Category Archives: Planning

Grinding EPS indoor requires a mask

I did two things yesterday.  I ground 4 large black garbage bags of EPS and I opened old latex paint cans and combined them into a 5 gallon bucket ready for our next spate of wall building. This morning I … Continue reading

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The “real” cost of our EPS-crete wall

The forms in the picture in the previous article would not be sufficient for regular cement but work just fine for EPS-crete.  I built the forms by screwing particle board to the narrow edge of a 2×4 and fastening that … Continue reading

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EPS-crete wall

I’ve got the EPS-crete wall started.  The forms come off today and they get moved up ready for the next layer.  So far, I’m liking both the process and the result.  It’s dead easy to mix, light to shovel, doesn’t … Continue reading

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Foam Shredder

I’ve got the foam shredder prototype working. The roller center is a solid stainless conveyor roller from a fresh produce processing plant.  My brother was going to add short spikes to it for my shredder drum but he ran out … Continue reading

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“Chipped” foam

I finally got to rescreening the wood chipper to use it as an EPS grinder.  It looks like it will work okay.  The foam pieces have to be small enough to fit in the hopper, but once introduced to the … Continue reading

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Chipping foam

I borrowed my brother’s wood chipper to test chipping foam.  I think wood chipping foam will work if a screen is added to the chip exhaust to keep the larger pieces of foam inside the chipper until they’re reduced sufficiently … Continue reading

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To slant or not to slant

I’ve been reading stuff passive solar. I have to do something heartening. It’s cold and wet out and we’ve got family members on the way to add to our pet cemetary.  Katie will go to rest next to Koa, Stacy, … Continue reading

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Playing with house plans

Every couple of months I research new house plans. One of the site I love cruising through, even though not much changes there, is The Natural Home. I love the feel of those houses, though I can tell from the … Continue reading

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Spring? Nope, still the planning season

I think we’re getting closer to spring.  I’ve got daffs up and my elephant garlic is poking through the dirt.  I’ve got quite a bit of pre-spring gardening to get done as weather permits. Dan (brother) is still working on … Continue reading

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Plans for staying warm

It’s going to be a while before I get the sun porch done and we can get our rocket mass heater built.  In the interim, I must have a less expensive (and quieter) way to stay warm.  Toward that end, … Continue reading

Posted in Design, Planning, Rocket Stove Construction | 9 Comments