You can improve the heating performance of your woodstove by doing these simple things :
1. Keep the oven damper closed. The stove's surface will heat up and radiate the heat out into the room.
2. Place a large screen of crinkled up aluminum foil behind the stove to reflect the heat out in all directions.
3. Place a long shallow metal container that is filled with sand under the stove. This will absorb heat and add extra warmth into the room.
4. A small fan installed behind the stove will cause awesome circulation of heat. I have the fan that sits on top of the woodstove.
5. Leave the stove door open to send out more heat.
These easy tips should help you keep warm!!
Saturday 14 December 2013
Sunday 1 December 2013
Leaf Compost Improves Your Soil
When my kids, did every autumn was to help rake up huge piles of leaves, and then run and jump in them. The younger ones threw themselves into the piles, while the older ones turned leaf-pile jumping into a broad-jump type event. It was good, dirty fun that lasted until the leaves lost their loft and were hauled off to the compost pile.
We didn't know it at the time, but all our jumping helped prepare the leaves for composting. When whole leaves are broken into smaller pieces, they leach out their tannins more readily than whole leaves, which transforms them into a suitable lunch for varying strains of fungi. These days I use a push mower to coarsely shred my leaves, which I then use as winter mulch in the vegetable garden.
Indeed, the mixture of chopped leaves and grass clippings I can collect with my mower's bagging attachment is the best mulch I have found for covering newly planted plants.
In the more wooded parts of my yard it is more practical to rake whole leaves into a bin for later use in compost or as mulch, and sometimes friends offer me plump bags of whole leaves. Setting up a temporary holding bin for composting leaves using stakes and plastic fencing takes about ten minutes, and some kind of enclosure is required to keep the leaves from blowing about.
At first I make no attempt to moisten my gathered leaves, because dry leaves break into pieces more readily than wet ones. Thin leaves like those from dogwoods or poplars crumble like potato chips when they are dry, and thicker oak leaves crack into pieces. I stomp through the piles each time I add more leaves to crush them up a bit, and then wait for winter rains to gradually wet down the leaves.
Collect fallen leaves for leaf mould
I am often asked about speeding up the leaf composting process by adding either fertilizer, as a nitrogen source, or a microbial compost starter. Neither are good ideas. Research on the biology of leaf decomposition has shown that the specific strains of fungi needed to start the rotting process are on the leaves before they fall from the trees. These fungi need only moisture and time to do their work, and might be set back by the introduction of alien microorganisms or chemical changes in their environment. Once you hoard a quantity of leaves and have them contained, you can let them sit there until you find a good use for them.
By spring my collected leaves have begun to soften, but they are still in clumps that smell like rotting leaves. I often snake a soaker hose around the pile to provide moisture, but then proceed to use the half-rotted leaves as vegetable garden mulch as the need arises. Leaf mulch keeps the soil cool while blocking light to weeds, and several vegetables including bulb onions, pumpkins and potatoes have shown higher yields when their root zones are covered with a thick blanket of leaf mulch. Young fruit trees respond well to leaf mulch, too, by showing faster growth and better use of soil nutrients.
Using fallen leaves as mulch for garlic plants
If I were more patience I might make a batch of true leaf mould, which takes two years in my climate. An ideal substitute for peat moss, leaf mould does a great job of retaining moisture and suppressing diseases in potting soil mixes, and it dramatically lightens up soil when dug into a garden bed. I used to have lots of it, thanks to neighbors who dumped their leaves in the woods every fall and forgot about them -- after letting the neighborhood kids jump in the piles first.
We didn't know it at the time, but all our jumping helped prepare the leaves for composting. When whole leaves are broken into smaller pieces, they leach out their tannins more readily than whole leaves, which transforms them into a suitable lunch for varying strains of fungi. These days I use a push mower to coarsely shred my leaves, which I then use as winter mulch in the vegetable garden.
Indeed, the mixture of chopped leaves and grass clippings I can collect with my mower's bagging attachment is the best mulch I have found for covering newly planted plants.
In the more wooded parts of my yard it is more practical to rake whole leaves into a bin for later use in compost or as mulch, and sometimes friends offer me plump bags of whole leaves. Setting up a temporary holding bin for composting leaves using stakes and plastic fencing takes about ten minutes, and some kind of enclosure is required to keep the leaves from blowing about.
At first I make no attempt to moisten my gathered leaves, because dry leaves break into pieces more readily than wet ones. Thin leaves like those from dogwoods or poplars crumble like potato chips when they are dry, and thicker oak leaves crack into pieces. I stomp through the piles each time I add more leaves to crush them up a bit, and then wait for winter rains to gradually wet down the leaves.
Collect fallen leaves for leaf mould
I am often asked about speeding up the leaf composting process by adding either fertilizer, as a nitrogen source, or a microbial compost starter. Neither are good ideas. Research on the biology of leaf decomposition has shown that the specific strains of fungi needed to start the rotting process are on the leaves before they fall from the trees. These fungi need only moisture and time to do their work, and might be set back by the introduction of alien microorganisms or chemical changes in their environment. Once you hoard a quantity of leaves and have them contained, you can let them sit there until you find a good use for them.
By spring my collected leaves have begun to soften, but they are still in clumps that smell like rotting leaves. I often snake a soaker hose around the pile to provide moisture, but then proceed to use the half-rotted leaves as vegetable garden mulch as the need arises. Leaf mulch keeps the soil cool while blocking light to weeds, and several vegetables including bulb onions, pumpkins and potatoes have shown higher yields when their root zones are covered with a thick blanket of leaf mulch. Young fruit trees respond well to leaf mulch, too, by showing faster growth and better use of soil nutrients.
Using fallen leaves as mulch for garlic plants
If I were more patience I might make a batch of true leaf mould, which takes two years in my climate. An ideal substitute for peat moss, leaf mould does a great job of retaining moisture and suppressing diseases in potting soil mixes, and it dramatically lightens up soil when dug into a garden bed. I used to have lots of it, thanks to neighbors who dumped their leaves in the woods every fall and forgot about them -- after letting the neighborhood kids jump in the piles first.
Saturday 30 November 2013
Hot Water From Any Heat Source
Make a heating coil: 1/2" copper or stainless steel tubing wound into an open
spiral of approximately 3 turns with an over all diameter of about 12" with
several ft of straight pipe on each end.
Use car 1/2" heater hoses and connect one end to the bottom of a thermally
insulated hot water holding tank. Could use an old gas house water heater. The
other end of the heating coil is connected using the 1/2" heater hose near the
top of the holding tank (to be under water). The bottom of the tank needs to be
placed higher than the heating coil so that water is always forced into the coil
as it boils.
Place the heating coil under or near any fire or hot item. If you cook with
electricity this coil could be permanently attached to the back side of the
bottom and side reflecting plates. If you build a fire this could be placed in
the bottom of the fire or under it.
The point is, to capture as much of the waist energy escaping to the bottom and
sides of any cooking operation as you can.
With a small portable container this process can be used to provide hot water
when camping-traveling between settlements.
Note: Bigger and smaller tubing can be used as appropriate. For example the gas
tank out of a car and some of the steel and rubber gasoline lines could be used
in a pinch to produce a small version. Warning: Make sure all the gasoline has
dried out before using these items near open flames.
Another way: If you have a wood or oil burning space heater wrap your tubing
around a hot vent pipe to capture the heat that would normally escape the room.
spiral of approximately 3 turns with an over all diameter of about 12" with
several ft of straight pipe on each end.
Use car 1/2" heater hoses and connect one end to the bottom of a thermally
insulated hot water holding tank. Could use an old gas house water heater. The
other end of the heating coil is connected using the 1/2" heater hose near the
top of the holding tank (to be under water). The bottom of the tank needs to be
placed higher than the heating coil so that water is always forced into the coil
as it boils.
Place the heating coil under or near any fire or hot item. If you cook with
electricity this coil could be permanently attached to the back side of the
bottom and side reflecting plates. If you build a fire this could be placed in
the bottom of the fire or under it.
The point is, to capture as much of the waist energy escaping to the bottom and
sides of any cooking operation as you can.
With a small portable container this process can be used to provide hot water
when camping-traveling between settlements.
Note: Bigger and smaller tubing can be used as appropriate. For example the gas
tank out of a car and some of the steel and rubber gasoline lines could be used
in a pinch to produce a small version. Warning: Make sure all the gasoline has
dried out before using these items near open flames.
Another way: If you have a wood or oil burning space heater wrap your tubing
around a hot vent pipe to capture the heat that would normally escape the room.
Sunday 9 June 2013
#2: Mineral Oil Method
This method can keep eggs for up to 6 months, but storage time varies depending on the temperature they are stored in. Basements or root cellars work well for this method for storage—just remember; the cooler, the better.
***Tips***
For this method, some folks preserve store-bought eggs, and others Farm-Fresh eggs. Personally, I use the Farm-Fresh because they retain their “bloom” to further protect the eggs. Eggs stored in temperatures of 68 degrees or cooler will store for 6 months, and sometimes longer.
What You’ll Need:
Surgical/Food Handler’s gloves
Mineral oil
Eggs
Egg Cartoons
Instructions
Inspect eggs and toss any that have cracks or chips.
If you’re using Farm-Fresh eggs, gently wipe away any residue on eggs with a dry, soft cloth.
Wearing gloves, pour a small amount of mineral oil on gloved hands and hand-coat each egg with mineral oil, making sure to coat the entire egg.
Place mineral oil-coated egg in the cartoon and store in as cool a location as possible.
Note: Eggs must be turned every month, from pointed end down to pointed end up to avoid spoilage.
How To Test Eggs For Spoilage
Anytime you are preserving eggs for any length of time, it is imperative to test them before using. To do this, I suggest a 2-step method:
First put the egg in a bowl of cold or room temperature water. If the egg remains at the bottom, it is safe to eat. Should it float near the middle of the water, but does not rise to the top of the bowl, it is stale, but may not be spoiled. This occurs when the egg develops an air pocket, which makes the egg more buoyant. If it floats to the top, toss it!
For eggs that passed the water bowl test, next crack the egg into a bowl before adding it to a recipe. Let your sense of smell make the decision. If you detect the smell of sulfur, toss it.
NOTE: Eggs stored for months will have runnier whites, but can still be used in baked goods and their taste is no different than just-bought eggs.
***Tips***
For this method, some folks preserve store-bought eggs, and others Farm-Fresh eggs. Personally, I use the Farm-Fresh because they retain their “bloom” to further protect the eggs. Eggs stored in temperatures of 68 degrees or cooler will store for 6 months, and sometimes longer.
What You’ll Need:
Surgical/Food Handler’s gloves
Mineral oil
Eggs
Egg Cartoons
Instructions
Inspect eggs and toss any that have cracks or chips.
If you’re using Farm-Fresh eggs, gently wipe away any residue on eggs with a dry, soft cloth.
Wearing gloves, pour a small amount of mineral oil on gloved hands and hand-coat each egg with mineral oil, making sure to coat the entire egg.
Place mineral oil-coated egg in the cartoon and store in as cool a location as possible.
Note: Eggs must be turned every month, from pointed end down to pointed end up to avoid spoilage.
How To Test Eggs For Spoilage
Anytime you are preserving eggs for any length of time, it is imperative to test them before using. To do this, I suggest a 2-step method:
First put the egg in a bowl of cold or room temperature water. If the egg remains at the bottom, it is safe to eat. Should it float near the middle of the water, but does not rise to the top of the bowl, it is stale, but may not be spoiled. This occurs when the egg develops an air pocket, which makes the egg more buoyant. If it floats to the top, toss it!
For eggs that passed the water bowl test, next crack the egg into a bowl before adding it to a recipe. Let your sense of smell make the decision. If you detect the smell of sulfur, toss it.
NOTE: Eggs stored for months will have runnier whites, but can still be used in baked goods and their taste is no different than just-bought eggs.
Saturday 8 June 2013
Water Glass Method
Eggs can be preserved from 6 to 9 months with the water glass method. Water Glass can sometimes be purchased by special order at big box stores or pharmacy’s, or it can be ordered online at Lehman’s.
***Tips***
Use ONLY Farm-fresh, un-washed eggs for this method. Unwashed eggs retain what is called the “bloom,” which is a protective coating deposited by the hen to protect the egg from outside pollutants. Preserve fresh eggs with the water glass method within 24 hours of purchase for best results.
What You’ll Need
1. A large, ½ gallon (or larger) container or with a lid. The size you choose depends upon how many eggs you plan to preserve, or if you want to have several containers. Half-gallon containers will store up to 15 eggs, one gallon containers, around 30 eggs.
2. Unwashed, Farm-Fresh Eggs
3. Water Glass solution made from one-part water glass to 10 parts boiled water (the boiled water MUST be cooled to room temperature).
Instructions
Inspect the eggs for cracks or chips and toss the defective ones—one spoiled egg WILL ruin the whole batch! Wipe any unsightly residue from the egg with a dry, soft cloth.
Boil enough water to make the water glass solution that is one-part water glass to 10-parts water—enough to fill your container. Let the water cool to room temperature before mixing with water glass.
Place each egg GENTLY into your container into the water glass solution. Be sure the water glass solution covers the top of the last eggs at least one inch.
Apply Vaseline to the lid-otherwise any water glass that may be transferred from the lip of the container is capable of sealing the lid shut and you may not be able to get it opened. Screw down the lid.
Store the preserved eggs in a cool, dark place. Even the floor of a closet will work.
***Tips***
Use ONLY Farm-fresh, un-washed eggs for this method. Unwashed eggs retain what is called the “bloom,” which is a protective coating deposited by the hen to protect the egg from outside pollutants. Preserve fresh eggs with the water glass method within 24 hours of purchase for best results.
What You’ll Need
1. A large, ½ gallon (or larger) container or with a lid. The size you choose depends upon how many eggs you plan to preserve, or if you want to have several containers. Half-gallon containers will store up to 15 eggs, one gallon containers, around 30 eggs.
2. Unwashed, Farm-Fresh Eggs
3. Water Glass solution made from one-part water glass to 10 parts boiled water (the boiled water MUST be cooled to room temperature).
Instructions
Inspect the eggs for cracks or chips and toss the defective ones—one spoiled egg WILL ruin the whole batch! Wipe any unsightly residue from the egg with a dry, soft cloth.
Boil enough water to make the water glass solution that is one-part water glass to 10-parts water—enough to fill your container. Let the water cool to room temperature before mixing with water glass.
Place each egg GENTLY into your container into the water glass solution. Be sure the water glass solution covers the top of the last eggs at least one inch.
Apply Vaseline to the lid-otherwise any water glass that may be transferred from the lip of the container is capable of sealing the lid shut and you may not be able to get it opened. Screw down the lid.
Store the preserved eggs in a cool, dark place. Even the floor of a closet will work.
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