Glenn's Underground Cabin Update

glenn kangiser · October 08, 2011, 06:56:03 PM

Em1 - effective Microorganisms... Taught to me by our friend Myo, from Myanmar. Andrew... (Ernest T Bass) and family on our forum use it also.

Local US producer.... http://www.teraganix.com/EM1-Effective-Microorganisms-s/68.htm

Our info on how to use it and education info from Myo...

Searched for and brought the thread to the front.

http://countryplans.com/smf/index.php?topic=9956.0

glenn kangiser · October 08, 2011, 06:59:18 PM

I am familiar with Kiko's book and recommend it to others - can't remember if I ever got it though. Guess I need to check and then order it before the next one when I am ready to build it.

October 08, 2011, 07:19:04 PM

Thanks!

Effective Organizms Hmmm... hopefully more effective than most human organisms I know!

glenn kangiser · October 08, 2011, 08:39:31 PM

In some cases that may not be too hard, eh?

Skunk smell... cat spray.... pretty well gone in the first day. A bit in a glass of water doesn't taste too bad either, and helps keep the reflux away in most cases.... OK --- possibly not after the super burrito... but I think it helps.

glenn kangiser · October 08, 2011, 10:27:24 PM

Got my hydroponics going finally. Hoping to get a few winter vegetables growing in it and see how they do. We pulled up some of the garden plants and volunteers as well as picked up some more down at the feed store.

The first thing I did was to get a way to support the float about 2/3 of the way up in the 32 gallon trash can. Plastic as the fertilizer may eat the galvanization from a metal can causing a zinc overload.

I put a 15 inch piece of 2x4 at the bottom to catch some bumps in the tank and prevent the float stand from falling over. I next put a support for the float about 2/3 of the way up giving me around a 20 gallon capacity. Remember that when the pump starts it will lower the level causing the float to allow more water in.

I put a cross piece at the top to level the stand a bit and retaining wires to help keep it all in place.

When it shuts off there will be the extra water plus all that was up in the troughs above. That will raise the water a significant amount. I felt ten gallons above the float should be plenty of room even if I expand the system quite a bit, later.

October 09, 2011, 10:32:41 AM

I dropped in the pump and ran a piece of drip line up to the top trough. The pump is just a small pond or fountain pump from Harbor freight. Seems it was the second cheapest one at around $12 or so. You may substitute the $60 Union made in USA one if you wish and it is still available, but I gave that up when our corporations took our jobs to China and other countries. Besides, I have friends from those countries and they need work too. I may as well benefit from our government supported corporate moves also.

I wrapped a piece of Gorilla tape around the drip hose and stapled it to the edge of the trough. It just happened that drip hose was the size to fit the pump outlet. Any hose will work.

I am trying to do this in such a simple manner that everyone realizes they can do it also.

I had left a bit of extra 15 mil plastic at the end of the trough so folded it up and stapled it to the top edge above the water line also to close the trough end. Nothing fancy - we just want to prevent leaks.

At the other end of the trough I left enough extra plastic to take the nutrient solution down to the next level and be flexible for future changes. The exit of the bottom trough simply went back into a 4 inch pipe stuffed into the reservoir tank.

Keep in mind that we want to keep nearly all light off of the nutrient solution to prevent algae growth.

I use a Harbor Freight timer with 15 minute increments for the 24 hour day. I am running about 15 minutes on 30 off right now due to new plants and salvaging old ones from the garden. I want to keep it on long enough to prevent wilting but off long enough for maximum air to the roots for fast growth. This is a change from the old and common method of NFT in that it used to be run continuously. That may still be the most common way but increased speed of production and growth has been noted with the intermittent flow technique. Per The Growing Edge magazine years ago as I recall.

To answer your question... no, I do not grow anything else but vegetables..... [ouch]

This timer has two outlets so could control two pumps directly or you could add an adapter for more on any timer. It is possible later you may want to run specific nutrients that are more suited to a specific crop.

The pump does not need to run at night but I do run a late and early cycle to be sure the plants remain damp. They will grow massive root wads that will support them in the trough and may even clog it. That is why I built 8 inch wide troughs. Years ago I used 2x4 gutters and they plugged badly. I simply cut away a strip of the roots to allow passage of nutrient as necessary when that happens.

ben2go · October 09, 2011, 11:55:50 AM

I have considered hydroponics for winter veggies.It does get cold enough here to kill most gardens.Are you using a heater to keep the water temp up?I've read some where that cold,under 60*F can cause root issues with some plants.Hydroponics,the clean way to grow.

glenn kangiser · October 09, 2011, 12:52:29 PM

I have not incorporated a heater into the unit yet, Ben but have considered adding one and insulating the tank. I have lots of solar heaters and the easiest way for me to do it would be to put one in the pump line to run the nutrient directly through.

Thinking about it with the timed settings that would not work. I would have to make a heat exchanger or the hot water from being stopped would kill the plants when it started flowing as it would be near boiling. Something to think about.

All of my unit is in the greenhouse so it will not freeze though it could get cold.

glenn kangiser · October 09, 2011, 03:47:17 PM

Next thing to do is check the TDS of the existing water. Rain or well water is good. City water should stand a while to get the chlorine out of it. I bought a low priced TDS meter from Amazon.com - shown a long time ago in this thread...

http://www.amazon.com/HM-Digital-Pocket-TDS-4-Quality/dp/B0002T6L5M/ref=tag_dpp_lp_edpp_ttl_in

This one goes from 0 to 9999 so will cover everything we need to cover. Note 1000 and above shown as 100s x10 so 1687=168 w/ x10 flashing on the readout.

The nutrients calls for 1500 ppm in addition to the existing TDS of the water. TDS stands for total dissolved solids. It is a good indicator for total nutrient but actual nutrients may deplete in varied quantities over time so every month or two use the old nutrient for fertilizer on your outside garden and make a new batch. Measure during the growing season and add nutrient if levels drop as plants deplete them.

Looks like 187 existing in my water so 1687 is the target TDS for startup.

October 10, 2011, 01:20:33 AM

Next thing is to get the nutrients ready. There are lots of different kinds. The most value I have found for the money is Hydro Gardens out of Colorado. They have the basics in different mixes then you can add major stuff locally in many cases. I chose the hobby formula that has everything except the Epsom Salts - or Magnesium Sulfate. It is major for preventing blossom end rot in tomatoes and squash .

The formula is on the bag. 1500 ppm TDS plus the water TDS. Also add Epsom Salts - works out to about 25% of the nutrient weight - add until the solution test at the proper mix for TDS. About 3/4 cup total - 20 tsp. nutrient and 5 of Epsom salts for my 20 gallons.

I made mine too strong after a couple additions - likely did not circulate it long enough to get it all into solution, so had to bail some out and put it on the regular garden... only a benefit there too, so no problem.

ben2go · October 10, 2011, 12:04:00 PM

Good stuff Glenn.Very interesting set up.

glenn kangiser · October 10, 2011, 11:16:22 PM

Thanks, Ben. I am sure that even on the second day the plants were noticeably stronger and getting ready to take off growing.

Hopefully this will be of some use to some who have not done it before. Hopefully it will be of some use to me..... [ouch]

Anyway... nice to have it up and running. Took me long enough.

I also got the garden worked over and about a yard or better of 8 YO wood chips worked into it along with some good corral scrapings.

I hope it grows better . This year was the first year we got some good potatoes out of the garden and we did similar to a section of the garden last year where the potatoes were.

I put manure and straw into the soil but it just did not feel good until I added the scoop of decomposed wood chips. Then it loosened up and felt as if it would not pack back into claystone right away again.

glenn kangiser · October 10, 2011, 11:51:14 PM

Here's a shot of our calf running around. We named her Cherry after Cherry of our extended family in Taiwan. Click the pix for a short video.

You know the one I mean....

We chat back and forth every few days even though she is back in Taiwan, about 6455 miles away.... seems she is right here when I think of her though.

ben2go · October 11, 2011, 11:19:44 AM

Great pics.Can't wait for the hydroponics updates.

I never seen dinner run so fast.LOL J/K

I really enjoy the stories you share about your friends from over seas.Learn a little something new all the time.

October 11, 2011, 11:14:28 PM

Thanks, Ben. Cherry -the girl checked out the video said she wished she could press the "Like" button more than one time on FB. She was surprised the calf, Cherry, could run so fast being a newborn. That surprised me too...

Nearly all of our student family is from the big city. They are scared of bugs and snakes and all kinds of creepy crawlies like that (many times anyway). I was surprised that our friends from Africa were scared of the little green spring peeper frogs.....City kids...

We won't make fun of them though. It is a real privilege to be more remote and wild than Africa....

glenn kangiser · October 13, 2011, 05:10:53 PM

Cool Hand Luke.......

Cool Hand Cherry....

glenn kangiser · October 13, 2011, 05:36:20 PM

Got back from Burlingame last night.....

The Safeway is getting finished in spite of all of it's protests....

It opens tomorrow with a few things left to do... louvers all around and up the towers - by others....

...and the garden roof on the "A" building is near open... My part was finished there yesterday installing gates. Still a couple handrails to go - don't know if I get them or not.

...and ... if you need to trim that tree in the front yard, you might take a tip from the pros.. hoist your buddy up in the tree with a block and tackle....

....and last but not least... my little cousin made it out from Massachusetts last night.... OK - she's my cousin from the part of the family that stayed in Massachusetts but she calls me Uncle Glenn because I am ancient..... [ouch]

I last saw her in 1989 when she was about 5 years old. She was very tired last night, so I am going to give her another chance tonight... I want to see if she can still talk the leg off of a chair like she could when she was a wee little girl.

We dropped in on the family unannounced researching our old family history in Brockton, MA. Her dad called his brother and his family and soon we were sharing old family stories and they invited us to stay for the night. She never got to finish her stories that night as dad sent her to bed. She decided to come to California and finish, because... like... you know how women like to have the last word....

Redoverfarm · October 13, 2011, 06:14:07 PM

Not real sure what you ended up with "Cherry" meaning whether he is a he or she. There was some confusion at some point when it arrived.

Well if he is a he then you should band him while he is young. He will make a lot better beef in the future not to mention another $.10-.15 a pound later if you decide to sell him. You really don't want to use him for breeding. Of course you could take him under the knife but I wouldn't wish that on my worse enemy.

glenn kangiser · October 13, 2011, 06:24:47 PM

We lucked out, John. Sassy had a little problem figuring out if it was a boy or a girl, but I and the neighbor confirmed it is a girl.

She was only an RN at the VA, and is only familiar with the plumbing of old men....

She noticed the calf taking a wiz out the back but then became confused by the navel being in the middle where our steers and bull have some other plumbing.

So ... we named our girl calf after our extended family daughter in Taiwan, Cherry. That is her American name, which they get to pick. For those who did not see it, here is Cherry explaining how they get their, or in this case, how she got her American name. Click the pix for the video.

...and the knife, John.... helped my uncle do that when I was a kid.....

glenn kangiser · October 14, 2011, 11:55:17 PM

Took the family into the park today and told them a few stories of the Yosemite Valley Railway on the way in.

Couldn't tell those stories without stopping at old Number 6.

http://www.yosemitevalleyrr.com/

After that stop we moseyed on into the park and headed for the Native American Yosemite Museum to see my buddy, Ben. Ben is like a brother to us and he always has an interesting bit of history and some fine flute music as well as a few more flutes from around the world in his collection to show us.

Ben seriously tries to preserve the Native American heritage and share it with people from around the world. He makes beautiful arrowheads as well as working flutes.

October 15, 2011, 12:40:53 AM

One day I tell ya, one day,and I'll be standing on your door step.So much interesting stuff out there.I guess there's history here, but It all seems so sad and based on war(s).

Wicked Pissah · October 15, 2011, 12:51:07 AM

This underground cabin, or real life Hobbit Hole, is quite the sight!!!. I can speak for myself and my girlfriend Jhenn when I say we couldn't be more happy to be in this amazing place with this amazing couple!! Maybe someday I'll bring the idea home and make my own underground cabin!

glenn kangiser · October 15, 2011, 10:05:06 PM

Quote from: ben2go on October 15, 2011, 12:40:53 AM
One day I tell ya, one day,and I'll be standing on your door step.So much interesting stuff out there.I guess there's history here, but It all seems so sad and based on war(s).

Ben, there is a lot of history here too, and I would be happy to share what I know and can show with you. I was never much of a history buff in school, but really love live history as it surrounds us.

There were lots of old wars around here too, and we did not treat our Native American hosts well when we arrived as miners and such. One of the wars is what led up to the discovery of Yosemite.

glenn kangiser · October 15, 2011, 10:10:14 PM

Welcome, WP and as I mentioned this is the place to learn all you want from tons of helpful people.

Glad to have you and Jhenn here and to have the chance to hear of how things are on the right hand side of the states.

We got out to help my friend J today on his underground house for a few hours and I have to say it is really shaping up. I'll try to get some pix up on that later too.

glenn kangiser · October 16, 2011, 11:17:12 AM

I carried dirt to various areas of J's house so they could cover the first layer. He is wanting to get the EPDM on it while the dirt is reasonably dry.

This is the flat roof area over the kitchen to keep the front profile lower.

With the good EPDM pond liner and a light slope drainage, there should still be no problem with water. Little snow at this elevation but the framing is plenty heavy to handle it anyway.

Here is a shot of the inside.

And here is one of the kitchen area near with the root cellar to the left under the floor.