ideas

So- i am grateful for learning so much… structural stuff systems stuff…but i really want to do fun crafty stuff like make my own built-in bookcases already!! and stuff like this that turns a house into a home…

good lookin’ youtube… thanks 463 ideas

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Storm water management ideas…

raised garden beds… water storage… water filtration… coming out the back door to see..

opening the basement door

currently i see this…

how nice! a salad bed that utilizes rainwater.

next to the door some siding is now in deisrepair…

we could rip it out and add glass for greenhouse on our backstairs as well as use and store water from this active downspout as well.

also saw this cool idea for using garden beds AS a natural filtration system for water…

click the image for more info on this guy’s project…

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So a huge reason that earthships are awesome (besides being made of hyper-local, natural, or “waste” materials) is that they are super-insulated keeping a pretty constant ambient temperature… what materials are relatively inexpensive, non-toxic, compatible with codes, eco-friendly, and easily available that i could use to insulate?

drumroll…

i am leaning towards blown-in cellulose… here’s why… a neighbor did it. (isn’t that funny how something like that is usually a determining factor) … anyway, he says that it was simple enough that he and a friend rented the equipment from a hardware store, and completed their house in 3 days, for under $500 (rental included), and he would show me how.

i also looked it up. its often made from recycled newspaper, treated with borate as   a flame retardant (a naturally occurring, non-toxic, non-carcinogenic mineral that is pretty abundant).

Also thinking about  a soy-based closed-cell foam for super tight space around windows, joists, etc. Still must do much more research to find the right one.

Appreciate this r-value insulation table that i found online. i would really like to go with the suggested values for the coldest place with the most expensive heat source (ie. the very bottom row) and then try to double it, or get as close as possible with insulating abundantly, and then air-sealing the cavity with calking, and giving special attention to windows and doors, as well as all the holes in the house, surrounding pipes, outlets etc.

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Awesome visit to an Earthship in New York state.  Click on any circle to see inside…

front

front of house showing burm built with earth-compacted tires to form the back of the earthship

looking out of the front of the greenhouse. Over 35000 bottles and cans were used within the walls of this home

re-used marble tile for flooring

rainwater filtration system, that re-filters water from sinks and showers for greenhouse watering

inside a bathroom created with scrap tile, re-used cabinet, and bottle+concrete walls

built-in plant holders in greenhouse wall

water filtration from greenhouse drain to be used once again for the toilets

greenhouse runs along entire house in the front (south-facing window) growing all types of tropical plants

vermicompost in greenhouse

nursery with window-doors facing greenhouse

the only heat source (besides the passive solar provided by the angle and position of outer greenhouse window wall) yet to be completely covered with rocks ontop of the pop can+cement layer

root cellar with very specific air vent to keep a constant temp of 55

compost pile and straw bales keeping greenhouse warm

compost pile and chicken coop

top of Earthship showing air vents and solar panel mechanisms

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Awesome visit to straw bale studios in Southeast Michigan… hmmm…. intriguing…. looking forward to going back and learning more about natural building techniques and materials…could cobb walls + straw bales be used for insulating in the city?

cobb wall at Straw Bale Studios in Oxford MI

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Cool solar roofing…

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Wow… Walipini… love this idea… imagine the awesomeness if paired with short hugelkultur beds, so there is a regenerative property from the decomposition of trees, and added warmth, and a cleansing of soil and air with the inevitable mycelium growth.

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What about heat?!?!

pellet stoves offer some unique benefits… i wonder if they are coupled with really good insulation and a couple other heating elements, this would be a viable option for an environment such as a Michigan winter.

so now i am thinking that several heating elements working in tandem may be the ticket…