Soilcrete

It's been a while since I've written an update on what we are doing on the cabin, so this time I'll write about concrete, or more accurately soilcrete. What is soilcrete? It's nearly the same thing as concrete but using local materials instead of using purchased materials. We use local dirt, gravel from the creek, portland cement and of course water. This makes a strong and inexpensive concrete/soilcrete to make walls and such...



Read the rest of the story here:
http://www.off-grid.net/2009/03/09/soilcrete/




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Wretha

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Update

Wow, it's been a few days since I've written anything here, let's see if I can catch everyone up on what's been going on... Bob has been working on the bedroom addition to the cabin, I suppose it's beginning to be more of a house and less of a cabin, Bob doesn't like me referring to it as a cabin, so I will try to stop referring to our house as a cabin. :)

The bedroom has a roof and walls now, we had lots of windows (thanks to everyone who donated windows to us!), so many of the walls are mostly windows, that's a good thing! We have great views, and it makes it a breeze to ventilate (pun intended). Most of the windows have screens too, for the ones that don't have them, we will make them. Bob also built a deck outside the bedroom, it's nice to go outside and sit on the deck, especially at night when it's cool and the stars are out.

It's been getting hot during the day, as long as the wind is blowing, it's pretty comfortable, but on the days the wind is calm, it can get pretty warm in the house. We have found that during the hottest part of the day, the best place to be is under the house, it can be in the upper 90s in the house, but in the upper 70s to 80s under the house, the concrete walls tend to be cool, they register 75 degrees F. Our house sits some 7-8 feet above ground, so it's pretty easy to walk under the house, still Bob has worked on digging out the dirt to increase the head room, we will eventually close up the bottom floor with concrete, and pour a concrete floor. It should be very comfortable down there, might even sleep down there, though it does get cool at night (typical desert, hot during the day, cool to cold at night). Last night I went to sleep with one light blanket, I had all of the windows open, I woke up early with a chill, I had to grab a second blanket. Trying to sleep during the day though it difficult, the bed traps your body heat, and it gets too warm, if we had a bed under the house, it would be easy to take a nap during the hottest part of the day.

Bob's brother is supposed to come down for a visit soon, maybe in a week or so, I can't wait, he will be a big help to Bob, I can do just so much for Bob, I am a big help, but I don't have the strength of a man, so having another male here for a while will be a big help. Bob's brother has lots of good ideas like Bob does, so the two of them together can bounce ideas off of each other and come up with even better plans together than they do separately. Bob wants to build a separate guest house, his brother will make things go lots quicker, and I think having someone else here inspires Bob to do more, though I can't complain a bit about what he does, he works hard around here and does some amazing things! :)

My Dad will be coming out in July, he will be staying at least a month, hopefully we will have a nice guest house for him to stay in, if not, he can stay in the bedroom in our house, our neighbor has also graciously offered his spare bedroom too if my Dad wants it, though I know my Dad, he will not want to impose, and he doesn't know our neighbor as well as we do, he will want to stay on our property if at all possible. We will be using our neighbor's facilities as we always do, for bathing, laundry and such... I take the opportunity to catch up on my TV watching while I am doing laundry, I really don't miss watching TV on a daily basis, it's nice to watch it once a week (or so), though I think I don't get to the laundry as soon as I could, gotta wait for the commercials ;).

Laundry, typically I do 3 loads a week. I separate the laundry into towels and socks, another load for blacks, darks and jeans, the final load is the light colors. I need to get our blankets and bed stuff into the wash too, it's easy to put it off, mainly because I can carry one basket to my neighbor's house at a time. That's pretty much all of my laundry, if I do the bed stuff, it will have to be on a separate day, maybe I'll do that later on today, there's nothing like fresh, soft sheets and blankets!

The sun is coming up, I have been on an opposite sleep schedule, I tend to do this from time to time, I'll stay up all night and go to bed about the time the sun is coming up, last night though, I went to bed fairly early, I woke up early too, I think it was because I was chilled, I grabbed a second blanket, but by then I was wide awake, so I just got on up, I suppose I'll be going to bed early tonight too. That's OK, I'm not on any particular schedule, nothing says I HAVE to sleep or be up at any particular time. As long as I get the garden watered once a day, and make dinner at a reasonable time, it's fine. I have never been one of those people who have a routine, go to bed and get up at the same time, I can sleep anytime, I almost envy those who have a natural schedule, but I'm not complaining, I guess my natural schedule is flexible.

I detect the scent of moisture, it's an odd scent here, it smells faintly of wet dirt, when you smell it, you first wonder, what is that smell? Then you remember, it's the smell of moisture. That was one of the other things that caught my attention when I woke up this morning, it was almost overpowering at times, this happens whenever the humidity is up and when it rains. Last I checked, there was a 20% chance of rain today, chances are it will not rain, it might rain around us, it's strange to hear it raining in the next valley over but not getting one drop. It also might rain but the rain will not actually hit the ground, maybe a drop or 2, we'll see what happens.

I guess I'll go out and sit on the deck and watch the world come to life. :)
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1 Comment

Mayberry said...

Get a hammock for an afternoon siesta! They eliminate the trapped heat of a bed, and are really comfortable. String it out when you want to use it, and put it up when you're done. I'd sleep in a hammock all the time if it were up to me!

May 26, 2008 12:49 PM

Construction Pix

More Pix

I took more pix, here they are:

This is Bob up on a scaffold that he made, he was putting up more panels of wood on the south side of the cabin, the scaffold is about 12 feet in the air.





These are in front (south facing) of the cabin.





This is on the west side of the cabin, this is where a lot of activity is going on, you can see one of the concrete (soilcrete) walls, it's not much to look at, yet, but it's a work in progress.



This is the same pix as above, I highlighted the concrete wall in red, it is poured in layers, each layer is about a foot deep, the first layer is highlighted with yellow, the next layer we poured is highlighted in magenta. Between the yellow and magenta layers, we poured that layer too thick, the problem that occurs is with the weight of the concrete, if the pour is too thick, it will cause the form to bulge, we got lucky, it did bulge, but not too much. The form for the next layers is the wood panel that is above the concrete, highlighted in orange. This is only part of the concrete work, this is sort of a bump out, the other concrete work is being done under the cabin just behind what is visible in this picture. The bump out is going to house part of the water system, the top will be as tall as the floor on the cabin (about 6 feet in the air), sorry if I'm not explaining it well, I'll take more pix as we get more done, it's true that a picture is worth a thousand words. :)



This is Bob removing the wind part of the weather station, he had to do this in order to put up one of the panels on the cabin. You can see what is referred to as a radar net or camoflage net, it's old military surplus, we have several of these, it works good for us to hide the work in progress, we don't want our few neighbors who can see us to have to look at the half way done work on the cabin, it also helps us to blend in with the natural scenery, Bob eventually wants to place one on the roof so that when Google Earth updates their satellite images, our place will not show, we like being hidden from the world. ;)



I took more pix today of the cabin from much farther away, it will take me a few days to get it placed on the blog, it's quite a process, I have to take the picture with the camera in my cell phone, I have to send the pix from my cell phone to my email address, then I have to go to my neighbor to check my email and get the pictures, I copy them to a memory stick, take them back to my cabin, I put the pix on my laptop, edit them as needed (crop, resize, highlight...), then it's back on the memory stick and back to my neighbor's house, then I can upload them to this blog, one of these days I'll find my digital camera and many MANY steps will be eliminated.
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2 Comments

Oldman in the boonies said...

NICE PICS. What is the tower ( or spire) close to you? Good idea on the combat como netting..Often wished I had done that. Too late they already got me...

March 2, 2008 1:46 PM

Wretha said...

Oldman, I assume you are asking about the pic with the road and the dot as my cabin, if so, that spire is a utility pole, it is not near my cabin at all, it is on the south side of the valley, my cabin is well north of that, the road you see in the image goes down about 100 feet until it reaches the road that I live on, my cabin is about 75-100 feet above the road where I live, I'd say that pic was taken about a mile away. I don't have any utility poles on my property, there is one on the extreme south west corner of my property, but not on it, that is not the same one you see in the pic. If this is not the image you are asking about, please ask again and specify which one you are talking about.

Thanks!
Wretha

March 3, 2008 8:16 PM

Stuff To Do

Today was a banner day, it was a beautiful day, sunny, slight breeze, warm , the high was 75 f. After lounging around most of the morning into the afternoon, we got up and started working on concrete. We poured about a foot in depth and about 10 feet long, we are pouring a three sided wall, we pour, allow it to set for a few days, remove the forms and reattach them higher on the wall and pour again, this keeps the forms from bulging out too much, concrete is heavy. Bob mixes the cement powder, local soil, local gravel and a little water in the cement mixer, pours it into a bucket and brings it to the wall, he pours it into the wall cavity, I tamp it down and smooth it out as best as I can with a stick. We also throw in fist sized rocks and poke them into the wet concrete.

After that, Bob got out the powered post hole digger, my Dad gave it to us, so far, digging has been so easy that Bob hasn't felt the need to use the auger, but he tried it tonight, and was very impressed, he dug 3 holes a few feet away from the south side of the cabin, he set some long 2x6 boards in the holes, filled the hole back in with dirt and a little water and tamped it down. His intention is to make a scaffold structure so he can work safely on that side of the cabin. While he was doing this, I made dinner, I was instructed to post the recipe on my blog, so I will. It's a recipe I made up when I was a teenager, it's extreme comfort food.

4 slices of bread (your choice-white or wheat)
4 wieners (hot dogs)
1 can chili
1 can cream corn
mayo
shredded cheese (your choice)

Heat the cream corn and the chili in separate pans, you can heat the wieners in the chili if you want or heat them separately, leave whole or cut into bite sized pieces, your choice. Take 2 slices of bread for each serving, place it on a plate, slather each slice with a thick layer of mayo, I like Miracle Whip, my hubby likes real mayo, make it thick, pour the chili with the wieners) over the bread, place some shredded cheese over this, as much as you want. Next pour the cream corn over the top. Eat. This serves 2 hungry people.

I don't have a name for this, anyone want to name it? When I made it as a teen, I didn't add wieners or cheese, I add this now to make it more of a meal. It may sound like a strange combination, but it's very good, have lots of napkins. Don't ask about the calorie count, if you have to ask, then you probably shouldn't eat it (grin!), we aren't worried about calories out here, as hard as we work, we burn off more than enough. Walking up and down the property with buckets of gravel and dirt in this thin air is a super workout!

Work

Before we moved out here, we did a lot of research on how to build and live off grid, I found a lot of websites boasting about how green they are while spending lots of money and using heavy equipment and lots of hands helping them. It can be discouraging to the average person who wants to do this but doesn't have much money (or equipment or help). I am here to tell you that it CAN be done, we have done everything with very little money and mostly by hand. The most expensive part was buying the land, before we moved we started buying a few thing here and there, the deep cycle batteries, the solar panels, yes I know those are expensive, but they are coming down in price, and if you are willing to live a more simple life, you can make it with a few batteries and a few solar panels, we are doing it, and we are doing it very well. We would not be able to power the same amount of stuff as we used to have when we lived in the city, but living out here, in a small cabin, using the bare minimum of lights, a radio, a small cube refrigerator, cell phone, computer and the water pump, our little system is working great. We don't watch TV, it's just a time waster and an energy hog, I don't miss it very much at all, but then again I didn't watch it much before.

We have built out home ourselves, with hand tools and sweat. It's not the Ritz, but it's ours, free and clear. We get a lot of material for free by doing things like Bob did the other day, a neighbor around the mountain from us was tearing down a building, he gave us the material as long as we took all of it, we ended up with a lot of good, usable wood, some of it is no good, but for a half a day's work, we got a truck load of wood for free. You gotta network with the local people to find out what they need and what you can offer, the barter system is alive and well. If you have skills, especially out here where it is remote and costs a mint just to get someone to come out to your property, and that is before they start doing any work, you can go a long way toward getting the things you need. Bob is good with his hands, he can repair most any appliance, motor and is good with carpentry, electronics and a hodge podge of other things, it has come in handy for us as well as for a few neighbors who help us with other things.

For anyone who really wants to do this, let me say that it CAN be done, and you don't have to be wealthy, you just have to be willing to do the proper research, learn from everyone, and be willing to work hard. It's not a vacation, but it has been worth it. It has been worth everything we have given up, which by the way hasn't been much:

Noise
TV
pollution
Stress
Close by stores
Close by neighbors (packed in like sardines)
Traffic problems
High bills
City codes (building, parking...)

There is more than I can list, the main thing is the noise level, it's so quiet out here, and the air is so clean, you can see so many more stars. I do have to collect wood for heat, for now I have to tote water, I have to be aware of my power usage, but I don't get a monthly bill for my electricity or heating, it's a trade off, and I don't mind it at at all.

I am thinking about what I am going to grow for food this spring, we will have to decide where to put the garden, and we will have to protect it from the animals who would like to eat our veggies as much as I would. I plan on planting carrots, onions, tomatoes, potatoes, peppers (hot and mild), beans, peas, spinach, kale, okra, lettuce, garlic, herbs... and I don't know what else, I ordered some seed catalogs, I can't wait to get them.
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2 Comments

HOLLIS said...

I am in the research stage. I just found your site and love it. If you don't mind me asking what did the land cost and how much did you get? I am researching on how to do this with kids. We have a 7 & 8 yr olds. Any advice there?

May 21, 2008 7:28 PM

Wretha said...

Hello Hollis,

I don't mind answering most questions (grin), we purchased just under 6 acres, we paid $11000 for it. The land had nothing on it, no improvements at all, most properties around here cost more, the reason ours was less was because accessing the largest part is difficult, there is a dry creek bed running across the front of the property, getting a vehicle across, or anything else for that matter is not easy, but it's doable. You need a 4 wheel drive vehicle or you have to use a winch to get across and up the other side. We park our vehicles on the street side and walk across most of the time. When it rains, we just stay on the high side and don't leave the property.

Where are you looking for land? You can email me directly if you want. :)

Wretha

May 21, 2008 9:11 PM