The sugar maple trees are tapped and sap is flowing!
https://v.nostr.build/6yVO.mp4
Sugar from trees, the maple syrup is one of the first yields of the year from the natural capital at the homestead.
Ended up with a total of 116 taps this year, close to double the taps from last season. Last year I started tapping all the trees a week later (and I still missed a week of flow this year), not to mention it took me a couple weeks to get all the taps in. This year I managed get all the taps in over just a few days.
While it's hard work to prepare the equipment, tap the trees, and process the sap into syrup. It's the first opportunity to spend a lot of time outside in the woods getting exercise. We get all our sugar for the year from the trees growing on our land. I'm grateful we have the opportunity to glean all the benefits and yeilds the process of maple sugaring offers and to have such wonderful trees in our own backyard.
#permaculture #permies #homesteading #maplesyrup #maplesugaring #maplesugarbush #sugarmaple #abundance #meshtadel
Using a homemade reverse osmosis system to concentrate maple sap
https://v.nostr.build/K362.mp4
When I started making maple syrup, I only tapped a few trees and boiled off the water with propane. It was clear that continuing to use propane wouldn't scale but at the same time I didn't want to spend the time building a wood fired boiler or the money buying one. I had just started heating the house with wood via a rocket mass heater, so if I was going to prepare firewood it would be more valuable heating the house instead of boiling maple sap.
Ultimately, I found some plans to build an affordable reverse osmosis system which would concentrate the sap by removing most of the water before starting to boil.
I used it successfully for a couple years but I got greedy and left it out over night. It ended up freezing and was destroyed by the ice. I was reaching the limit of what I could process with it which was why I tried to run it overnight in order to keep up. This mistake, forced me to upgrade to the current system which should allow me to continue to scale the maple sugar making system here at the homestead.
Some things I want to clarify from the video, the filter can concentrate the sap from around 2 brix to about 6 brix and the pump uses ~45w of power. The actual energy cost to concentrate the sap will depend on the starting sugar content and temperature. So when I say 65 cents that is a very general figure. The biggest takeaway is that the filter if maintained properly will concentrate sap using much less energy than boiling. However, if the filter gets fouled (or frozen...) much of the cost savings are erased.
#homesteading #permaculture #permies #maplesyrup #maplesugaring #maplesugarbush
It's been an adventure learning how to do it all, at this point I'm ready to finish the project up and move on to other things. Been at it for around 7 years...
Very close to having a door on the 20ft tiny house!
I was able to scrounge up just enough materials to build a frame for the door and get it hung as a test. Next I took everything back apart and started finishing it all. A good sanding and a couple coats of tung oil should do the trick. The strained glass is very fragile so I'm planning on sandwiching it between two sheets of polycarbonate to help protect it and make it easier to clean. One piece at a time this project is getting closer and closer to the finish line. My excitement continues to grow.
#homesteading #woodworking #tinyhouse #carpentry
I try to take good care of the batteries but at this point I don't have good automation or knowledge to be sure I'm not trashing them. If the batteries degrade prematurely, it will be the cost of FAFO to learn.
Ran a miner with solar power for the first time in two months!
https://v.nostr.build/jDqg.mp4
The sun was finally shining today so I was able to plug in a miner to the solar power system at the yurt. I was only able to run it for a couple hours though. I decided to give the batteries a chance to float for a few hours before putting the heavy load on them.
The miner was using 1200w while the panels were producing 1600w on the new array and the other older array was float charging the batteries.
The yurt is acting as cannabis storage for now because it's closed to guests for the winter. I was hoping to use the space to process something in the dehydrator too but I didn't have a long enough ethernet cable handy. A vonnets wifi bridge is on the way so next time the sun shines I'll be mining and dehydrating too.
#permaculture #permies #homesteading #plebminer #solarpower #weedstr #cannabis #offgrid #offgridmining #homemining #yurt
Achieving the best utilization of the solar power for hashing at the yurt since expanding the system.
While the sunny days have been few and far between, any chance I get to try to improve the mining efficiency with the solar power system, I take. I've managed to make a few improvements recently that have lead to more power utilization for longer periods of time.
The miner that I'm currently using is supposed to run on 220v. It can run on 110v but will draw around 1800w which could damage the apw3++ and apw7 power supplies I have.
My solution to allow for the miner to run on 110v is to unplug one or two hash boards lowering the power usage to 1200w or 600w. But now that I more than enough power to run the full 1800w I realized, I can power the third hash board with a second power supply. Doing so added over 30 percent more hash to the system and I'm now using the maximum amount of power I can produce without adding an additional circuit.
The second improvement was to use an analog timer to help automate the system. Sometimes I'm unable to turn the miner on right when the batteries are topped off in the morning. Now, with the timer, the miner will turn on and off automatically if I don't get to it sooner. Plus, it will turn off before draining the batteries in the evening. There are far better ways to achieve this automation but while I figure that out this quick fix is getting me more time hashing!
#homesteading #permaculture #permies #meshtadel #grownostr #plebminer #offgrid #solarpower #offgridmining #homemining #bitcoin #bitcoinmining
I'm starting the cannabis seed this weekend.
Finish trim in this 20ft tiny house is done!
For the most part, all the trim in the tiny house is made from various kinds of wood, all reclaimed and custom made. It was a much bigger undertaking than I expected (of course) but what I learned from the experience was incredibly valuable. The more experience I built the faster I got when it came to the finish carpentry. At first, when I didn't know what I was doing, I felt the need to make everything perfect while giving myself no room for error even though I was learning. Ironically, as I learned more, I felt much more comfortable allowing more room for error. Similar to how everything is trade offs when it comes to Bitcoin, I've realized the tradeoffs on perfection with finish carpentry. The 80/20 rule rings true as ever in this instance, 80 percent of the result comes quickly but the real decision comes down to how much time is it worth spending achieving the final 20 percent. It's becoming clear that now that I've built up the skill to get the first 80 percent done quickly, that the diminishing returns on time spent on the final 20 percent just doesn't add up. I've learned to be comfortable with imperfection just so I can actually cross the finish line. A valuable lesson that took over 7 years to learn on this project. Yeehaw!
#homesteading #permaculture #permies #meshtadel #grownostr #woodworking #tinyhouse
If you bought something from the apothecary store yesterday, please confirm what item you purchased. DM me. There is an issue in, where I can't see what payments are for which items.
If you are buying something, please leave some way to contact you when you check out. npub is the suggested method.
Thanks for all the support!
Rabbit Ramen with homestead soft boiled egg
Slow cooker a rabbit in homemade ramen broth with a soft boiled egg laid this morning from our chickens. We still have several rabbits waiting to be harvested out in the colony. Such an underrated protein source.
#homesteading #permies #permaculture #meshtadel #foodstr #rabbit #ramen #homegrown
Elderberry cuttings making their way out to the plebs!
Propagating plants reminds me of free and open source software. This package of cuttings will provide a lifetime of elderberry plants along with the ability to continue to propagate and share the wonderful medical plant with others, spreading it's yeilds far and wide, building resilience in the permanent culture that permanent money facilitates!
#permaculture #permies #homesteading #meshtadel #propagation #cuttings #elderberry #naturalmedicine #plantmedicine
The sugar maple trees are tapped and sap is flowing!
https://v.nostr.build/6yVO.mp4
Sugar from trees, the maple syrup is one of the first yields of the year from the natural capital at the homestead.
Ended up with a total of 116 taps this year, close to double the taps from last season. Last year I started tapping all the trees a week later (and I still missed a week of flow this year), not to mention it took me a couple weeks to get all the taps in. This year I managed get all the taps in over just a few days.
While it's hard work to prepare the equipment, tap the trees, and process the sap into syrup. It's the first opportunity to spend a lot of time outside in the woods getting exercise. We get all our sugar for the year from the trees growing on our land. I'm grateful we have the opportunity to glean all the benefits and yeilds the process of maple sugaring offers and to have such wonderful trees in our own backyard.
#permaculture #permies #homesteading #maplesyrup #maplesugaring #maplesugarbush #sugarmaple #abundance #meshtadel
Head over to the Lake Satoshi Retreat in August and stay at the yurt before or after! The dates are still open.
Just wait until you start manually tuning it for max efficiency.
Check out this year in review note, lots of homesteading, permaculture, and Bitcoin mining going on!
I finally got a chance to listen to this podcast episode with my buddy nostr:npub16k4wup6jvmzn8fxgj28e3d603zqf5au5j8e2je67vf0gt4kvkh5qzgafa9. Sooooo cool!
Once people start changing their mindset, we’re going to find more and more opportunities to use miners to generate heat instead of traditional resistive heating elements.
He talks about using miners for a hot water heater, baseboard heater, hot tub, and swimming pool. nostr:npub1f5pre6wl6ad87vr4hr5wppqq30sh58m4p33mthnjreh03qadcajs7gwt3z has talked about his produce dehydrator and clothes dryer. I know people are already heating greenhouses with miners. I’m also thinking about breweries that need a constant supply of 170F water.
What else can you think of? nostr:note1tesvh6ads9quezgxvnmkmlkzetsflkpwj708dq2k20t38nrlnsxq97vy5z
It's only the beginning! I'm going to do my best to continue to stack functions of the heat reuse and solar power! Lots of great mining experiments ahead here at the homestead!
Mutton shank, slow cooked. With potatoes and rabbit gravy. Fiat organic peas and carrots.
We've got plenty of meat this winter between the lamb, mutton and rabbits. The vegetable garden last season didn't get enough attention so we have already eaten up most of our vegetables. Still have squash and pickles but no sauerkraut, or salsa. No frozen broccoli, no green beans... Needless to say the vegetables will get better attention this summer.
#homesteading #permaculture #permies #meshtadel #grownostr #mutton #dinner #foodstr
Permaculture and Psychology: Well-being is Capital
Announcing the second monthly permaculture nest! Wednesday February 7th at 8pm eastern time on nostr nests.
Tune in and chill out while I talk with Liv (the homesteading bitcoin psychologist) and nostr:npub1n04sq6fgwp38wehyhqfngk3q90y658m5qtk8z5t3vrvkzwmu2q2sc0qlga (a bitcoining permie of high craftsmanship) about psychology as seen through the lens of permaculture and how it relates to well-being.
To me well-being is vital capital, the capital accrued when time is spent improving and maintaining physical and mental health. Vital capital is a form of capital often discounted when building resilience in one's wealth. However, without well-being many other forms of capital cease to have value.
What are some ways living a life harmoniously with nature builds vital capital and how does psychology play a roll in that?
Join us as we explore this deep and thought provoking topic.
Zaps are split with the nostr:npub1luwkteu2eq2e97n7hw0tlj03vvgguzl0srm3vkxz2jt75wpaf9tspt9cqr for the badass flier design. Thanks for the time and effort!!
#permaculture #permies #homesteading #bitcoin #meshtadel #psychology #vitalcapital #well-being #bitcoinmeetup #plebchain #nostrnests
Thanks for tuning in everyone! If you missed it, keep an eye out for the recording.
Permaculture and Psychology: Well-being is Capital
Announcing the second monthly permaculture nest! Wednesday February 7th at 8pm eastern time on nostr nests.
Tune in and chill out while I talk with Liv (the homesteading bitcoin psychologist) and nostr:npub1n04sq6fgwp38wehyhqfngk3q90y658m5qtk8z5t3vrvkzwmu2q2sc0qlga (a bitcoining permie of high craftsmanship) about psychology as seen through the lens of permaculture and how it relates to well-being.
To me well-being is vital capital, the capital accrued when time is spent improving and maintaining physical and mental health. Vital capital is a form of capital often discounted when building resilience in one's wealth. However, without well-being many other forms of capital cease to have value.
What are some ways living a life harmoniously with nature builds vital capital and how does psychology play a roll in that?
Join us as we explore this deep and thought provoking topic.
Zaps are split with the nostr:npub1luwkteu2eq2e97n7hw0tlj03vvgguzl0srm3vkxz2jt75wpaf9tspt9cqr for the badass flier design. Thanks for the time and effort!!
#permaculture #permies #homesteading #bitcoin #meshtadel #psychology #vitalcapital #well-being #bitcoinmeetup #plebchain #nostrnests
Permaculture and Psychology: Well-being is Capital
Announcing the second monthly permaculture nest! Wednesday February 7th at 8pm eastern time on nostr nests.
Tune in and chill out while I talk with Liv (the homesteading bitcoin psychologist) and nostr:npub1n04sq6fgwp38wehyhqfngk3q90y658m5qtk8z5t3vrvkzwmu2q2sc0qlga (a bitcoining permie of high craftsmanship) about psychology as seen through the lens of permaculture and how it relates to well-being.
To me well-being is vital capital, the capital accrued when time is spent improving and maintaining physical and mental health. Vital capital is a form of capital often discounted when building resilience in one's wealth. However, without well-being many other forms of capital cease to have value.
What are some ways living a life harmoniously with nature builds vital capital and how does psychology play a roll in that?
Join us as we explore this deep and thought provoking topic.
Zaps are split with the nostr:npub1luwkteu2eq2e97n7hw0tlj03vvgguzl0srm3vkxz2jt75wpaf9tspt9cqr for the badass flier design. Thanks for the time and effort!!
#permaculture #permies #homesteading #bitcoin #meshtadel #psychology #vitalcapital #well-being #bitcoinmeetup #plebchain #nostrnests
Tonight! Come one, come all. Tune in and chill out for the Permaculture and Psychology nest. Look for the link around 7:45pm Eastern.