Pallet-able Patios

I’ve was pondering cheap and cheerful solutions for my patio, when I spotted a stack of pallets behind the local furniture store.  Hmm…  Reusing the would might not only provide for my need, but also prevent some good material from ending up in a dump.

Despite recurrence of initiatives to find uses for pallets, only about 50% of wood pallets get recycled. They are designed to be single use, since the wood cannot be certified for any regulated function once it is exposed to contamination. Indeed, the nails are meant to hold, and deconstructing pallets for wood requires a great deal of labor costs, which far outweigh the  advantages of free lumber.    So pallets remain a resource for craftsmen with patience, perseverance  and pry bars.  Toolcrib.com  offers some practical suggestions on breaking down pallets, nails being the primary problem.  The most efficient method seems to be to drill through the head of the nail, making it much easier to pry apart the board pieces.  The board can then be loosened by driving the pieces away from the stringer with a 2x4 layed across the exposed ends,  rather than prying them up which causes splitting. Once the nail is exposed, pull it out with a hammer claw. Regardless of the technique, it is a difficult process  and not without some level of risk from embedded nails and stones coming in contact with saws and drills

Of course, the other option is to just cut the boards at the stringers, for shorter length boards.    It is  a bit tricky to use these for a floor.    Longer boards and fewest joints is traditionally a sign of a high quality floor, but one can draw on the traditional solution of setting the boards up in a herringbone or parquet pattern.  This helps lock the boards together to keep from shifting, and juxtaposes the roughness of the boards with the elegance of the more intricate pattern. 

The reward is good hardwood lumber, such as red oak, or even some exotic woods.    It is worth some initial scouting of sources and inquiring about the type of wood.  The old issues of toxicity from methyl bromide are largely gone, since this type of treatment is banned in Canada and the US.  Pallets wood is now heat treated for pest control, with no chemical residue (look for HT stamp).   Avoid  pallets that were used to ship or store chemicals, but do look for uses involving heavy and expensive equipment.  Chances are the wood type will be a clean and solid hardwoods.   Most places discard their pallets, but check with the warehouse managers.

And then -  there is no limit to creativity.   It isn’t be suitable for fine woodworking.  Much better to embrace the character of the wood – rough saw marks, nail holes, some “antiquing.”     Floors, doors, stairs, benches….or maybe a potting bench.  Time to get started.

 

Simplify Your Life

Simplify Your Life.   Very trendy.  The elegant edge of sustainability.  Ah –the irony. For the pursuit of this noble ambition has sparked a plethora of merchandising, even its own magazine.  One can buy all manner of things in the guise of the cause of “simple living.”   I’m very much reminded of the early mid-century commercials for new kitchen conveniences.  The woman, beautifully dressed, coiffed and sporting high heels, rejoices in the simplicity of the work with her new appliance.  Is leisure the goal of simplicity, as the opposite end of the scale from drudgery?      

Fast forward a few decades and we have a household crammed full of these time-saving appliances, with an ever diminishing amount of leisure time.  We are conflicted by the materialism that is the ever pervasive driver of our economic engine, flying in the face of our religious belief in achieving spirituality through the stripping of worldly goods.  

In the 70’s, the Mother Earth generation sought to get off the fast track of consumerism by getting back to nature.  The focus was retrospective and backwards.   It called for a denouncement of the current world.   And, in truth, while the idealized intent was to return to a simpler, uncomplicated way of life – the realities of a pioneer lifestyle left much to be desired.  But the real legacy is the understanding that working in the garden can be very rewarding and peaceful. It is not "simpler" to grow your own vegetables, but it can be are more personally rewarding.

So what is this quest really all about?  Might I suggest a rethinking of the goals.  What if simplicity really isn’t anti-work, or anti-materials, or even anti-complexity?    For if we really had lives of total leisure, with no complications, and no material needs – what would be the meaning?

Eckhardt Tolle

What if the focus of “simplify your life” was to find the most meaningful  work,  the right amount of material goods, and the most elegant solution?   What is we didn’t count the worth of a house by square feet, rather by the efficient use of space for the greatest value – in function, beauty, and durability.    What if we addressed problems, such as sustainability of food, not with a backwards focus to the simple, but laborious, ox and plow, rather to an elegant solution measured by the maximum desired effect   achieved with the smallest, or simplest effort.  It should be as simple as possible, but not simpler (Einstein).  For example, distributed, highly efficient permaculture systems.  What if we scheduled our day based on priorities of meaningful contributions?

The theory might be good, but what about reality?   I need look no further than my eldest son.  He is very selective in his furnishings, his clothing, his belongings - purchasing  “previously loved” when possible, and new when appropriate.    At the same time, he will go to great lengths to rig up the exact right brewing set-up for kombucha,   seek out the exact right coffee press to meet his needs.  And his house is full of life – dinner parties, gatherings of friends, projects being concocted.  It seems his time is well spent, meaningful  work and personal time.  To me, he represents one of the new generation who “gets it.”   They are the elegant edge of sustainability.

So the next time I want to get inspired to simplify my life, I don’t need to purchase anything, nor chide myself for what I already own.   I just need to stop, breathe, and enjoy the moment.  The very simple moment  -  be it in the middle of working on a complex estimating problem, seeking out the most sustainable fish on the market, or the simple act of collecting wild asparagus.   Simplifying my life just takes a moment – this moment.

 

Fishing for a Lower Footprint

My frequent flyer points are lagging, my car is in the shop and my bicycle has become a primary form of transportation – all of which greatly reduce my ecological footprint.   I’ve done what is within my purvue to reduce energy consumption in my apartment.   My purchase of material goods is severely curtailed by storage space, funds, and an ongoing pursuit of simplicity.   What’s next -  ah – food.

There are several guidelines for reducing the food footprint. Buy local, choose items with minimal packaging, grow your own vegetables and eater lower on the food chain.    So I considered my options for protein.  Of course, the ultimate solution is purchasing eggs at the farmer’s market.   Even the egg cartons are re-used.    We also have several local producers of grass fed / pasture raised beef.   But what about fish?

Choosing a fish with a low footprint (or finprint…) is very complicated.  There are well-known problems with overfishing, mercury, and habitat damage.  Even farm-raised fish  has its problems, with an increase in dependence on wild species for food pellets.  The ecological impact of fish farming depends on the species chosen, where the farm is located, and how they are raised.  Fortunately, there are resources to help me figure this out.   The Monterey Bay Aquarium provides a Seafood Watch Guide, tailored to the region in the USA, and Seachoice provides this information for Canada.     Armed with my Southeastern USA pocket guide, I cycle off to the store – only to find out that almost all the fish available at my grocery store comes from China.   This alone chalks up the ecological costs due to transportation.  On top of that, they are filleted and individually wrapped in plastic.  I can only imagine how much of the fish is thrown away in the production filet operation.

There is one exception.  Pacific Whiting.  The processing seems simple enough – headless and cleaned, and a dozen fish packaged in one bag.  It turns out the supplier is Ocean Gold Seafoods, from Washington State.   They seem to be a responsible fishery, providing ongoing employment for a small community.  Ironically, they sell most of their product to Eastern Europe and Asia, but they do provide the Pacific Whiting to Kroger Grocery.  I also discovered a sustainability website for Kroger which states their goal “to source 100% of our top 20 wild-caught species from fisheries that are Marine Stewardship Council (MSC) certified, or engaged in a WWF fishery improvement project by the year 2015.”  That is encouraging.  The National Marine Fisheries Service reports that Pacific whiting is both abundant and being harvested sustainably.  It is also low in mercury, according to the National Resources Defense Council.  Whiting is one of the five species identifies by the Gulf of Maine Research Institute as underutilized sustainable seafood, if only our Virginia store could source the whiting from Maine…  

This may seem like a lot of work to reduce the footprint in any one category.  But I tell the tale to point out how one can tackle sustainability issues one step at a time.   I’ve done the homework, and have found a solution.   Next week, I can tackle another item , but for now – I think I’ll go grill up some whiting  for lunch.

Permaculture – a Fossil Fuel alternative

I’ve often looked at permaculture from an ecological perspective, the biomimicry of a self-sustaining biological loop.  It can eliminate the need for chemical herbicides and fertilizer. This is good both for the natural environment of the land itself, but also the “footprint” of the manufacturing and transportation of these products.   But there is possibly an even stronger argument to be made in favor of permaculture – the ability to reduce reliance on fossil fuel.   

The economics of farming is very much influenced by the price of fuel - not only in the cost of transportation, but in filling the tanks of the farm machinery.  The mechanization of farming proliferated during a time when fossil fuel prices were quite low.  But fuel costs are rising quickly, as much as 30 percent increase in the last 5 years (US), and even more in Europe and other countries.  Fuel use can account for 10 – 15% of the cost of production, with a similar percent attributed to commercial fertilizer, which is equally fuel intensive.  While factory farms get life-support through tax subsidies, this is hardly sustainable, as they are still barely surviving, digging the business deeper into debt. Meanwhile, the soil conditions becomes increasing fragile from a dependency on fertilizers. Small farms lack this government support and are even more vulnerable to rising costs of fuel.

So how can permaculture help?  While most permaculture information reflects on the ecological aspects -  regenerative nature of permaculture in restoring nature’s abundance,  Rebecca Hoskings documentary film “A Farm for the Future” considers the opportunity for permaculture to overcome the rising fuel costs of her family’s farm in the U.K.  She takes a critical look at the causes and concepts behind the current farming practices, and explores alternative ways of farming without using fossil fuels.

To clarify, this is NOT about a return to oxen and plow.  For starters, this is hard labor and the average age of farmers in the UK is 60.  Nor is this approach even feasible anymore, given the poor condition of the soils and the dependency on fertilizers. Our farmlands have ever decreasing yields, no matter how much fertilizer is thrown at them.   Nor can use technology to overcome the fuel problem. One strategy I heard of covering barn roofs with PV panels only prompts an ill-conceived path of trying to convert tractors to electric engines.   What Rebecca explores is a total rethink of what we are growing and how we are farming.

This is a topic worthy of many blogs, books, and conferences, so I won’t  presume to offer a comprehensive summary.  Instead, one example might help illustrate the concept.

In Rebecca’s farm, cattle are brought into barns in the winter to avoid the damage to the fields. The cattle rely on feed (grass and grain), which are fuel-intensive field crops.   An alternative approach is proposed, that first increases the rigor of the grazing field through increased biodiversity of the grass types and then rotate the cattle through these pastures all year.  Not only does this save on fuel, equipment and even barn space, but it also frees up the grass fields for other uses, such as forest gardening.  This is an approach proposed by Martin Crawford that imitates woodlands, but uses more edible plants.   Instead of just one horizontal plane, it optimizes the vertical layers of a mixed planting.  This principle is very common in Asian gardening, as well as the “Three Sisters” – corn, beans, squash of native American indian gardens.   The yields are higher than in commercial farming with far less labor, and no reliance on fertilizer of pesticides.  

The implications of this type of farming are that farming will become more like gardening.  Production becomes diversified with many types of foods and varieties.  It is more suited to localized delivery to farmers markets, CSAs shares (community supported agriculture).  Fortunately, this is already a growing trend, at least in the USA, and is being bolstered by the interest from restaurateurs in seasonal produce, sourced locally.

Richard Heinberg of the Post-Carbon Institute predicts a strong move back to re-ruralization.  While that is slightly reminiscent of the back-to-the-land, Mother Earth generation of the 60’s,  farming was largely excluded as it was inexorably linked to hard labor.   But these new experiments in permaculture are producing high yields with much less work.  The drudgery work, which was really a fight against nature, is replaced by more stewardship of the land.   It becomes more attractive as an occupation.  And the diversity of the produce helps guard against the vagaries of market prices.

Heinberg reminds us that we have created a way of life that is fundamentally unsustainable.  That doesn’t just mean that it is ecologically irresponsible, it means that it CAN’T continue.  It doesn’t take much probing under the surface façade of the grocery store aisle to recognize that food systems could collapse not only in developing countries, but in food exporting countries such as US, Canada.  Permaculture could be part of the solution.   And while the crisis may not appear at our doorstep this very second, remember that transforming land to permaculture takes time.   Nut trees don’t start full production until after 5 years. Restoring pasturelands can take a decade.  We’ve waited too long already with alternatives to fossil fuel,  but missing the mark for food production could hit even harder.  

Shower Physics - Put a Cap on the Steam!

Window in Shower - NOT a good idea

On Tuesday, we revisited the problems with shower curtains and the relative benefits of a hard surface enclosure (glass doors). There is another aspect of physics to consider for shower design. A hot shower generates a lot of humidity. Steam billows out through the gap between the shower curtain and the ceiling.  For old houses, an open window is often meant to serve as the exhaust vent, with the hope that the steam will be civilized and follow this designated path out of the house.  That might work in the middle of the winter when the temperature differential favors the heat gravitating toward the cold, but is less likely in hot humid summer climate.  Besides, who wants to be opening the window in either of those conditions?    Even worse - a window IN a shower is a recipe for disaster of water seepage around the window.

A more reliable exit strategy for vapor is through a ceiling exhaust fan.  Typical residential bathroom  fans aren’t sized to actually keep up with the surge of steam generated by the shower, but are designed to remove the moisture over time.   This could work, provided that you either remember to leave the fan on or have a switch with a delayed off function.  Fans are sized to provide 8 air changes per hour, based on the bathroom volume.  For the small old bathrooms  (5x8x8), this comes out to 50 CFM, the size of the basic off-the-shelf fan. But to accommodate the new trend to large spa size bathrooms, the fan size is more likely to be 130 or 150 CFM.  And these calculations, of course, are based on the premise that the door to the bathroom must be closed  - for the full time the fan is running - both during and after the shower.   I would venture to guess this is often not the case.   With the bathroom door open, or lacking an actual door (such as in a master bedroom/ bathroom), the steam can merrily wend its way out along the ceilings, to wreak what havoc it may in hallways or bedroom.  And in the meantime, the moisture around the base of the shower may not dry quickly, since the air is more likely to be pulled from an open door than from the base of a shower, or the bottom of the tub.

Is it not time to revisit the shower design, and contain it back into a smaller space with a point-of-use exhaust?   This would solve the problem of the fogging mirrors and the potential mold issues from the escaping steam.  Enclosing the shower helps retain the heat and makes it easier to reach a steady, comfortable temperature.   This might save water, especially for people who like to pre-heat their showers before stepping in.

 To convert an existing shower or tub area, the gap between the enclosure and ceiling would need to be closed in, and detailed for waterproofing and condensation.  We could look back to the 1930’s for inspiration from the bathtub alcoves that had slightly curved ceiling to provide a continuous path for condensing steam to drip down the walls.  While water droplets are not likely to form ceiling within the time it takes to shower, or even bathe, this curved design might improve durability by reducing the problematic corners that are often the Achilles heels of waterproofing.   

Another "cheep and cheerful" approach was invented in NewZealand, by some folk trying to keep their cup of tea warm during a rugby game. How? Put a cap on it! And so Showerdomes was born.  Their website reminds us that condensation only occurs when the warm moist air of the shower hits the cold air of a bathroom. So in theory, there would be minimal fog inside an enclosed shower unit.   This approach doesn't rely on an exhaust fan, as the moisture is retained in the form of water, and thus can be drained away.  An interesting option for a remodel where an exhaust fan would be difficult to retrofit.

A shower enclosure with an added steam generator seems to be the latest and greatest in bathroom design in the US.  This is a plug and play option comes in all shapes and sizes, with all sorts of optional gizmos – aromatherapy, fog-free mirrors, water proof speakers for soothing music. …  I was actually thinking they could also serve a double function as a steam room to shake out wrinkles from clothing. Just pop the clothes rack in after a shower, keep the door cracked open a bit, and leave the exhaust on a low setting. In this way, you can add a double duty to offset the extra cost of the steam feature.

What about the ventilation?   There are many reasons to upgrade the basic ceiling mount fan to an in-line fan, not the least of which is the ability to have one fixture for both exhaust and lighting. The remote placement of the motor removes the noise from the bathroom, and often offers a dual exhaust function that can be tied to an additional vent in the main section of the bathroom.  The variable speed motor can also be used on a low setting, to become part of the whole house ventilation strategy.

Designing a shower is not only about water, but also steam and heat.  It needs to serve the function of helping people to get clean, but also be a space that is easy to keep clean and dry when not in use.  It is probably one of the most complex areas of the house to design and build properly, with the biggest cross-over of trades and code regulations.  It is also one of the most frequently used areas of the house.   So even though a shower may be the smallest room in the house, it merits a great detail of attention in design and construction.

 

Shower Physics - The Battle of the Shower Curtain

Many of us have experience the attack of the shower curtain. Most of the time, it seems so harmless, just peacefully hanging around. But no sooner do you turn on the shower and – poof-  it  jumps to life and turns the shower experience into an exercise better suited to a contortionist.   

In pondering this problem of my newly installed curved rod shower curtain, I decided to go about this in a scientific manner and look for the root cause  of shower curtain billowing.  Hot air rising? Nope-the effect is the same during cold showers.  Bernoulli effect (increase velocity resulting in decrease pressure)? 

The latest tractable explanation comes from Professor Schmidt, who developed a model based on computational fluid dynamics. Schmidt drafted a computer image of a typical curved shape bathub, then filled it and the “shower” space with 50,000 tetrahedral cells, or pyramid-like structures, that sense velocity and pressure in three dimensions. Finally, the virtual “water'' flowed for 30 seconds at about eight gallons per minute (shows intensified movement vs. a 1.5 GPM low-flow) while the computer crunched numbers for the better part of two weeks, or 1.5 trillion calculations. According to his vortex theory, the shower's water droplets decelerate under the influence of aerodynamic drag, transferring energy to the bathtub's air, which begins to twist like a miniature hurricane turned on its side.  As in the eye of a hurricane, the pressure in the center of this disturbance is low, pulling on the shower curtain. Curtain rods keep the top of the curtain in place, but below the showerhead the bottom of the curtain . . . sucks in.    How to combat a hurricane?

What’s to be done?   Most recommendations will suggest that you fight the physics by adding magnets to the hem.  Of course, the magnets are more attracted to each other than the tub – so there is now a “set-up” time to get the curtain in place before showering.  Another solution is to get a heavier fabric – but then you’re showering in the dark and the curtain gets moldy….  Or, peel the shower away from the wall to introduce more air, which only results in water puddling on the bathroom floor.   Or then there is the latest greatest from England -  the Curtain Bouncer...

Ultimately, you bring out the big guns and install a hard surface (glass) enclosure that is not affected by the shower vortex.  The down-side here is the initial cost, and the problem of maintenance in an area with hard water depositing minerals on the glass.   It is also not a reasonable investment to be making as a renter. So for now, I’ll just add some rocks weights to my shower curtain and hope that will do the trick.

Update on China Inn - Alley gardener

I first reported on this alley garden in the summer of 2011, planted in the narrow strip of land behind the China Inn strip mall and the alley way, in the post “Walking down Alleyways.”   The teenage son of the owners had saw the potential of this space as a garden, and planted some tomatoes and a few Chinese squashes.    The alleyway is the access to the parking for the town building department, and so I watched all summer, hoping that no one would shut him down – or steal his vegetables.  

Apparently , the first year was sufficiently successful to warrant a repeat experiment. During the next summer, he expanded the infrastructure to include a bamboo structure, almost like a small house frame, which allowed him to expand the growing surface to a double level.   In my Gardening Report , I was pleased to report that he had understood my suggestion to tap into the condensate from the AC system.

This morning, I was pleased to see my young friend preparing the ground for this summer’s garden.  The soil - which started out as a very inhospitable mix of asphalt chunks, garbage, and solid caked clay -  has been amended over the years and appears to be a far more suitable soil.    I was also pleased to discover that he has expanded his terrain to take in the side hill of the restaurants for some peppers.  These should do quite well, as they are up against a brick wall and which will capture heat and keep the soil warm, and pick up sufficient western sun for the leaves to absorb.   And – around on the front of the  building (West facing), he has planted some fruit trees -  plums and apricots.   As these grow, they will soften the harsh façade as well as providing some wonderful produce.

I should note that this also demonstrates the beauty of a “low road” building, as Stewart Brand  would describe this common commercial strip mall building.  It is so basic and utilitarian, that practically nobody cares what the tenants do in there, as long as they pay their lease.    The owner of this strip mall  had just left these few patches of left-over dirt to run to weed, so he also doesn’t much care what the China Inn owners choose to do in this area, as anything is an improvement.   As it turns out, the result is far more interesting and charming than any professional landscaping would have been.  

I look forward to watching the progress of this little “Chinese” garden.