New Wood Stove Installed

I finally got the big Earth Stove I picked up last year fixed and installed.

This wonderful stove was listed on Craigs List last year for $100. It was built in the 70's with a craftsmanship not seen in today's stoves. None of that silly anti pollution crap for this baby. She is a big plate steel monster who keeps the place warm if not full on hot through the coldest night.  There were some cracks in the corners of the door opening which were repaired with refractory cement and the chimney and stove pipe had to be changed from 6 to 8 inch.

My old stove was nice. Small with a great viewing window but the thing had to be fed every ninety minutes which really sucks when you are trying to get a good nights sleep. Plus I had to burn it as hot as I could to keep the house warm.

I traded the neighbor the old stove for his help in getting the mammoth Earth Stove into the house and set on the hearth. He also threw in a 100 pound propane tank but I have not needed propane heat. He took the small stove and put it in his 26 foot trailers where it keeps him and his dogs toasty warm.

The fire box on the Earth Stove is between three and four times bigger than the small stove plus it has a very efficient air intake damper that allows me to easily control the burn rate and stove temperature.

There is a control knob attached to a metal coil that can be set for low, medium or high. The coil expands as the stove heats up and closes the damper slowing the burn rate. As the stove cools down the coil contracts opening the damper feeding more air into the fire box.  If I want to shut off the airflow almost completely there is a metal cover that drops down over the top of the air intake.

There is an oven thermometer on the top of the stove. On the low setting the stove fluctuates between 220 to 270 degrees depending on where the damper is. Completely dampered down it hovers right around 180 degrees. The cabin is staying between 65 and 75 degrees at night on the lowest setting. Drops down to around 50 degrees when the damper is completely closed which is a great sleeping temperature. 

A full load of wood will burn between 6 and 8 hours with the stove dampered down depending on the wood. I should be able to get that number up to between 10 and 12 hours when I get the damper installed in the stove pipe next week.

The only downside to the new stove is that the door is solid so I cannot see the fire. You know I thought this would bother me but honestly the fact that I can sleep through the night more that makes up for aesthetic deficiency. If I really want to see the fire burning there is a metal mesh screen that came with the stove that can be fit over the open door hole. I have used it on a few occasions and love it but you cannot sleep with it installed.

All in all a wonderful addition for $100 and I wish I would have installed it last winter.

Storing Your Buckets

After cleaning out both my storage units I realized that one critical item was missing from my house here in the valley. I have no closets! Not only do I not have any closets I have no storage space other than the kitchen cabinets. Right now the 30 plus buckets of food and miscellaneous storage totes are divided between the bathroom and sunroom. Here is what I am doing to permanently stow these items.

Your average 5 gallon bucket is about 15 inches tall and 12 inches across.

I built a 16 inch platform for my bed. With my mattress I sleep roughly 28 inches off the floor. I am fine with this but had to build some steps for the dogs. This created a 5 by 6 foot space capable of holding 30 buckets. The under bed storage contains mostly totes right now.

The dogs love lying on footstools pushed against the windows. They sit there all day guarding the house. I am planning a 3 by 5 foot window seat covered with an old piece of foam rubber I picked up by a dumpster. I used to have a couple of old futon mattresses in front of the windows but they were huge and afforded no storage. The new window seat should be able to store 15 buckets and offers additional seating when necessary.

I keep 4 buckets under the coffee table. This could have been sized to hold many more but the rugs are shaken outside for cleaning so you don’t really want to move 15 buckets each week. Four buckets are also used as end tables.

Eventually most of the buckets will be placed in a root cellar but I won’t be building that until this summer.

If you are planning a very small house do not overlook the storage. If you are stockpiling several years worth of food the storage space is essential.

Ammo Can Heat Sink

I have decided to use 30 MM ammo cans filled with water for a heat sink wall in the sunroom. The cans measure 18 1/2" long by 9 1/2" deep by 14 1/2" tall and hold about 10.5 gallons of water apiece. They are stacked 3 high against the rear wall. During the day they sit in the sun absorbing heat. In the evenings they radiate that energy back into the room keeping the plants warm and saving on heating costs.

The ammo cans are painted black and the metal conducts heat through to the water much more efficiently than plastic walled drums. The cans filled with water are heavy but easily moved. A steel drum would have been adequate but difficult to shift with the seasons and would sit awkwardly against the wall. The square shape of the ammo can is optimal for lining the walls. Minimal space with maximum heat gain.

I tested this last winter and it works. I will get some pictures up as soon as I can.

Pick up your own surplus ammo box and cut your heating costs.

Window Swap

A fews years back I installed four huge picture windows across the north side of the house. The windows are six foot tall by five wide and really open the house up to the mountain and lake views. At the time I was not spending a lot to time there during the deep winter so I opted for insulated double paned windows with no "low-e" coatings.

Low-e coatings, which are microscopically thin layers of metallic oxide that's bonded to the surface of a window's glass, are so thin you can see right through them yet they prevent heat and ultra-violet (UV) rays from passing through glass. The result? A window with low-e glass does a better job keeping heat in during the winter and out during the summer.

Unfortunately these large windows are horrible at keeping the cold out and the heat in. I could stand outside within a foot of the window and feel heat radiating through. It feels nice on a cold day but I really want that heat trapped inside. To mitigate this large fleece blanks are hung over them at night but there is still significant heat lose during the day.

I picked up 4 six foot tall by five wide windows on clearance at Lowes for the south side sunroom. They were originally priced at $489 apiece but were returned and marked down to $21 each. Really cool with top and bottom sliders...you can leave the top open and close the bottom protecting the dogs and keeping unwanted critters out.

To my dismay after installing the heavy monsters I realized that they were low-e windows so efficient that no heat actually made it into the sunroom. This completely defeated the purpose. They were so effective that the sunroom was colder than standing outside in the direct sunlight.

Over the weekend we switched out the two sets of windows. Moving the clear picture windows with little insulating properties from the front to the sunroom on the south side of the cabin and replacing them with the highly efficient rear windows. A necessary pain.

I tell you I am stunned by the outcome. The low-e windows placed on the north side of the house not only hold heat but are aesthetically pleasing adding a lodge like warmth to the great and only room. It was cold outside and the new windows held the heat really well through the night. I got the temperature up to around 80 degrees at midnight and let the wood stove burn down. At six the next morning it was still 65 degrees without any heat overnight. I was very happy, this will save a great deal of money.

I am equally pleased with the clear windows now on the sunroom. The suns rays pass through and heat everything on the inside. This is gonna make the plants very happy and give an additional heat source once the large barrels of water are installed as heat sinks.

The only issue we found was that the newer windows were about 3/4 of an inch shorter than the old ones. This was easily remedied with some shimming and prying.

All windows are not created equally...use the correct tool for the job.

A great backup heating source is the Mr Heater Big Buddythis portable heater's output adjusts from 4000 to 18,000 BTU with the capacity to heat up to 400 square feet for up to 108 hours on one twenty pound bottle of propane. The Mr Heater Big Buddy also has an efficient built in fan to start warming the house when the wood stove is heating up. Great Survival Heater I highly recommend it!!!

Wood Delivery

Next to passive solar burning wood is the most efficient heat source available. If you have timber nearby a great deal of money can be saved each season by cutting and splitting your own wood. I plan on culling my own firewood over the next year hopefully reducing my heating cost to virtually nothing. Unfortunately I am not ahead of the curve and am purchasing some wood for this winter.

I found a relatively local source and bought two cords of wood from them on Friday. After meeting in town, the guys followed me out to the cabin...directions can be difficult when you don't have an address. They delivered two full cords of Ponderosa Pine split and no more than 18 inches in length. A cord of wood is 4x4x8 foot in volume this batch cost $150 per cord.

Most are good sized pieces that will burn for a long time, especially at night with the stove dampered down. Up to this point I have burned cedar, white pine and building scraps. This is by far the best wood I have ever used.

Ain't that a sexy orange car!

Cut your own firewood and save tons in heating costs with a Chain Saw. Don't let the power companies screw you over any longer.

Don't Waste Wood

Monday afternoon I was taking a walk and passed an old roundhouse that has been used as a pottery factory for past seventy years. The pottery factory is in the process of closing and the historic roundhouse is being converted into a strip mall.

Apparently they emptied the warehouse portion of the building because there were between 20 and 30 wooden shelves lined up by the big commercial dumpster. Being the happy dumpster driver that I am, I wandered over to look at the shelves.

I was shocked. The shelving units were 8 foot long by 2 foot wide and about 7 foot tall. They were constructed entirely out of TRUE 1 x 12's. Each of the shelves had 12 1x12's 8 foot long and 4 1x12's 7 foot long...and there were over 20 shelving units. I planned on going by Tuesday and asking them if I could break the shelves down and take the lumber.

Giddy I was when I got home. I was already planning what to do with all that free incredible lumber.

Anyway I drove by Tuesday at lunch and was deeply saddened to see an giant industrial wood chipper and a massive pile of chips. No shelves seen...they shredded all that lumber. They don't even make lumber like that anymore. I was very sad.

There is still some light in this story. There is a large deck running along the back of the building it consists of roughly 60 2x6x8 and 20 2x6x12 foot long pressure treated boards with probably 20 2x12x10 foot beams...in other words a barn. I will swing by first thing in the morning and see if they will let me salvage it.

Don't Waste Wood

Off-Grid carpentry and construction is much easier with a rechargeable tool kit. I have been using the same Ryobi Rechargeable Tool Kit for the past 7 seasons. I have gone through many saw blades and added several batteries over the years but the tools themselves are just as strong and stable as when I bought them. If you are building off-grid a rechargeable tool kit is a must have item.

Cabin

"Do not worry if you have built your castles in the air. They are where they should be. Now put the foundations under them."

With one month away from moving in full time I thought I would run a few pictures of my cabin at Bear Ridge. Normally I would be hesitant to post these pictures until I am there but a good friend is staying at the cabin this month to break the place in for me.






Looking up the hill towards the cabin. Bedroom on the right with bathroom and kitchen on the left. Living room in the middle.














Looking out the living room. Big rainstorm this summer note the bucket catching water from the leaking roof.














Here is the kitchen. The cabinets will be replaced in February with self built ones that are more friendly to 5 gallon buckets. Note that there is no sink. I use the big utility sink in the bathroom.














Older picture of the wood stove with the bedroom tucked in behind it. Stays nice and toasty warm.


















This is the new sunroom still not completely finished. The green house will extend out from the sliding glass doors and run along the rest of the house.









"All endeavor calls for the ability to tramp the last mile, shape the last plan, endure the last hours toil. The fight to the finish spirit is the one... characteristic we must posses if we are to face the future as finishers."

"I have learned, that if one advances confidently in the direction of his dreams, and endeavors to live the life he has imagined, he will meet with a success unexpected in common hours."

Off-Grid Solar Power Budget

When you live off grid budgeting takes on several meanings. There is of course the usual money budget which under normal grid attached circumstances is the all important American control mechanism. As long as you can pay for your power and water there is nothing limiting your consumption. You will always stay warm and be able to flush that toilet. But in the off grid world your power, water and heat budgets become the governing factor in day to day life. These finite resources must be carefully measured. Miscalculation and waste can leave you freezing in the dark unable to even find the toilet.

I measure my stored power in amp hours which is the way deep cycle batteries are rated. Let's say I have 6 deep cycle batteries each with a capacity of 270 amp hours. That would give me a pool of around 1600 amp hours to draw from when the battery array is fully charged. Remember true battery capacity can only be figured by a trained voodoo priest with a good thermometer.

Deep cycle batteries can be drained to down to 30%, this is not recommended but can be done in an emergency situation. It is nice to only draw down to 70% giving me around 480 amps to play with. Now here is the important part, whatever you pull out you must replace. If you drain 480 amps off the array each day 480 amps need to be put back either through wind, generators or solar.

I have 6 130 watt solar panels each delivering 7.38 amps back into the battery array for each hour of sunshine. (I know the numbers don't work out but that's the way it is with solar) So with my solar array I can realistically put 40 amps back into the battery array per hour of good sunshine. I base my budget on 6 hours of good sunshine per day. A sunny day will replace 240 amps back into the battery array.

The governing number for me is 240 amps. (I am battery heavy) I still don't want to draw down the full 240 amps. Being paranoid like I am I only use 120 amps per day.

In theory I have 1120 amps to use if I drain the batteries to 30%. This gives me a little over 9 days of reserve if for some reason I can not recharge the batteries. Additionally if I only use 120 amps and am replacing 240 the batteries will recharge in just a few days.

Now what does all this mean, how much power do I have. Can I run my blender and make my Pina colada smoothies? Will my 50 inch plasma TV still be able to baby sit the kids 8 hours a day? Can the SubZero keep my champagne and caviar chilled?

So now that we know how much power we have available the next step is to determine how many DC amps each AC device draws. Remember that when I am talking batteries I am referring to 12 volt DC, just like your truck.

Here is the formula:

AC Watts / 12 x 1.1 = DC Amps (Amps are measured in hours) (1.1 is inverter inefficiency)

60 Watt light bulb / 12 x 1.1 = 5.5 DC Amps per hour of use

Now multiply the DC Amps by how many hours you plan on using the device

5.5 DC Amps x 8 hours = 44 Amps daily

As you can see my one 60 Watt incandescent light bulb has already used up 1/3 of my daily available power. This is why you do not use incandescent lighting in an off-grid project. I use low wattage florescent bulbs. The bulbs I use are 11 watts but mimic a 40 watt bulb, I have several through the cabin. I figure 3 lights running 8 hours each. (this is high number of hours by the way)

33 AC Watts / 12 x 1.1 x 8 hours = 24.2 Amps daily

You could reduce the daily amps for lighting even more if you used LED bulbs. I would suggest a warm temperature LED bulb. The first bulbs that came out were a cold temperatures bright white light and I really hated them. Our eyes are used to the warmer incandescent quality lights and I prefer them.

Here is the tricky part. You can not just go by the rated input wattage listed on the device. My laptop for instance has a 95 watt power adapter. That is a power hog and I would not invite it into my house. The reality is that those numbers are the highest wattage produced not necessarily what will be used.

I use a Kill-A-Watt meter to determine the actual power consumption of any device. This little box plugs into the wall and you plug the thing being measured into the Kill-A-Watt. Here is the actual power consumption of my laptop.

Charging 60 Watt
General Use 22 Watt
Watching DVD 31 Watt
Asleep Lid Open 11 Watt
Lid Closed 1 Watt

So for me the most efficient way to work is to plug the laptop in keeping it fully charged and when I am not actively using the thing close the lid. Worst would be to sit on the deck running the laptop batteries down then plugging it every few hours.

Here are some of the other devices and roughly how long each day I will be using them.

Microwave 650 Watt/10 minutes
Coffee Maker 600-650 Watt/10 minutes
Ryobi Battery Charger 30-40 Watt/2 hours
Phone Charger 1 Watt/2 hours
XM Radio 5 Watt/8 hours
12 volt Water Pump 5 DC Amps/30 minutes

In the off-grid world a careful budgeting and understanding of your power, water and heat usage is critical if you are looking for a relative comfortable life. It is critical to know your needs and more importantly what you are willing to give up before moving down the off-grid road. You just can't use extra and pay a little more at the end of the month your reserve is fixed.

If you found this useful let me know and I will do the same thing for heat and water.

Pick up a Kill-A-Watt meter and find out just how much power you really need. Even if you are not planning a move off-grid it is important to understand your power usage.

Sunroom

Over the past few weekends I have been working on the large sunroom that runs along the south side of the cabin. The southern exposure is sheltered from the wind by hills and trees but still gets excellent direct sunlight. It can be forty degrees out and you will get hot working along that side of the house in shorts and a teeshirt. The plan is to utilize this natural heat gain to grow plants and provide daytime heating for the cabin.

The south wall is 36 feet long, the big sunroom only occupies 16 feet of that, it is 8 feet wide. The other 20 feet of wall space will be dedicated to a greenhouse made of polycarbonate panels it will be 20 by 8 feet.

For the sunroom I picked up four 6 x 5 foot insulated windows at Lowes for $21 bucks apiece (listed for $489 each). They had been returned and were in a holding bin at the end of one of the isles on clearance. I grabbed them up right there. The glass is slightly tinted so they will be traded out for the four 6 x 5 foot picture windows in the front room, they have no tinting. I also found a 5 foot wide sliding glass door for the sunroom at the Habitat for Humanities ReStore (great place).

The outcome is a wonderful hot house wrapped in glass, warm and bright. I will also be taking out about 8 foot of wall between the sunroom and the cabin. That will allow the daylight warmth to flood the house. A large sliding "barn door" is rolled into place at night. Black 55 gallon drums filled with water and placed in the sun will act as heatsinks radiating heat back into the room at night.

The greenhouse should be great for growing lettuce, cabbage, radishes and other cool weather plants. Plus it gives the dogs a nice place to play that isn't freezing. The hot sunroom should be great for growing tomatoes, peppers and beans.

I will get some pictures up as soon as I finish up.

Eccotemp Portable Tankless Water Heater

Hot water is a critical convenience for most survivalists. It is necessary for cleaning, cooking, re-hydration and showering. In modern society hot water is taken completely for granted.

A couple of years back I had this Zodi X-40 outback water heater. It was a piece of junk that started leaking after the first couple of uses. The Zodi set me back alittle over $400.

The Eccotemp L5 unit is only $120 so I think I will give it a try. I can hook it into the 12v system at the cabin.

Endless hot water - wherever you are!

The uses for the L5 are extremely varied and can be incorporated in to Sporting Goods, Cabins, Hunting, Vending/Concession, Sinks, Portable Showers, etc...

Wash Your Pet, Fill Your Hot Tub, Wash Farm Animals, Wash Patio Furniture, Warm Outdoor Shower, Clean Your Dairy Barn, Wash Your Car, Wash Your Tractor, Hot Water for Cabin, Outdoor Cooking, Picnics, Wash Paintbrushes, Thaw Frozen Water Lines, Wash Trash Containers, Shampoo Carpets, Clean Floor Mats.

Eccotemp Portable Tankless Water Heater. L5 - Portable Tankless Unit. The portable tankless unit is an ideal unit for portable uses. It uses a standard garden hose adapter and fits right to a standard 20 pound grill tank. Perfect for emergency and cabin applications.

Some of the other benefits include:

* 2 "D" cell battery ignition means no electricity needed
* Adjustable water temperature from 80-150 degrees F
* The garden hose adapter included attaches to any standard garden hose style nozzle
* Shower nozzle with on/off control
* Folding handles
* Includes CSA regulator for attaching to standard 20 pound propane tank
* Up to 18 hours of use on a 20 pound tank

I will probably pick one up next week and will keep you informed about performance.

Power Company and Police Conspiracy

There appears to be a conspiracy between the local power company and city police to intimidate cash strapped citizens into paying their power bills on time or risk eviction and imprisonment.

Lately, on my evening walks, I have notice these 2x2 foot yellow notices pasted on the fronts of many houses along my route. They were announcing that the property was a public nuisance and that it was illegal to occupy the structure by order of the police department. Violators were subject to fines and possible imprisonment.

There are about a dozen check boxes under the notice stating the various reasons why the house cannot be occupied. The ones I looked at had the UTILITIES box checked and NO ELECTRICITY hand written next to the word. It appears that the police department is following around the utility company and condemning any house where the power is shut off.

"We're seeing a record number of shutoffs," says Mark Wolfe, head of the National Energy Assistance Directors' Association, which represents programs that subsidize energy bills. An NEADA survey this month shows 8% of four-member households earning $33,500 to $55,500 have had their power turned off for non-payment. "It's hitting people in the suburbs with two cars and two kids," Wolfe says.

In other words, people are broke and choosing between food and power bills. Your family must eat but for many power is now a luxury they can not afford.

American jobs continue their death spiral as inflation soars. Incomes levels have dropped dramatically in the past several years. The average family is trapped in the middle with no way out. According to a report from the Energy Information Administration, natural gas will cost a whopping 52% more this year than last year. This on top of 30% inflation for food items and record gas prices. The power companies know that your utility bill is fairly low on the priority list and want to guarantee their profit level...at the expense of your freedom if necessary.

Consider this, it is summertime, your family is broke so you decide to go a few months without power. You go to bed around 9 pm when it gets dark, eat prepackaged foods that require no refrigeration and cook on the back yard grill. Honestly no power needed, the family is happier, you get to know your neighbors, the children get some exercise and maybe everyone reads a few books. Your neighbors decide to adopt the same lifestyle.

This is a worst case scenario for the power companies and their profits. What does corporate America do when faced with declining incomes…they have the government guarantee their profit margin. We have seen this used masterfully in the insurance and banking industries. The power companies will approach local and state legislative bodies and convince them that not having power is a threat to the public safety. The elected officials will take a fat handout and pass a law requiring gas and electric services for habitation. The police enforce the laws and the punishments will become harsher as more people are forced to choose between food and power.

The implications of this disturb me greatly. Will not having power equate to child endangerment? Will not having power equate to a health hazard? Will not having power equate to imprisonment?

Many counties in Colorado do not consider off-grid electric systems a stable power supply. Will these homes now be considered uninhabitable because they are not supporting the power company profits? What about home owners who install pellet stoves for home heating and disconnect from the natural gas supply. Will they be subjected to intimidation and forcibly removal from their energy independent homes?

Apparently the job of the police department is to guarantee the profits of their corporate overseers and keep the public frightened and under control. Not to protect and serve the public that actually pays their salary. This is Fascist America.

Simple Life – Dry Run

The week following the Memorial Day holiday allowed me the opportunity to test some of the systems and find any glaring omissions before my actual move to the cabin later this year. Over the ten day stay I had to exist on items stored at Bear Ridge.

What follows is a very rough day to day diary of activity. This of course does not cover all activity but gives a good understanding of what a day will look like after moving or bugging out. The cabin has an XM Radio as well as internet access and most mornings I read the news over breakfast. The cabin does not have a refrigerator or real good running water. I apologize in advance for the choppy structure it was constructed from notes.

Saturday – Loaded up my greenhouse lumber, packed 52 gallons of water and 24 gallons of gas into the truck. Drove to the cabin, inspected, unlocked and aired out the building. Grabbed my rifle and walked the land looking for out of place prints, animal or human. Unloaded and stored the drinking water under the house and hid the four 6 gallon gas cans. Checked the cistern noted that it was very low on water. Re-inspected the cabin noted a leak in the gutters and problems with east deck sagging. Rigged the power system storing the charged batteries in the power box. Made sure the dogs had plenty of food and water. Unloaded and carefully stacked the lumber and supplies for the greenhouse. Boiled some water for dinner on the propane stove, Mountain House Beef Stroganoff and instant potatoes mixed together. Put a cup of black beans in water to soak overnight. Took the dogs on a walk along the ridge, cleaned up, watched the sun set, finished reading Atlas Shrugged, then went to bed. Woke up 2:30 a.m. noticed music and a strange popping noise from the other side of the ridge. Walked up to investigate, got on top of the ridge cabin and surveyed with binoculars, saw nothing would explore in morning.

Sunday - Got up fixed pancakes and coffee on the propane stove. (first time I have not burned the pancakes) Walked the dogs. Checked, changed then used the bucket in the composting toilet. Put together the solar oven placing the beans inside to cook. Locked up, drove to town and filled up truck. Went to storage unit to fetch my cheap (very) Chinese ATV and a couple of solar panels. Driving home passed a couple of guys on dirt bikes coming from somewhere behind my place, will go look for their camp later. Unloaded everything and gassed the ATV. Cleaned up and boiled water for my Ramen noodles mixed with tuna. Inventoried food supplies and checked cabinets for rodents. Walked the land noticed fresh boot prints along the ridge. Probably just someone down for Memorial Day weekend out for a walk, followed them to the edge of my land they did not stray towards the cabin, just passing through. Walked the dogs. Packed some water, the binoculars and my .22 pistol then took off exploring on the ATV. Found several camps but nothing occupied. Made some rice to mix with the beans and had dinner. Took boys on a hike. Put a cup of lima beans in water to soak overnight. Watched the sun set, showered with hot solar water went to bed. Top of feet itching very badly, probably a psoriasis outbreak.

Monday – Woke up fixed coffee and some oatmeal for breakfast. Walked the dogs. Put the beans in the solar oven to cook through the day. Installed the solar panels to get the batteries charged back up. Fried some spam and fixed some instant mashed potatoes for lunch. Fixed the gutter on back of the house. Took off on the ATV for about an hour exploring. Spent several hours on the ridge cutting brush and thinning out the sage brush. Started marking dead trees to cut up for firewood. Mixed some spam left from lunch with the lima beans had dinner. Getting ready to walk the dogs when a dozen or so white tailed dear bolted down the road in front of the cabin. Something greatly spooked them. Put one cup of red beans in water to soak. Set up the hot tub and used some of the collected rainwater. Enjoyed a good soak under the stars and went to bed

Tuesday – Woke up at 6 am there were four white tail deer about five feet from the front window. My great watch dogs were happily asleep on their window seat right at eye level with the deer. I let them sleep but will speak harshly with them about this lax security later in the day. Fixed a breakfast of pancakes and coffee. Boiled some water and shaved head with a cheap razor, very painful. Put the beans in the solar oven to cook. Walked the dogs. Changed the front sprocket on the ATV, fewer teeth equals more climbing power. The swap was necessary if I am to pull a cart loaded with firewood. This simple thirty minute project took all day. Made some elbow pasta and mixed it with powered cheese had mac and cheese for lunch. Finished up the sprocket project tested the ATV great improvement. Went to the ridge to clear more brush. Made rice and fixed red beans and rice for dinner. Took a nice hike. Put one cup of lima beans in water. Heated the hot tub and soaked under the stars. Watched a movie then went to bed.

Wednesday – Fixed breakfast of carnation milk mixed with an instant breakfast powder, it was wretched. Coffee was good. Inverter goes out, will just use 12 volt lighting backup tonight. Walked the dogs the started beans in solar oven. Started repairs on east deck. Couldn’t get the Pointer Sister’s song “she works hard for the money” out of my head and decided to go pick up a new inverter in Alamosa to remedy the problem. Had beef ramen noodles for lunch then went down to visit the neighbor. Ran to Alamosa with the dogs for new inverter, 72 miles round trip cost roughly 36 bucks. Finished the deck repairs had a couple of beers (hot) then took a nap. Fixed dinner fried span and lima beans actually very good. Took the boys on a hike. Put more black beans in water to soak. Heated the hot tub, water getting kinda skunky, and enjoyed a great thunderstorm off to the south. Actually it sprinkled slightly but nothing usable. Read for a while and went to bed.

Thursday – Got up and fixed oatmeal and coffee for breakfast. Walked the dogs, put beans in oven. Started framing on the greenhouse. Simple “A” frame design covering an area 12x24. Finished a few of the 12x4 foot section frames. Fixed simple lunch of Mountain House Beefaroni and instant mashed potatoes. Feet hurting will need prescription filled at Walmart. Set up water filter (5 gallon bucket with holes, paper towels and sand) for hot tub took off for town again. Prescription 12 dollars gas 36. Prepped and baked a loaf of bread in propane oven. Shut down the filter, water crystal clear. Took the boys on a hike. Fixed dinner, black beans and rice with fresh bread. Went for a ride on the ATV. Put pinto beans in to soak. Heated tub, soaked and went to bed.

Friday – Woke up and fixed pancakes and coffee. Walked the dogs. Put beans in solar oven to cook. Removed covers and sleeping bags from the bed and placed them over the fence to sun wash. Also put the dogs bedding in the sun to air out. Checked the cabin for any indication of mice, none found. Boiled water to wash socks and pillow cases. Used 5 gallon bucket with a special stick to wash and rinse the laundry. Hung the laundry out to dry. Made some elbow pasta and mixed it with powered cheese for a mac and cheese lunch. Started clearing brush where the greenhouse will be. Flipped the blankets and sleeping bags brought in the laundry. Built a couple more greenhouse frames. Crawled under the cabin to fully inspect the floor joist and support beans. Noticed a sag under the woodstove will need to reinforce the beams. Brought in the laundry and blankets. Washed and cleaned up. Walked the dogs over to the neighbors house to visit. Fixed soup beans and bread for dinner. Watched a movie, went for night walk along ridge. Put red beans in to soak. Went to bed.

Saturday – Got up and made oatmeal and coffee. Walked the dogs, started the beans in the oven. Took ATV to top of ridge to clear some trails. Set up a bulls-eye and did some target practice. Moved a couple of 6”x6”x8’ post to the top of the ridge just to check the pulling power. Made some elbow pasta, mixed it with tuna and poured powdered cheese on top. Good lunch. Went for a hike with the dogs, to warm for the boys. Rode back up the ridge and started cleaning out the top cabin. Removed several large nests and a ton of mouse crap. Repaired the observation deck and tightened the rungs on the ladder. Had a few beers. Cleared more sage brush for the greenhouse. Took a long ride. Fixed some rice and mixed with the red beans for dinner. Put some lima beans in to soak. Took a nap woke up about night fall. Grabbed my binoculars, drove up the ridge and camped out on the observation deck to star gaze and watch for UFO’s…didn’t see any by the way maybe next time. Went back to cabin, cleaned up and went to bed.

Sunday – Made breakfast of pancakes and coffee. Walked the dogs, put beans in the oven. Went to work on the greenhouse frames. Noticed massive chemtrails in the clear blue sky. Over the course of the day they thickened enough to noticeably lessen the energy output from my solar panels. Fixed lunch of fried spam (love the stuff) on the rest of the bread. Went on a long hike. Bummed around and played with the dogs. Started picking up and organizing lumber and packing up alittle in the house. Fixed dinner of spam and lima beans with cheese sauce. Rode over and visited the neighbor. Heated hot tub and soaked. Took walk up on ridge then went to bed.

Monday – Walked the dogs. Loaded ATV, solar panels and other stuff and took to the storage unit. Grabbed a breakfast at the diner. Packed, locked up everything and headed out.

Over the next few days I will be looking at the problems encountered and where I need to focus my attention.

Budget Survival – Cheap Water Heating

When I first decided to build at Bear Ridge the one thing that I could not do without was a hot tub. There is nothing better than sitting in steaming water under an open canopy of stars. It was something I had to have. The two problems were lack of water and a method to heat it. Capturing rain provided plenty of water but heating it was slightly more involved.

Passive Solar

When I first started making the trips down there I would carry water in blue seven gallon plastic jugs. If I needed a shower the jug would be placed in the sun all day and by evening the water would be a comfortable temperature. I would take the jug into the bathroom, drop the water pump feeder hose for the into the top and shower. Real simple…cost nothing.

The main problem with using this solar heating method was that you had to have good sun. If it was cloudy no go, and forget about taking a shower in the morning or in the winter.

This summer I plan on taking an old refrigerator, removing the door and with a glass cover using this as a water heater for showering and such. The insulated refrigerator should keep the water warm throughout the night.

Propane Water Heater

I set out to build an efficient off grid water heating system that could be used to heat the hot tub or water for showering and dishes. The heater needed to warm the water quickly and be easily transported. This is what I came up with.

I took twenty feet of 3/8 inch copper pipe (HomeDepot $40) and rolled it around an old coffee can leaving a foot sticking out at the top and bottom, this is my heating coil. I then attached eight foot of garden hose to both ends of the copper with hose clamps. The bottom inbound hose is attached with hose clamps to a 12 volt bilge pump (Walmart $10). The top outbound hose needs a flow control valve (HomeDepot $10) attached to its end.

Get a turkey fryer, everyone has an old one of these laying around in the garage (new one run about $40). A gas grill will not work. Gas grills produce around 9000 BTU and that is not nearly enough, turkey fryers can generate 120000 BTU. You also need a twenty pound bottle of propane.

Place your heating coil over the burner so the heat is directed up through the center. Stack bricks around three sides of your coil then place a paver over the top. The side with the inbound and outbound hoses should be left open. Stack the bricks as close to the coil as possible.

Fully open the flow control and drop the bilge pump and outbound hose in the water tank. My water tank is a one hundred gallon stock tank and being that I am a chunky bitch I only need about 50 gallons of water to comfortably soak. Plug the bilge pump into the 12 volt power source and get the water flowing.

Once the water is moving light the turkey fryer. The water leaving output hose 30 to 40 degrees hotter than the water sitting in the tank. You should reduce the flow as much as possible, the longer the water is in the heat the warmer it gets. The bilge pump being used moves 450 gallons per hour not a lot but it is really efficient. My hot tub can be warmed to over 110 degrees in under an hour and the entire system can be carried by hand.

Do not use this heater indoors, it will kill you.

The next time I do this I will use forty feet of 1/4 inch copper tubing.

I was going to include a picture but the thing is in the backyard under about three feet of snow and I couldn't exactly remember where I put it.

Wood Heater

The next project is a wood burning heater based on the same principle with a copper tube lining a round barrel. Trash and scrap lumber can be utilized to bring the water to a nice temperature.

Power Problem - Solution Works

The mobile power solution really works well. I am currently working off this unit pictured and am very happy with the results.

Need to run to town for pizza now will hopefully get back later.

I am really surprised at how nice this is. Better than the old system.

Power Problem - Inexpensive Solution

As you might recall from the article “Power Problem” I have been looking for an inexpensive, mobile power solution to run the lights and some small electronics at my retreat cabin on weekends.

The plan was to fully upgrade and replace the existing power system in March of this year. Unfortunately the cabin was broken into and thieves made off with most of the existing power system. Since the break in have decided not to keep anything of value at the cabin and to put off the upgrade until I am living at the site in June. This leaves the problem of no power until then so a small mobile power system is needed to fill the gap.

An additional requirement was that I not purchase anything now that I could not use later. I have decided to scrap this one and use the mobile power system in the camper after upgrading the cabin.

I thank everyone for their input on this and here is what I have come up with. This should work for anyone.

Here is what you are going to need. Everything is available at Wal-Mart.

2 Deep Cycle Marine Batteries (Group 27) $60 apiece
1 Black and Decker 400 Watt Inverter $30
1 Cheap Battery Charger $30
2 Battery Cables $10
2 100 Foot Extension Cords $20 apiece

Take the two 115 amp hour batteries and connect them in parallel with the battery cables. (Positive to Positive/Negative to Negative) This creates one 12 volt 230 amp hour battery. You should never discharge a battery below 80 percent so we actually have around 46 amps in our power pool. Connect the 400 watt inverter using the supplied clamps and the systems is ready to go. I like this small invert because the cooling fan only comes on when the system is hot thus conserving power.

Run the extension cord to the house and plug into a power strip mounted near the ceiling in the center of the room. Hang your clamp on work lamps with compact fluorescent (CF) bulbs around the house with the cords plugging into the power strip.

This basic system will comfortably power five 23 watt CF bulbs. So here is the high end of the power draw:

115 watt total for five 23 watt CF bulbs
10 watt overhead for the inverter
125 total watts divided by 120 volts
1 amp roughly per hour of use

Actually it is slightly more than 1 amp but that’s ok. So if we were to run all 5 bulbs for 12 hours through the night it would only be 12 amps pulled from our 46 amp pool of available power. In reality you will only run one or two lights for no more than six hours nightly so our two batteries should easily deliver four night worth of light without charging. There should be plenty in reserve for the laptop.

When you get home just plug in your charger overnight and top off the batteries. To be really elegant mount a couple of cheap solar panels on the top of your camper and keep the batteries fully charged all the time.

I will be using the system this weekend and will let you know how it goes on Monday.

Power Problem

Here's the problem.

When the cabin was broken into most of the power system was stolen. Now granted it was going to be replaced next month anyway but without the old power system the place will sit dark. I have decided not to install the new system till June when I move down there full time but that leaves several months where a temporary power source will be needed. I do not want to invest in something that will not be usable in June.

So here is what I am thinking.

I am going to purchase eight 115 amp hour deep cycle batteries. I will build two battery boxes that can be removed and stored here at the house. The batteries will be charged at home and taken down to the cabin on weekends. I am also getting a 2500 watt modified sine wave phase corrected inverter. At the cabin an extension cord will be ran from the truck to power lights, laptop and stuff, everything stays in the truck. When I get back here I just plug in the charger and top off the units.

This should give me plenty of power to comfortably stay down there without the theft risk involved with leaving the equipment in an unattended cabin. What do you think? Is there an easier way?

Ideal Survival Retreat

Those destined to survive have an instinctive drive to develop skills and cultivate self reliance techniques as tools that will allow them to stand independently, completely self sufficient, while less prepared persons stand in soup lines waiting for their handout when crisis strikes.

I wish I could say this drive influenced the building decisions made while constructing my cabin. Unfortunately it was built as a weekend get away and not as a survival bunker. Although the itching for isolation and desire to remove myself from gross consumerism played heavily into its design it was not till recently that its use as a true survival retreat crystallized. Over the past several years I have become increasingly aware of the threats being mounted against our liberties by the government and corporate elite. The reason behind this gradual stripping of our rights is arguable, but as a fact it is happening.

So, if I had to design from scratch what would I do differently.

The most important thing to consider is passive solar heating. If your retreat can be heated without purchasing any carbon based fuel you are well on the way to energy independence. Everything is designed around this one invaluable resource.

The cabin would be roughly a forty foot by twenty foot box oriented so one of the long sides faces due south. The other three walls would be ten foot high six inch concrete with one entry door placed where every convenient. The floor would be a six inch thermal mass slab and the roof either metal or for maximum concealment concrete with local dirt and vegetation planted on top. The roof would be slanted to the north dropping two foot across the twenty foot span.

For maximum solar gain the south side needs to be a wall of windows twelve foot high running the length of the house. The bottom and top two foot need to be operable windows that open. During the summer this design creates a convection that naturally cools the interior space while exchanging stale air with fresh. During the winter it delivers maximum solar gain to the thermal mass floor.

Large rollup metal security doors are needed to deploy over the glass wall when away or during a threat situation. This completely secures the retreat from outside threats. Unfortunately it also turns your cozy cabin it a sweet box quickly cooking the inhabitants. To remedy this I would recommend flipping the metal door so they roll up instead of down. This gives the option of securing all the glass except the top two foot where the windows open. It also allows natural light to flood the interior without sacrificing security.

If the rolling doors are installed on the outside of the glass the windows are secure against breakage. But consider installation inside the glass, the house is still protected and a trombe convection heating system is created in the few inches between the metal door and the windows. When the security doors are closed you loose the passive solar gain from the sun, this can be offset by placing the doors inside the windows.

There are no other windows in the structure.

The north wall will have two foot deep cabinets running the length of the house to hold survival supplies and food stuffs. A small bathroom, kitchen, bedroom and utility room need to be arranged in the structure to maximize energy efficiently while keep a large common area open for living space.

The cabin would be completely off grid solar with backup wind power. A small wood stove will augment the natural heating during extended overcast periods.

Next week I will cost out the structure and discuss in more detail the power and water systems.

My Survival Cabin - Powering a Cabin

No Power

There was no gird power available on the 5 acre parcel chosen for the cabin. The nearest utility power lines were a distant six miles. Running grid power to the cabin was cost prohibitive and thus not possible. It did not make sense to pay more for the power access than for the land itself. Alternative power sources were going to be necessary. At first alternative power appeared to be equally costly but after considerable research and some big reality checks on usage it became a manageable project that would not bankrupt me.

The Small Cabin at Bear Ridge was illuminated in the summer of 2003 with kerosene lanterns. Kerosene lanterns make reading easy and the light is nice and warm. A Dietz 75 hour kerosene lantern gives off good light and do not need filling that often. I have two of these kerosene lanterns at the cabin and one at my house and would highly recommend this product. I still use them on evenings when I am looking for that bright warm candle quality light kerosene lanterns produce. The Dietz Lanterns will burn lamp oil, kerosene or citronella oil when the bugs are a problem.

When construction was started on the Big Cabin at Bear Ridge, I reevaluated the lighting and general power needs. In addition to lights, I wanted to power an efficient laptop, charge the cell phone and listen to Sirius satellite radio. Luckily, the neighbor has SkyBlue satellite internet access and they let me jump on their wireless when needed. A directional wireless antenna is necessary on my end but the signal strength is very adequate.

Generator Power

In the beginning there only needed to be enough power for the weekends. Two deep cycle 75 amp hour batteries ($45 apiece) supplied plenty of power at that point. The batteries were transported back to Denver and charged in the garage during the week. A 3500 watt generator ($250) was added and the batteries were charged every few weeks. The addition of the generator allowed the for the use of 120 volt high amperage appliances such as vacuum cleaner, electric chain saw, table saw and air compressor.

The air compressor was a life saver. Cabin construction goes ten times faster with air framing nail guns and air roofing nail guns. Nail guns are a must have, I can not imagine construction without them. You can purchase a gas powered air compressor but I recommend a 20 galleon 120 volt air compressor ($160). For the cost of a gas powered air compressor, you can purchase a generator and electric air compressor. You need the generator anyway.

Solar Power

It was determined that three 45 watt solar panels ($200 apiece) with a 30 amp charge controller ($100) would be sufficient for my weekend cabin. 135 watts delivers a little over 7 amps per hour of charging time. If you count on six good hours of charging per day, the three solar panels can put 42 amps away daily. This was plenty to charge the four 115 amp hour deep cycle 12 volt batteries ($60 apiece). Each battery furnishes 115 amp hours for 460 amp hours in the pool to draw from.

To determine how many amp hours you will need take the watts of the device and divide by 12. A 60 watt bulb uses five amps per hour. If you took that 60 watt bulb and left it on for six hours in the evening, it would draw 30 amps of power from your pool. The next day when the sun was out you would need to replace those 30 amps with the solar panels. You should not be using 60 watt incandescent bulbs but you get the idea. Here is a rough break down in amp of what the cabin currently draws. Everything at the cabin runs on 12 volt DC.

Three 20 watt halogen lights kitchen	5 amps	3 hrs	15 amps daily
Two 5 watt florescent lights living room	1 amps	4 hrs	4 amps daily
One 1 watt LED reading light bedroom	.2 amps	5 hrs	1 amps daily
Sirius Radio	1.5 amps	6 hrs	9 amps daily
Cooling Fan	2 amps	6 hrs	12 amps daily
Water pump	6 amps	1/2 hrs	3 amps daily
Laptop	6 amps	3 hrs	18 amps daily
Total daily amps			62 amps daily

Notice that the total amps used per day is greater than the total amps being put back into the system with the solar panels. This is fine if you are only visiting on weekends and the batteries could be replenished during the week. It is not comfortably sufficient for full time living.

The total amps could be reduced greatly if the fan was not used and the kitchen lights were replaced with LED spotlights. The laptop is usually fully charged for the weekend and most of the time it is not even used. Notice that the great power hungry conveniences are not present. This design will not operate a washing machine/dryer, refrigerator, microwave, electric coffee maker, and etcetera. This is a relatively inexpensive solar power system that you can install for under $1500. Backup power is provided by the generator which only needs to be used when there have been several days of heavily overcast skies. You must have a backup power system either a gas generator or a small wind power generator.

Wind Power

I could live year round at Bear Ridge if the above energy saving items were implemented and if a few additional solar panels were added. A small wind generator would also really help. There is a constant breeze at Bear Ridge and an efficient wind generator would run around the clock and really help during the winter months when daylight is short. If the money is right I will be purchasing a modest wind generator ($600). Your basic wind generator delivers up to 400 watts or 27 amps in ideal conditions.

Big Upgrade

Sorry but I will need to do the rest tomorrow night.

Very Smart Neighbor

I was visiting with my neighbor across the alley earlier today. He is about fifty, a construction worker who lived in this same house for about twenty five years, mortgage free for the past five.

This past summer he installed a 2000 watt grid attached solar power system. He literally spins the meter backwards getting a check every month from the power company...although he didn't share the amount any time they pay you it is good. In his shop he has eight 12 volt Trojan deep cycle batteries kept fully charged, in case the power goes out at night. The power system was in large part funded by a large tax credit and the rest covered by the power company checks.

He took out a small home equity loan last year and installed large south facing windows on the second floor of his house and also installed a huge sun room along the south side first floor. Plus he re-insulated the entire house...it is an old two story average city home. Being a construction worker he was only out the cost of material.

The roof of the sun room is a large solar water heating system that will be used during the summer to preheat water stored in a large insulated tank in the basement. During the winter he heats the water with an ultra efficient wood burning furnace installed in place of the old natural gas forced air system. It has a water heating coil that preheats the water during the winter. If the water temperature is not quite hot enough he has a small electric on demand water heater that gives it a little boosts.

He drives this old flat bed construction truck which pulls a large trailer. Lately he has been thinning out overgrowth around the high dollar homes in the foothills. There have been some large forest fires in the past few years and he is capitalizing on that fear; getting paid for thinning the trees and gathering free firewood in the same act.

He even converted his fiberglass hot tub to use a wood burning convection heater.

My neighbor said he wanted to retire early and not needing to worry about utilities just made sense to him. I was very impressed to say the least. This summer he is going to try and get a permit to install a cistern to keep his garden watered, but doesn't think the city will give it to him. I wish him luck.

My Survival Cabin - Heating a Cabin

No Heat

During the summer of 2003 heating didn’t seem that important. Quickly I realized that July highs of 100 degrees can easily plummet to the mid 40’s in the dead of the night. At the time I was staying in the Small Cabin at Bear Ridge. The 8’x 10’ Cub House, as it is now called, has no insulation or windows for that matter. It sits on top of the ridge and the powerful valley winds turned the comfortable daytime structure into an icebox when the sun went down.

Propane Heat

The first heater purchased was a small propane heater. This unit screwed onto the top of a 1 pound propane bottle and was completely useless. Not only did it fail to heat it also would freeze up after about an hour of use. Needless to say, I did not spend much time at Bear Ridge that first winter. Since then I have purchased a larger unit that can keep the cabin and the dogs fairly comfortable during the day if I have to be gone. This 28000 BTU propane unit is easily started, very efficient and warms quickly.

The downside is that you have to have propane for the unit, and it goes through 20 pound tanks like candy. Since I am not real comfortable with propane availability in the near future I am resisting installing a larger 250 pound tank. Plus I don't really like the idea of needing an outside company to fill the bigger tanks.

Kerosene Heat

Spring of 2004 brought the completion of stage one of the Big Cabin at Bear Ridge. This 120 square foot first addition was screened in on the front side. During the summer two fleece blankets where hung over the openings at night and a 23,000 BTU portable kerosene convection heater, was used for warmth. It was warm, comfortable and the open screen windows kept the mild kerosene smell under control. I highly recommend this heater, it has saved me on many cold nights.

Kerosene costs about $3+ a gallon and during a cold 24 hour period you will easily burn up to five gallons. In addition only certain suppliers will carry this product so if you run out it can be difficult to restock unless you have a 100 gallon or better tank. The larger tanks are nice but you run into the same problems seen with propane resupply. Remember to stock up on wicks.

I also purchased a small 10000 BTU reflective kerosene heater. This unit just smokes and really doesn’t add enough heat to justify the burning eyes and throat. Don't get one.

Wood Heat

April 2005 the second addition was completed bringing the total square footage to 280. The screened openings were replaced with a large double paned window and set of French doors. A 100000 BTU wood burning stove was installed. If you build a cabin you must have a wood stove. They are relaxing and produce a very nice quality of heat. Additionally you can cook and heat water on them. In June the square footage was increased again to 408 with the completion of the third addition.

Wood is readily available and if you have a cabin it should be your primary heat source. The only downside is that you have to be there to feed the fire. Pellet and cob stoves can remedy this but those feed stocks must be purchased from a supplier who may not be available in a power down situation.

Remember wet or green wood does not burn well or produce good heat. So even if you plan on cutting your own wood when you get to your cabin you will need a good supply of dry stuff to burn with it. If you have a lumber mill close buy the long bark strips they cut from the trees are usually cheap and easy to handle. Just pull in from the end of your truck and cut to length.

Insulation

The cabin was not insulated until November 2005. Insulation is the single most important, not to mention one of the cheapest, things you can install to help with heating. The temperature was hovering around zero and with a roaring fire and the kerosene heater running at full it was only 45 degrees inside. After placing a layer of R19 insulation in just the ceiling the temperature climbed to a toasty 80 degrees.

The latest expansion was completed in January 2007. It added roughly 200 square feet floor space and approximately 120 square feet of double paned insulated glass on the north side overlooking the mountains. The cabin is now one fat “T” shaped room a little over 600 square feet in size. Fitted 5’x 6’ fleece blankets are placed in the four large windows on the north side at night. The walls were also insulated. The blankets really help.

Don't forget the floor. Unless you are slab building, a lot of cold air will come into your house from the floor. Since my place is built on a hill side the back of the cabin is at ground level but the front is elevated by about 4 foot. Cold winter air blows up underneath and you are quickly frozen out. Put at least thick carpet on the floor but I would recommend 1/2 inch 4 x 8 foot Styrofoam panels with a layer of tongue and grove plywood over them, cover that with carpet. This really makes a big difference.

Passive Solar Heat

The winter of 2006-2007 brought an unusually large about of snow. There were times in January where the roads were impassable and many residents, including me, were snowed in. The cabin stayed warm during this period but an enormous amount of wood and kerosene were required. Even though there were several feet of snow and the air was very cold the temperature outside on the south facing wall of the cabin was comfortable.

The south side only had one small window. In February 2007 four large floor to ceiling windows were installed on the south wall. They are actually old glass doors and did not cost anything. The south side of the cabin now had roughly 112 square feet of glass. For each square foot of south facing glass you can generate approximately 200 BTU of heat. So during the day the gain is about 22400 BTU of heating for free. During the night these windows are covered with a thick fleece blanket.

One day in late February 2007 it was 3 degree Fahrenheit outside. A digital thermometer was placed on the floor at about 10 a.m. Within a few minutes in the sun it was reading 82 degrees. This is actually warmer than heating with kerosene and you are not burning $5 worth of fuel every day.

Making use of passive solar heating is critical if you don't want to spend a fortune on kerosene and wood. Not only are you getting the solar warming but the sunlight flooding into the space is a great mood enhancing benefit and dogs love it. Over the 2007 summer a large sun room was installed on the south facing side of the cabin and part of the existing south wall will be used to install a “Trombe” solar heating system.

Diesel Heat

I plan on purchasing a small 45000 BTU diesel convection heater this summer. Diesel is just as expensive as kerosene but you can get it at any gas station. This is good because you are not dependent on someone delivering the fuel. Eventually I will be able to make my own biodiesel if thing go as planned. I will let you know how that goes.

Best Heat

I think the best way to heat a house would be passive solar warming with glass southern exposure heating a thermal mass slab that the cabin sits on. Back this up with a nice wood stove.