Nostr Web Client

We can heat our well insulated 900sqft of living space to 65-70°f using around 2 cords of wood each year with our Rocket Mass Heater. We typically wake up to 65°f and burn a fire in the morning and another fire in the evening. A "J" tube burn chamber covered by a 55gal barrel creates radiant heat as well as a thermal pump which forces exhaust gasses horizontally though ducting in a large box filled with pea gravel. The gravel extracts most of the heat from the exhaust radiating it out slowly after the fire burns out. By the time the exhaust reaches the chimney it's 120-200°f down from 300-500°f at the barrel. The combustion is nearly total so very little smoke is exhausted and maximum BTUs are used to heat the space. Built with materials found at most big box hardware stores Rocket Mass Heaters are cheap to build, easy to source, and incredibly efficient. It is the favorite contraption I've built on the homestead.

rev.hodl 2y ago

Now that transaction fee storm has passed I'm back to heating my living space primarily with wood in a rocket mass heater instead of Asics.

https://v.nostr.build/Ee2K.mp4

Wood is burned in the small firebox and heat radiates from the barrel warming the space quickly while the fire burns.

As the exhaust gasses make their way to the chimney, they pass through ductwork in a plywood box filled with pea gravel.

The majority of the heat from the exhaust is transfered to the gravel before exiting up the chimney. By the time the gases exit the box, they are cool enough for me to put my hand on the chimney pipe.

After the fire burns out, the heat absorbed by the pea gravel slowly radiates out into the living space until the next fire is burned and the gravel is recharged with heat once again. I built this rocket mass heater for a fraction of the cost of a wood burning insert, with no special tools, materials, or skills.

It has been an unusually warm November and December here at the homestead. Normally we have to start burning wood in the rocket mass heater early November to stay comfortable but this year, the bitcoin mining dehydrator was enough to stay warm and do some food preservation simultaneously.

Transaction fees started climbing and I was shocked to see the most efficient miner I had approaching break even at my electric rate.

I didn't have the circuit to run it wired yet but this bump in fees was the motivation I needed to get the miner hashing. Coincidentally, the weather also started to get colder finally so getting the miner up and running was a win/win.

It successfully kept us and our guests warm through the holidays, even earning some Bitcoin beyond the cost of power at times, all while allowing us to save our firewood.

We did have to fire up the rocket mass heater a handful of times, but so far we've burned less than half the amount of wood compared to previous years. This is thanks to the combination of the warm weather, and high transaction fees allowing us to stay warm with heavily subsidized electric heat.

This might be the first winter we make it through with wood leftover for the next year, typically I'm scrounging for the last couple weeks.

#permaculture #permies #homesteading #selfsovereignty #meshtadel #rocketmassheater #woodburner #bitcoin #bitcoinmining #plebminer #rmh #grownostr

nostr:nevent1qqsxlrvat999wlsqh44lf69nvqwd60d0gstakzy0fw2mesveazx0fycpr4mhxue69uhkummnw3ezucnfw33k76twv4ezuum0vd5kzmp0qgsy6q3ua80awknlxp6m368qssqghct6ra6scca4meepumhcswkuwegrqsqqqqqp6xa6wk

Reply to this note

Please Login to reply.

Discussion

Flemingfarm 2y ago

I've got the plans and most of the materials for the rocket I want to build in my greenhouse. I need to source 100+ ft of stove pipe to bury though for soil heat. Your setup looks killer!

rev.hodl 2y ago

I basically followed the rocket mass heaters builders guide book exactly and it has been working flawlessly with only regular cleaning necessary. I've made a few minor upgrades over the years, like using a fiberglass blanket instead of rock wool for the riser insulation. I plan on converting it to a batch box burn chamber eventually.

Flemingfarm 2y ago

I have the Wisner book and Ianto Evans book which I have been pouring over working on my design. It's interesting seeing how small your firebox is, doesn't take much.

rev.hodl 2y ago

The size of the firebox is very important. I've seen RMH builds that have made the firebox too large and it wouldn't draft without a booster fan. This is one of the downsides to RMH. They require more feeding or need to be very large to heat large spaces or large masses. Batch box designs are possible but I've heard it's challenging to get right without experience with standard j tube designs.

Lighthouse 2y ago

How does the heat travel horizontally?

rev.hodl 2y ago

There is a riser inside the barrel which traps the smoke from the fire inside. This forces the smoke to combust, that combustion plus the surface area of the barrel rapidly cooling the gasses creates a pump-like action forcing the exhaust horizontally. There is a slight incline on all the ductwork too. Additionally, by designing the final exit towards the chimney to be close to the barrel, it gets heated and creates an additional draft. This heater drafts really well too because the chimney is in the center of the house so it's always warmer than the outside temperature. There's a lot of factors to consider when trying to figure out how much horizontal duct can be supported by the system at various sizes of ducting so it takes a little bit of figuring and testing. That's why I built it in stages. I'm confident after using it for several years that I could run even more horizontal duct if I had space for it.

₿logging₿itcoin 2y ago

You do the coolest stuff with heat. Oxymoron intended.

Jim Smij 2y ago

this...

#smij approved

#gsd #grow #money #btc #rmh #selfreliance #selfsufficiency #permies

nostr:nevent1qqs0jl7dlq5n6h6gup3xwm6nl0qkw2wt9fkaw656zxqyyh56mxfye5gpzemhxue69uhhyetvv9ujumn0wd68ytnzv9hxgq3qf5pre6wl6ad87vr4hr5wppqq30sh58m4p33mthnjreh03qadcajsxpqqqqqqzj43kdh

nobody 2y ago

Pretty amazing system. I dream of adding this to our cabin when we get out of the village here in the next year or two. Sips firewood versus conventional wood burning fireplaces. I initially saw this design on Fouch Family Off Grid on YouTube

rev.hodl 2y ago

I saw fouch build theirs too! Because they used cob it they were able to save a lot of space and still get the same heat capacity from the mass.

Jim Smij 2y ago

I think I first saw a rmh on Paul Wheaton's youtube years ago.

I stopped following the fouchs after their bashing of Paul... but anyway... the Rev here is an inspiration!!

rev.hodl 2y ago

Have you been to Wheaton Labs in Montana? I've known a few people that have also attended events there, several years back now, and echoed similar criticism as Fouch. I've never been there myself, maybe I'll find my way there one day. I think Fouch stopped making videos pretty shortly after their critique of Paul Wheaton for what it's worth.

CiderMaker 2y ago

Extremely high quality note 👌👍

CiderMaker 2y ago

Bitcoin is energy money. A matter of time until all energy is priced in bitcoin.

Evident from this high quality note from @rev.hodl . Pay attention

nostr:nevent1qqsxlrvat999wlsqh44lf69nvqwd60d0gstakzy0fw2mesveazx0fycpzpmhxue69uhkummnw3ezumt0d5hsygzdqg7wnh7htflnqadcarsggqytu9ap7agvvw6auus7dmug8tw8v5psgqqqqqqswxgese

nostr:nevent1qqs0jl7dlq5n6h6gup3xwm6nl0qkw2wt9fkaw656zxqyyh56mxfye5gpzdmhxue69uhk7enxvd5xz6tw9ec82c30qgsy6q3ua80awknlxp6m368qssqghct6ra6scca4meepumhcswkuwegrqsqqqqqpuaa6v2

IdahoPuma 2y ago

Cool, how long did it take to build?

rev.hodl 2y ago

It took a few weeks, I built the core outside first, tested it, dismantled it, rebuilt it inside, tested it, built the ductwork, tested it, too it apart, built the box and rebuilt the ductwork, filled it with gravel (this was the most labor intensive part, took a friend and I several hours hauling gravel), then I made the finishing stuff so it was more of a process than a self contained project.

Mark Camper 2y ago

Nice work, Rev!

The setup reminds me of the old Czech kitchen stoves (Austria, Bavaria had the same ones - kachelofen).

They usually build a stove top over the fire for cooking & tile up the rest. And mainly, build a day bed of sort and benches around the ducts. It's famously a very popular lazy spot in the house in the winters - warm, and easy access to the stove top goulash/stew :-)

rev.hodl 2y ago

This looks like the exact same concept except what I'm working with is way more hillbilly... Very nice examples, if I ever build a house I would probably design this sort heater into it.

elsat 1y ago

😍

Laeserin 1y ago

Yeah #lifegoals

Know so many people that have one.

Laeserin 1y ago

They add a hot water spiral, too.

𝔼𝕣𝕪𝕟 𝔹𝕣𝕒𝕔𝕔𝕠 1y ago

Beautifully cozy 🥰

When I was a little girl I had a book of Russian folktales. In one, “Lazy Ivan” was always sneaking naps on top of the stove. That never made sense to me, growing up with an electric range, but it looks really appealing now!

Mark Camper 1y ago

Yea, that sounds like a classic Ivan to me.

ᴛʜᴇ ᴅᴇᴀᴛʜ ᴏꜰ ᴍʟᴇᴋᴜ 1y ago

Vanka! - i had a friend in bulgaria called Ivan, they called him "Vankata" The Ivan.

Badsamm 2y ago

Love it.

LightningSpore 2y ago

I am here for this content!

PaddleManJoe 2y ago

Is it hard to scrape the ash out of that tight little J-Box?

rev.hodl 2y ago

It's not hard but it's probably the hardest thing about the normal operation of it. I usually scrape it out with an old cottage container in the morning before I light the fire. A couple full scoops usually and it's never hot or smoldering. I can let it go a couple days if I'm being lazy but it drafts better without the ash. It also depends on the wood.

brah 2y ago

Yo for some reason I thought the rocket mass heaters were like a conspiracy theory or something- I stumbled on reading about them last year and they seem much more efficient than wood stoves but I’ve never seen one in real life

They burn less would and radiate heat longer but at lower temps than a wood stove right?

Very cool

rev.hodl 2y ago

It's the real deal for sure. I burn 1/3rd the wood my neighbor does and he still supplements with propane. Also, I can burn essentially any punky or low btu wood and still get a lot out of it. I'm currently burning some dead standing as that's got mushrooms growing out of it.

jb55 1y ago

Very cool!

Gigi 1y ago

Oh wow. Thanks for sharing!

Artur…qywr 1y ago

Wow! I’m going down the Rocket Mass Heater rabbit hole on YouTube 🤩🤯 Love it 💜

61bb909b... 1y ago

I love Bitcoiners.

Erik 1y ago

Awesome, love this post!

Swan Tea 1y ago

Wow. So cool. I love Nostr people, so resourceful.

NoSerfdom 1y ago

So cool

hot*

Stavros 1y ago

Steam punk!

Bill Monroe 1y ago

This is super cool. Never seen one with pea gravel before. Usually I just see the ones with cob around the pipes.

rev.hodl 1y ago

I heard of the pea gravel design from Pail Wheaton. It's faster to build and disassemble. Easier to modify over time but not as good as catching and storing heat as cob.

rev.hodl 11mo ago

### Learn Permaculture: Apply Self Regulation and Accept Feedback

While last winter the rocket mass heater was the primary source of heat, this winter miners are doing the heavy lifting. Basically, with two glamping style rentals at the homestead last summer, the amount of firewood sales drastically increased to the point where wood stacked for winter heating was getting sold to guests. Then came the realization, the value of the firewood was greater sold to guests than it was used to heat the house, when taking Bitcoin mining into consideration. What started off as reluctance to sell the winter heat source turned into finding ways to sell more. If all the firewood was sold the there would be more than enough money to pay for the electricity to heat the house with miners. The trade off is resilience, if the power goes out, having some wood for heat will come in handy. So the feedback loop was to counterintuitively sell as much winter heating wood to guests as possible and the self regulation was to hold enough back to have a back up source of heat if the power goes out, miners break, ect. The rocket mass heater is one of the most effective systems built on the homestead check out how it was used last season below. I expect this year to be an anomaly, and go back to mostly wood heat next winter.

nostr:nevent1qqs0jl7dlq5n6h6gup3xwm6nl0qkw2wt9fkaw656zxqyyh56mxfye5guxrrmn

#permaculture #permies #homesteading #meshtadel #learnpermaculture #rocketmassheater #bitcoinmining #doublespendenergy #woodburner

AC 11mo ago

Rocket mass heaters should be the central design feature of underground pole shift survival structures.

nostr:nprofile1qqsy6q3ua80awknlxp6m368qssqghct6ra6scca4meepumhcswkuwegppemhxue69uhkummn9ekx7mp0qyghwumn8ghj7mn0wd68ytnhd9hx2tcpzamhxue69uhkummnw3ezumn0dahx2uewvdhk6tc8vdatl has there been work done to incorporate an ability to cook food with a RMH? Barrel cooktop or is that chamber too cool?

nostr:nevent1qqs0jl7dlq5n6h6gup3xwm6nl0qkw2wt9fkaw656zxqyyh56mxfye5gpz9mhxue69uhkummnw3ezuamfdejj7q3qf5pre6wl6ad87vr4hr5wppqq30sh58m4p33mthnjreh03qadcajsxpqqqqqqzxz6fck

rev.hodl 8mo ago

Here is a compilation of all my favorite mining notes from the last year. I guess use Bitcoin miners in almost every way I can think of.

Sous-Vide Bitcoin Mining Hot Water Heater, featuring canola oil as the dielectric fluid.

nostr:nevent1qqsyy4cafedg7gc3ely4zq6vw443dpy5flpd26uu62zrrrxuxx5vg4gpz4mhxue69uhhyetvv9ujuerpd46hxtnfduhsygzdqg7wnh7htflnqadcarsggqytu9ap7agvvw6auus7dmug8tw8v5psgqqqqqqsjznzw7

Hashing Space Heaters for Local Plebs

nostr:nevent1qqs87enmugtr8weq4prxw43dwn3u3gkr08nahcwdtjn5xwqnsvmhylspz4mhxue69uhhyetvv9ujuerpd46hxtnfduhsygzdqg7wnh7htflnqadcarsggqytu9ap7agvvw6auus7dmug8tw8v5psgqqqqqqs5hd9fm

Hot water heater with canola oil

nostr:nevent1qqsgad5hq936ryzl0396u6pjdxp85mwv465g755vwmmghruxf7wrr7cpz4mhxue69uhhyetvv9ujuerpd46hxtnfduhsygzdqg7wnh7htflnqadcarsggqytu9ap7agvvw6auus7dmug8tw8v5psgqqqqqqsj9vrd6

Direct DC with grid-tie backup proof of concept

nostr:nevent1qqspfzer95lcdjd6rr4zr64sm7adgmpk96h4pg3d4d6jz83nvsrpvagpzamhxue69uhhyetvv9ujuvrcvd5xzapwvdhk6tczypxsy08fmlt45leswkuw3cyyqz97z7slw5xx8dw7wg0xa7yr4hrk2qcyqqqqqqg0r8ct3

Clothes Dryer v2

nostr:nevent1qqsgxfw7tf2sswcpn2m2x3zlnx7ajptjft9nksps9tq7wcqncyf0wjgg4rw30

Dehydrator

nostr:nevent1qqsff53rvdept45kkjs67kj25q4mrkqg7lzrzzy8qmgpy3tu5znsrzslkefy3

Cannabis heater

nostr:nevent1qqsfamfmm6z0e7h3j7wf0tw9x0qrjdakjvpq2msrrptp55047x75n7g3t2r8n

Cannabis Dryer

nostr:nevent1qqstv5psutxm8jng7u8wcfdjykge0p0pwkf3y4at7696zj5fj9sr3ccpzamhxue69uhhyetvv9ujuvrcvd5xzapwvdhk6tczypxsy08fmlt45leswkuw3cyyqz97z7slw5xx8dw7wg0xa7yr4hrk2qcyqqqqqqgmhv00p

Solar mining

nostr:nevent1qqstfc7vd8fjms5zjhhhw4866u9ngnx9cm5w5sp7jq4547yw6w2amkqt5q7rw

Maple Syrup Miner v1 (still need to make the v2 note)

nostr:nevent1qqszjqlg2g0h65rd968y0sjsu9tfmuahg6j5gcg43yexd099efsdjyqydfsau

Hash while the fees shine

nostr:nevent1qqs0jl7dlq5n6h6gup3xwm6nl0qkw2wt9fkaw656zxqyyh56mxfye5guxrrmn

#bitcoin #bitcoinmining #plebminer #homesteading #permaculture