe (already bought)
• 3/4 in. PVC Sch. 40 45-Degree S x S Elbow - $0.62
• 5 inch length of 3/4 in. PVC Schedule 40 Pipe (already bought)

Auto-siphon "Bell"

• 10 inch length of 2 in. PVC Sch. 40 Pipe - $3.69 for 2 feet
• 2 in. PVC Cap - $0.98

Media Guard

• 11 inch length of 3 in. PVC Sch. 40 Pipe - $5.95 for 2 feet

All told, the parts add up to about $20 if youre just building a single Bell Siphon. If you build two of them, they come in at $14 apiece. Or if you get a bunch of friends together to build 10 of these, the price comes down to $9 apiece (because youll buy the 10 foot long lengths of 2-inch and 3-inch pipe - economies of scale).

Now that youve got the parts, heres how to put it together:


Small system I put together for a Feb 2012 science fair

Installing the Bulkhead fitting (the grey conduit bits and O-ring)

Assembling the Standpipe, Bell, and Media Guard

Different Discharge Options (I like the 45 degree or Coanda Discharge)

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Get to the point

Sometimes we see a few critters wandering around the farm and they usually keep their distance.  This guy didnt care that I walked right up to him to take this video.

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Update on the Wood Burning Pool Heater How Well Does it Work

I have had quite a few requests to provide some more detailed information on how well the wood burner works.  I would like to share some temperatures with you using a AGPtek Dual Two Channel Digital Thermometer.

I have been very happy with how well this pool heater has worked for us this year. We have had such a cold summer here in Michigan this year and this heater has been one of the only reasons we have been able to enjoy the pool. Normally, the solar heater and solar cover can keep the pool comfortable but this year it has just not been adequate. I have run the wood burning heater only when needed, maybe once or twice per week at the most. We have been able to easily keep the pool temperature above 75 degrees so far this year.

The numbers and methods here are just for rough estimation of how well the heater works, this is not meant for the science books, but should hold true with a heater of similar size and efficiency.

I measured about 69 gallons per hour with a 33 degree average warm up to the water. This was with an average sized fire going as the temperature here will fluctuate as you add wood and let it burn through. I have seen it as high as 45 degrees and as low as 15 degrees, so it just depends on how much and what material you are burning.

Calculations I used:  15,000 gallon pool divided by 69 gallons per hour (filled one gallon in 52 seconds) gave me 217 hours to heat all of the water 33 degrees. Or if you reduce, it comes down to about 27 hours for 4 degree rise for the entire pool. You can also just divide 33/217 to get a coefficient that can be used to create a formula. Y = .15x where Y is the degrees you will heat 15000 gallons of water and x is the number or hours you run the heater. So if we plug in 24 hours for x we get y=3.6 degrees Fahrenheit.

Hopefully that makes sense to be used as a ROUGH estimate for calculating how much you can heat a similar sized pool.





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This post has been shared at:  The Homestead Barnhop, Simple Saturdays Blog Hop, The Backyard Farming Connection Hop, Natural Living Monday, Frugal Crafty Home Blog Hop

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Hydrofarm Co2 Grow Fish Visit NOW!

Boot Your Plants Growth by 10 Time - In Half the time! With The Help Fish... Read More!

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Setting Up an Aquaponic Farm

Within a planet where every thing is carried out on the run and a lot more and more individuals complain about their lack of time, beginning a new activity appears as a way of social suicide (you are going to have less time for you to see your pals and your family). This is why numerous individuals are really reluctant in giving their precious time away on new activities, specifically if that new activity is gardening. But, what I want to propose you is anything easier, which even even though is really a way of increasing crops, has nothing else to perform with gardening. It truly is referred to as aquaponics and it truly is the easiest way to have fresh food in your table.

Aquaponics is really a program which requires increasing fish in typical tanks and utilizing their water, filled with bio-nutrients inside a system comparable with that promoted by hydroponics. The top thing about aquaponics is that you wont have to care for the plants, as the fish will offer you them enough meals to develop and create effectively. Youll just have to take care of your fish, which will also take significantly less time as you may only have to monitor the water and feed them. There is certainly no require to modify or clean the water as this is one thing which your plants will do.

This symbiosis in between fish and plants may be the a single that will save you lots of time and can provide you with the opportunity to take on this activity without having compromising your social or specialist life. Few minutes each day will be adequate for you personally to be sure that both your crops and your fish are alright! Actually, expanding plants and fish using the aquaponic technique is so simple that your complete family members will likely be prepared to assist you with that. Due to the fact it entails no dirty hands, bending and digging inside the ground, youll be able to even let your kids allow you to. Itll not take long to ensure that they are going to not get bored and also you will get to devote some moments with them.

Aquaponics is the easiest way via which it is possible to have tasty, fresh and healthy vegetables on your table each and every day. Theres no require to become afraid to start such a brand new activity as this really is 1 of the most effective methods you can take for you and your loved ones!

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Hydroponics Nutrients

In a traditionally grown plant, It gets its nutrients in the soil. The soil holds nutrients which are leached from rocks and minerals inside the soil, too as minerals from animal waste, and decomposed plant and animal matter. These minerals are then transferred into water in the soil, along with the water is absorbed by the plant roots. For hydroponics this idea is the exact same, only the execution is distinct. Instead of soil holding nutrient-rich moisture, a Nutrient-rich solution is applied towards the roots either straight, or by signifies of a developing medium.

A drawback to this sort of program is that there is no buffer towards the plants, so if theres something wrong using the nutrient answer, the plants will be affected. Also within a technique where no expanding medium is employed, if the nutrient answer is interrupted (energy outage, pump failure, clogged lines etc) the roots in the plant can dry out quite speedily causing harm to the plant.

In the final handful of decades different nutrient options for diverse varieties of plants happen to be developed. Some focus around the requirements of a distinct sort of plant, while other people are a far more common goal solution. A gardener can purchase minerals separately and mix their very own hydroponic fertilizer. Sadly, the fertilizers that make up a hydroponic formula arent sold as pure nitrogen or pure potassium, so it gets far more complicated. They may be sold as chemical compounds, such as calcium nitrate, potassium nitrate, magnesium sulfate, potassium sulfate and mono potassium phosphate.

Considering that there are various dependable pre-mix hydroponic formulas accessible, it is generally far more efficient and more economical to make use of a established formula that contains all the above described nutrients within the right quantities for plant growth. 1 that you simply basically add to water.

Some hydroponics systems use what exactly is identified as Aquaculture where a fish tank is attached for the hydroponics technique. The fish are fed typically, as well as the water in the fish tank circulates by means of the hydroponics method, exactly where the fish waste is absorbed by the plants and used for meals, and at the same time cleaning the water producing it suitable for the fish.

Regardless of whether you are employing a pre-mixed formula or creating your own its important to stick to these guidelines:

1. Weigh or measure the nutrients carefully.
2. Place the nutrients in separate piles or containers to be confident the proportions make sense.
3. Make certain no elements are left out or measured twice.
four. Accuracy must be inside 5 %.
five. If you are positive the proportions are correct, pour your nutrients into the water inside the mixing containers
and stir vigorously. Nutrients will dissolve ideal in warm water.
6. Measure the nutrient concentration level and record it.

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Hanging It All On The Line

Why build support posts when you can use a super-strong dome?!?!




I needed to come up with a way to support and spread out some of my vine plants in the greenhouse. By removing a nut on the hubs and installing a coupling and eye bolt, it is an extremely strong point for attaching a cable system to act as a trellis.

Installing it is very simple, loop the cable through on one end and clamp it, feed it through another eye bolt on the other side of the dome, and bring it to another eye bolt to figure out the final length.  On this end, I loop it through a turn buckle.

Alright, moving right along….

Then just hook the turnbuckle into the last eye bolt and tighten the cable.

All that is left to do is to tie the plants on to the cables.  I also run some twine down to the grow beds so that the cucumbers can grow up it and attach to the wire.  Here’s a shot of the tomato and cucumber once they have really started to grow along the line.

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Inexpensive Raised Bed Soil Mix Fill Your Garden For Less

This year, I challenged myself to fill our raised garden beds for under $20.  Last year, we used Mels mix to fill our two raised beds and vowed to find a less expensive way for the future. For those who do not know, Mels mix is a great solution for square foot gardening. It consists of one part compost, one part peat, and one part vermiculite. The only issue with this mix is if you want to do this on a larger scale or with larger raised beds you will spend more money filling the beds than you will recoup over your first few years or gardening! The biggest issue we had was finding a good source of the vermiculite and had to order it online. We also sourced the rest of the fill from local big box stores and bought everything by the bag. All in all this turned out to be over $60-70 per bed that we filled and was way more than we were willing to spend. We knew that this year we needed a better solution and I hope we have found it! I spent a lot of time trying different mixes researching different options and this is what I came up with.

There are three main components of a good raised bed or gardening soil. The first is nutrients, you have to have a good base of nutrient rich soil. In our case we are using a composted manure for the majority and will also amend throughout the year with worm castings and our backyard compost. This provides all of the N-P-K macronutrients as well as the micro nutrients needed for most plants to thrive. Compost is available from local farms, big box stores by the bag, and free if you have your own compost pile!

The second component is something to allow the soil to retain water and also provide aeration to the soil. In our case we are using Spagnum peat moss to fulfill this need. Peat is one of the best things for retaining water and nutrients as well as providing aeration for the soil and roots. This helps to prevent the compost from clinging together and drying out and also provides needed air the roots of the plants. The peat moss was the most expensive part of the mix but since we arent using that much we were able to still get some benefits of the peat without breaking the bank.

The last main components is something to provide drainage. In my case I chose to use sand because it is locally available, cheap, and does a great job at keep the soil loose and allowing water to drain through. You can get sand from any landscape supply for the best price or by it in bags just about anywhere.

The ratio that I chose to use is 60-70% Compost, 15-20% peat, and 15-20% sand. This gave me a nutrient rich soil that is light and fluffy, does not compact, and holds moisture very well. Only this years growing season will tell the full story of how well this works out for us, but just working with this soil over the past week has me with high hopes.

The total estimated cost for the this soil mix was approximately $ .92 per cubic foot.  For our 3 x 6 beds it cost us around $14.00 to fill each bed.  This is just an estimate and your costs will vary depending on time of year and how you are able to source the sand and compost. This is a huge leap in the right direction for us as we are expanding our small homestead gardening operation this year by quite a bit. With plans to double our gardens again next year this soil mix has the potential to save us a lot of money and provide excellent soil for our gardens!

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Music - "Me and Billy Barnum" by Josh Woodward. Free download: http://joshwoodward.com/song/MeandBillyBarnum

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Indoor Grow Lighting Explained

  

Using homemade fixtures and off the shelf light bulbs you can grow your own food year round.  Heres a link to how I built mine.  There are some basic terms and features to understand before you dive in and I hope to explain those terms here.
 

 

 

The first thing to consider when choosing lights to grow indoor plants is color temperature. Color temperature is measured in Kelvins and is a measurement of a lights color spectrum. This normally ranges from about 2700K up to 6500K for most off the shelf light bulbs. Different color temperatures have different effects on your plants. The higher 6500K light will induce green leafy grow in your plants and is going to be at the heart of any grow light. 2700k light will induce flowering in plants and although this is not 100% needed for most plants it can help keep fruit production up in your plants. Anything in between 2700k and 6500k is not efficiently used by the plants and therefore should not be used in a grow light.
 

 

The next term to understand is lumens. Lumens is a measurement of light intensity and should be listed on most modern bulbs. The higher the lumen rating the more light power the bulb can produce for grow in your system. This is commonly confused with watts which are a measurement of power consumption and not the amount of light power that a bulb is capable of producing.

This leads into the next term which is lux. Lux is a measurement of lumens per square meter of space and is a great way to test your grow lights potential growing capability. You can use an app called RGB sensor for android to test your Lux power by installing the app and holding your phone at various levels under your light. This app also shows you the color temperature of the lights as well which can be handy to help you determine if you are getting the correct 6500k or 2700k spectrum.
Lastly, the terms watts should be understood. Again, this is not a measurement of anything more than how much electric energy a light bulb is using. The lower watt rating the better (given the same lumen rating). For example a CFL bulb might use 23watts of power to produce 1400 lumens but an LED bulb might only use 14 watts of power to produce the same amount of light power (lumens) making the LED the best value.
 

 

The more energy efficient you can make your grow lights that happier you will be with your energy bill! This is one of the many benefits of going with LED bulbs as much as possible. CFL bulbs also degrade over time so after a year or two you will notice a drop in light intensity. LED bulbs do not suffer from this degradation and also last much longer than CFLs.

 

LED bulb options for grow lights:
6500K Corn Cob style - http://amzn.to/17Y2h6Z
6500L Green Leaf - http://amzn.to/1BOlvI6
2700K LED - http://amzn.to/18Xb3mE

CFL options for grow lights:
6500K - http://amzn.to/1MeIoYs (Best Deal)
2700K - http://amzn.to/17Y3efv

 

 

 

All of these products and more recommended items from the SSL Family are available at the Simple Suburban Living General Store
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Garbage 201 Plastic

Knowledge is power and once we know better, we should probably try and do better.  Now that we know the answer to the great Paper or Plastic? debate, lets learn a little more about plastic so we can make some better choices with it.


Before I start talking about the crazy amount of plastic pollution in our landfills or the health dangers plastic poses, I thought we should start off on a good plastic note.  The history and invention of plastic is very interesting and the reason why it was invented is very dear to this animal lovers heart.  You see, plastic came about as an alternative to elephants ivory, tortoiseshell and horn.  And plastic bags were a successful alternative to paper shopping bags in an effort to save trees back when they were mainstreamed. 


Plastic really is awesome when you think about it, and its qualities are amazing.  But, as with anything cheap and convenient, it comes with a price.  Plastic is made from fossil fuels and is not biodegradable, our landfills are full of it.  Our oceans are full of plastic, too.  Ever heard of the Great Pacific Garbage Patch?  Its a HUGE mass of plastic garbage in the Pacific Ocean the size of Texas.  And plastic poses a health threat as well.  Additives that go into plastic during the manufacturing process, such as BPA, leach into our bodies, food and water.  And the alternatives they use instead of BPA are possibly even more harmful than BPA.  It is estimated that 90% of our adult population has chemicals from plastics in their bodies. What about our kids?  Our babies?  Scary. 


I now know enough to be certain of two things.  One, we want to rid our home of plastic.  Two, we cannot possibly rid our home completely of plastic.  Theres too much and its everywhere.  But we can try!  We can get rid of the plastic that comes in direct contact with our food and water.  We can get rid of the plastic that we know emits chemicals in our home.  And we can choose reusable shopping bags instead of paper or plastic.


Weve already started what were calling the Plastic Purge in our home.  It was inspired by a book written by Mike SanClements.  Over the weekend, we purged our plastic cups, plates, food storage containers, utensils and shopping bags.  We are replacing them with non-plastic kitchenware.   I ordered most of the replacement items on Amazon, and the SSL Family Dad went through my shopping cart to make sure everything was made in the USA.  If you want something REALLY challenging to do on a Friday night, try ordering kitchen gear not made with any plastic parts and made in the U.S.A. 


Once I started looking into non-plastic alternatives, I was shocked at how many options there are if I just looked hard enough.  We are also doing away with Ziploc bags and plastic wrap.  Later on, I will be sharing just what were going to be using now instead of plastic, what we purchased on Amazon, as well as some items we picked up at our local thrift shop.  We have talked about this for a very long time and are very excited for these changes in our home. 


For those of you who were like me about two years ago, thinking this is a bit extreme, I ask you to keep an open mind and ask questions.  Dont just take my word for it, find out for yourself what is best for you and your family.  Almost always, the fastest and cheapest route is usually not the best, healthiest or safest option.

Sources:

http://www.mikesanclements.com/

http://www.chemheritage.org/discover/online-resources/conflicts-in-chemistry/the-case-of-plastics/all-history-of-plastics.aspx

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Aquaponics Walkthrough Episode 8 Which Plants Grow Best

Here is a video walkthrough that will show you some of the growth in the indoor aquaponics garden and discuss which plants have been growing and producing the best in our system. ?

The green peppers are doing exceptionally well.

And so are the beans and lettuce, weve already harvested from those plants.  It is so fun when you can walk right downstairs and cut fresh lettuce for your afternoon salads, even in the wintertime!



The current pH is still at 8.2 which is much higher than what most plants are able to thrive in. However, we have had great growth still and will be planting more of what has been growing well.  The type of rock we are using is causing the high pH (Vigoro river rock from Home Depot).







The following resources will help you determine the pH requirements for most vegetables:

http://www.growinganything.com/soil-ph-for-vegetables.html
http://www.howtogardenadvice.com/soil_prep/vegetable_ph.html
http://www.thegardenhelper.com/soilPH.html


In the upper-right hand section of the following picture, you can see the tomato plant.  The leaves are yellowing.  Tomatoes do much better in a lower pH, and although we are seeing tomatoes, our plants are struggling to absorb the nutrients they need.  Our solution for the summer is to stick with plants that grow in a higher pH for the summer, and grow the lower pH plants outdoors in our square foot gardens until we find a pH neutral grow media for our beds.

 

 

This post was shared at:  Simple Saturdays Blog Hop, The Homestead Barn Hop


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EPIC Cucumber Time!

Heres a short video of my monster cucumber plant. It will be interesting to see how much more it grows before winter sets in. I"m hoping to keep the greenhouse warm enough to keep it going!

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Building the Chicken Tractor Taking the Chickens Out to Eat

In this video, I am working on the conversion of the chicken run into a chicken tractor. There are several reasons why I would like to do this. The chickens enjoy eating grass, bugs, and scratching through a fresh piece of yard now and then. Also, it will allow me to move the run to easily clean the area where they spend most of their time. I have been wanting to get this done for quite some time but have been busy with other things this summer.



I have been looking for some old piece of junk on the side of the road somewhere that had wheels on it I could scavenge but have thus far been unsuccessful. I was able to pick up a small set of wheels at Home Depot that will fit the burden but not really the bill. I paid much more than I wanted to but they are some pretty sturdy looking wheels that should last a long time.

The main thing that I needed to tackle with this project was to build a hitch for my garden tractor and to build a system for the wheels so I could move them into position when I am ready to move the run around the yard. I still have more work to do here (build a nesting box, food scraps trough, roosts, and portable watering system. These will be done as soon as time permits and I will get another video that should cap this project off.






This post was shared at:  Homestead Barn Hop, HomeAcre Hop, Simple Lives Thursday, The Backyard Farming Connection Hop

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