"Let's put a door where that window is"

Matt needs a tractor size door into his workshop.

Before (outside)

Before (inside)

There's a gaping hole in the wall

After (inside)

After (outside)

Woodstove Upgrade

M-The old Fisher Baby Bear was a great stove, but it wasn't quite big enough for this house. I picked up this Vermont Castings Resolute off of craigslist a while back, but just got around to installing it. It puts out a good bit more heat and has no trouble getting the house up to 75 in the coldest of weather. The damper and thermostat on it are a little fiddly, but overall it is a good stove. I cleaned the chimney after buring a lot of yellow pine and there was very little creosote.

The New Chicken Coop

First it was the foxes, so we got electroplastic netting, then it was the hawks, so we built "THE GEODESIC CHICKEN DOME" (inspired by Buckminster Fuller, of course). Introducing the (somewhat) portable chicken containment and protection system. The outer mesh is charged with 8,000 volts of predator (and feed stealing goats) repellent. We have not lost a chicken since. Sure beats coming out to a half eaten chicken everyday! Soon after finishing it we sold the flock down to 6 birds which has worked out great. Just enough eggs for us and a few friends and family.

Tractor Mod

Winter seemed long this years, so yet another tractor project was spawned. The idea was to stretch the tractor and add a bed for hauling things around the homestead. Things were going well until a chain broke, and unfortunately with this design, if a chain breaks, you lose your breaks! Not too cool, thankfully I was still testing, aware of this fault and no damage was done. Oh well, another project shelved until next winter...

Putting Rock Veneer on Hearth

This was loads of work involving about 1500lbs of rock and 500lbs of mortar. Not to mention that finding a rock for each space required lifting many rocks to find the right fit. We're thrilled with the result... just hope the foundation is up for it.

Woodstove Install- efficient cozy inexpensive heat.

"Wood warms you twice. Once when you cut it and once when you burn it."

The wood stove is in - just in time for the cold weather.

The hearth begins

The pipe install (inside)

The pipe install (outside)

Ready for fire

The pipe kits came from lowes. The stove is a Fisher Baby Bear. It's air tight and circa 1975 (craig's list is an amazing thing). The entire project cost somewhere in the neighborhood of $400. That is roughly equivalent to a quarter of a tank of propane.

Minimizing the Heat of Summer Sun

Shade

Matthew built these great overhangs for our south-facing windows. They do a great job of shading the windows in summer and controlling the heat, especially upstairs. Also, they shouldn't block much of the winter sun that comes in at a lower angle and is beneficial at that time of year.

Chicken Coup

The New Chicken Coop is Complete
06/23/08

I am really proud of our new chicken coop. We finished it up this weekend. Now the chickens are outside where they belong and have plenty of space and fresh air.

Plenty of roosting sites

Gang-plank door gives free access to gather bugs during the day and security at night

The coop is built from 2x2's that we ripped on the table saw from 2x24's that were milled in Waxhaw from the dead yellow pine that Matthew cut down in our yard in Charlotte last winter.

At the mill

Fencing

What is a farm without a fence?

We have assembled materials and are beginning to put up the locust corner posts for the fence that will surround our four acres of pasture. We have decided on high tensile electric to keep our livestock in, and just as importantly, to keep predators out. It is lots of work but should last for years.

Walt and Wendy graciously allowed us to cut locust on their property in Fairview. Walt and Wendy, along with their son Andy, market delicious jams and jellies that they make from berries grown on their farm, Imladris. They have really inspired us in our persuit of a sustainable life style. Visit their web page at:
http://www.imladrisfarm.com/

Thanks guys!

The posts are burried over three feet deep and tamped firm. One corner is done!

Thanks Dad!

The Sheep Are Here

Catadin Sheep Shed - No Sheering Necessary

We purchased 4 grade Katahdin sheep from Nick Nicholas in Fairview NC. Nick has almost a hundred sheep and markets lamb and eggs at the Asheville Tailgate market among others. I wish I had pictures of the sheep dogs in action but it was rainy and getting dark so you will have to take my word that they were beautiful, intelligent and very well trained.


The sheep are biding their time in the pallet corral until we get the pasture fenced. The corral will be transformed into a pig pen later in the spring and a vegetable garden next year so they are providing some priceless fertilizer also.



We obtained the pallets from an obliging apartment complex under renovation. It was not a dark-of-night operation. There were hundreds and the manager of the complex had placed an add on Craigslist asking for someone to take them away and put them to use.

Free materials kept out of the landfill? Yes, please!