We made it!!!

Well we made it, finally after an arduous and exhausting trip. If anything could go wrong, it did. We got a flat tire on highway, on way to get another tire, the spare came off and went through the bottom of the camper. After getting two new tires, off we go...then the radiator sprung a leak, then transmission went out. So we ditched the van in Colorado and rented a U-Haul to pull camper the rest of the way here. We are getting settled in. I started digging a root cellar/ emergency shelter. I am digging it all by hand, it is apprx 20ft by 18ft. I took a break and moved on to digging the driveway, also by hand. I have 200ft. of 500ft done. There is still alot to do, too much to mention. I have some leads on a few jobs, the locals are very helpful when they find out we just moved here. We got a P.O. Box, if anyone wants to correspond. It is P.O> box 2993 West Wendover, NV 89883.

Beagle Rescue

Found a couple of young beagles on there way to the pound. A local police officer had lost his home and can no longer take care of them. So they will be joining us at the ranch and used as guard dogs and herd dogs once we have birds. Thanks Officer Bruce.

Two Weeks Out

Well in just a couple of short weeks we will be starting our new life in the Valley. The house is mostly packed except for the things that are staying or we need. Hopefully we can get a laptop soon after moving so we can stay in touch with family. Miss Michael's family has been great to me over the last couple of years especially her mom. She has been wonderful to me I will miss her. I don't plan on ever coming back to Ohio but Michael will be coming back periodically to visit her family and with any luck bring my daughter back and forth, her mom said we could have her, so fingers crossed she don't change her mind.
So I will not be able to update this blog for a while after we move until I get a laptop but it shouldn't take to long once we are settled and then I will post photos of our setup and the building of our house.

Blessed Be

Turbine Testing Results

Although I did not hook up my volt meter when I did these tests I can tell you what it took to spin the thing. Ok since I couldn't get good winds here in Ohio we decided the best thing to do is to mount the turbine to the car and see what it took to turn it. So she drove and I hung out the window holding the turbine with one hand and holding myself in the car with the other. We reached 40 mph and the damn thing didn't move; there was a lot of resistance but the turbine didn't spin even a little. I think the blades being so short with the resistance of the gear box had something to do with this. So I added a beer can scoop on the end of each blade hoping this would create a kind of rocket thrust effect. Each can is at an estimated 30 deg. from parallel. I cut the top and bottom off and then cut them in half. Along each side I bent down 1/4 inch of the can to add to its strength. Miss Michael suggested that the cans not sit flat on the blades but rather rolled in just a little so that it would catch more wind. So after making these changes we went back out and at 15 mph the blades were spinning she hit 20 mph and I hollered for her to stop as I felt a bit worried for my face hitting those blades which wer now spinning good and fast. So we now have a working wind turbine and hope to work out a better design as we progress. Hopefully we can have a working wind farm on our ranch to help with our energy needs when we are done.

Wind Turbine

Home made wind turbine construction and testing.

Very simple construction, used 6" PVC pipe cut to 3" at hub end and 1" at tip. Sanded it smooth and attached to hub which is nothing more than a coffee can lid. I think I may need something a little stiffer but we will see when we get back to the valley in Aug. The motor is a 18 volt cordless drill with a permanent magnet motor the body of which I will be redoing to use as a protective cover, but i need to seal up the various holes and build a fin for it so it turns into the wind. It is better looking so far than I thought it would be so hopefully the trend continues.

Voltage testing is as follows: Hand cranking the motor produced at most but with little effort 8.36 volts and around 5.76 amps with a resulting 48 watts. Using another drill to turn the motor I was able to produce 18.7 volts at 14 amps giving me 261 watts max.

We haven't got enough wind to test this blade configuration for performace but it turns easily with no resistance so hopefully it works really well.

I have a 40 amp blocking diode to install in the positive line and I am thinking I can run a second turbine through this one diode. I am however unsure of this so if someone knows please leave a comment or email me.

I hope this has been helpful ... Blessed Be

Advertising

I've tagged the truck and ordered a couple of simple items we plan to make available for sale along with the regular output of the farm. Shirts and hats but we can also do many other items and are working on a more complex design as I have a bird for the logo but currently I need to freehand the art because what I have on digital file becomes to blurry as it it gets bigger.

I am considering doing some green construction ie... solar heaters , wind turbines and basic house upgrades including green houses and such for use as heating and cooling. Generally anything to help the community and make a buck. If your interested in a shirt or hat email me and I can offer a couple of designs and let you know how much. of course you could just come visit the ranch after Aug 1st of this year but we are not looking to get ostriches until next spring.

Wind verses Solar

I have acquired the parts to build a small wind turbine to help with our power needs. Don't be fooled into thinking you have to spend a couple of thousand dollars, fact is if your willing to build it yourself its fairly cheap. I haven't built mine yet as I don't have time and I would like to be in the valley to test the blade design against the winds in the valley.
I currently have a 15 volt brushless DC motor from a cordless grinder and a 40 amp blocking diode. Yes that's it for the electronics.
I will need to build or aquire a large gear wheel to use as a reducer so I get proper rpm's and then a windmill. I am thinking of using a canister style blade so it will better handle the valleys' high winds. I am concerned that on a small unit regular blades could snap off. I prob wont get around to working on this until at least a month or so after we arrive in the valley as there is alot of stuff to do. Fortunately we have solar panels to get us through but using the wind will make life alot easier, once its built of course.

Blessed Be

Solar Heater

Well my heater is mostly built I still want to frame it and make it look nice. I used a 2 mil plastic drop to cover the unit instead of plexiglass because its cheaper and it does not seem to affect its performance. Honestly I was worried a bit while I was building it that it would not perform well but praise be. THE THING WORKS. These temps are from a 3 min test; thats it just 3 min, unreal. I don't know why these things aren't all over the place. If anyone has any questions about the unit feel free to email me at michaeltimestwo@yahoo and I will be happy to answer them.

Solar Space Heaters

In my efforts to make sure we are comfortable while I build the house i have been checking a a more efficient way to heat our camper and wouldn't ya know it I found one so simple I can't believe I didn't think of it. Soda can space heater mounted on south wall. These unit are being professionally build in some places however most are build by those who use them. Simply by building multiple chimneys out of stacked soda cans and painting them black you create a natural heat collector. Place a low watt fan at the intake and you got a forced air solar heater. There are a lot of pages on this "Technology" so if you want to check it I recommend doing a search on passive solar heating for RV's or soda can heater. Its really cool and can make a big difference in heating smaller spaces. I will begin building our within the next week or two.

www.solarpowerathome.com/passive-solar-heater.html

Good News

Testing on the campers abilities continue; we now have lighting cooling heating and cooking taken care of. Currently we have 4 12v batteries hooked up with two inverters for different power needs. We can now run a small electric heater, an electric cook top, mini fridge, our microwave oven and any other item we may need. Keeping in mind that we have gas backups for all items except the microwave of course, I think our power needs are met. I would like a few more batteries in our bank and another set of solar panels but for now we are good. I would also like to get a wind generator down the road. The battery bank can be hooked up to a generator or even my truck in case of an emergency ( say long term cloud cover ). I need a new sky light, really i would rather plug the hole up but miss michael wants another vent so I will probably order one next week.
Bright Blessings to all

Congregation

I am considering starting a worship group open to all faiths from christian sects to pagan sects. Once in Nevada I will post flyer's and newspaper ads when I am ready. I believe there is someone watching over us but I also feel we all should be able to worship in our own ways without fear or prejudice.



Feel free to email me at michaeltimestwo@yahoo.com with comments or questions



Bright Blessings



Rev Michael Daniels

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Jack and Kolby

Say hello to Hollarbacks first feathered residents. The Pekin, Jack ( who I think is a girl ) and Kolby the mallard. These guys will be used as personal layers or just pets if I am wrong about the sexing.

Almost ready

Well tomorrow we go to hopefully get solar panels. The large inverter is on the way and several smaller ones we already have. Lights are hooked up and a small fan and forced air heater have been installed. All gas appliances are packed and set aside for emergency back up. Food is being purchased a little at a time right now we have two paper sacks full of food. Aug 1 is fast approaching and we will be ready.

Ordained

As of today I am now Reverend Michael Daniels, High Priest of the Wiccan tradition and able to perform handfastings, wiccanings and such. Once in Nevada I will have to apply to the state as each state has its own requirements. Basically you just need to prove you've been ordained by a sanctioned church which I have. So anyone desiring these services can contact me michaeltimestwo@yahoo.com .

Bright Blessings to you all.

New time line

Well due to circumstances beyond our control we will be moving our move date to around mid or late July. The camper is done; we just need to go pick up our solar panels. Personally i would like to use a wind turbine but for the time being we will settle for only solar. I have a couple of design plans for a turbine in mind and with the winds in the valley around 15 mph i think it will be a good investment. We plan on stocking our supplies for a couple of months and are nearly done with that. Perishable items will be all we need to get from town for a while.
Upon arriving i will need to build a temporary water harvester, I already have the plans and will be purchasing some of the materials when we arrive.
As far as finance goes we should be fine for the first 18months and will need in that time to find a way to turn a small profit to carry us through and into the future. All building techniques will be using methods that recycle and are free or mostly free. permits and such should be the biggest cost at the outset.
As far as birds go we hope to have some chickens to begin with and then by next spring be ready for the ostriches.
Preparing for this journey has been a long one and we have made lots of plans and experimented with different things. We have been working toward this move for two years and we believe we are ready.

Here are some more pics from our trip to pilot valley nevada.

Pilot Valley Nevada

Ok back from vacation in nevadas pilot valley. What a beautiful place it's like being in a post card. The local population wave and smile when they pass; the sky is blue as blue can be and the air is clean and fresh. We found no less than four eagle nests, mountain lion prints lust beyond our camp site on our land, prong horned antelope, and wild horses. Also cows and more cows, free range from a local rancher and hundreds of little lizards.

It's very windy in the valley, enough that it shook our van quite a bit so we will be "planting" our camper in a dugout parking place to help stablize it. The valley its self is dry but in west wendover the local smiths grocery has water in five gallon jugs and one gallon jugs. Along with blue rhino propane.

We found two grocery stores, a hardware store, several fast food resturants, a pawn store, and of course several casinos.

Following pilot valley road up to first street the traveling is smooth and fast but once you pass first street it becomes very rough and almost untravelable. So saying that the best way to montello is 80 to 233 which makes it very much out of the way. Saying that most of our business will be done in wendover.

Anyone interested in more pictures shoot us an email and we will be happy to share what we have as we took lots while we were out there.

Those of you buying land in the valley just know to be prepaired for a rough start but it will be worth it in the end if you stick with it and give it your all.

Composting

Realizing the need for an adequate means to dispose of organic waste which can not be recycled we will be composting everything we can. The goal of course is not to produce any "real" trash that we would have to transport to a landfill. I beleive the time for this practice of buring our "trash" has come to an end. If you could imagine your weekly garbage piled up for a year and then look at the size of your city and imagine that! Well don't stop there the whole country and the world is producing just as much.

Now having that image in your head consider this... The water you drink is nothing more than filtered ground water. Bad enough we have to put chemicals in our water to kill the bacteria from the sewage now some of the water is, once rain, has first filtered through this nasty mess. Bottoms up.

So in light of this though it may not seem like much we will be building a compost bin. Though purchasing one seems simplest it is also a waste of money. Do a little research first. I have found that at there most complicated they are just drums with holes drilled in them and a hinged door. There are simply to many ways to build them to list here but it really is easier and more ecofriendly to build it yourself.

The orchard sprouts

About a year ago I began trying to grow trees for an orchard; I only planted two seeds as an experiment and one grew. That particular tree is currently 14 inches tall and budding with new leaves.

Two weeks ago Michael ( my girlfriend ) and I planted a series of seeds we collected from grocery store apples. As of this post there are four sprouts. When these trees mature they will provide shade and food. Provided all the trees survive we will be able to make fresh apples available for purchase.

This endeavor will of course use a considerable amount of water, however we will have it "plugged in" to our grey water system so there will be no need for wasting this valuable resource.

Vacation

We have had alot of family ask are you coming back from Nevada when you go out in March. The answer is yes we are only going out for a week to total nine days. Using my van as a camper and using camping supplies we have received as gifts or bought we will be driving out and photographing the land. This is in advance of moving because we want to properly detail the development layout and make sure that when we do move we are more than ready.

Earthbag Resorces

I was requested this info and felt I should place it here. If your looking at earth bag building here are a few places it may be possible to get bags. I personally am using bags I receive from a local horse farm.

Regular & Misprint Bags:
Agriculture Bags MFG., Inc. C.H.K. Manufacturing, Inc. 960 98th Ave. Oakland, CA 94603 Tel. 510-632-5637 Fax 510-632-2056 Contact - Jeff Kuo
Innpack, LLC www.innpack.com Memphis, TN Contact: Nina Sanders 1-800-622-3695 Ext. 102
Polytex Fiber Corp www.polytex.com Houston, TX 1-800-628-0034 Contact: Denny Smith
www.esandbags.com
Bags & Tubes:
Berg Bag Company 410 Third Ave. North Minneapolis, MN 55401 1-800-658-7201
Central Bag Company www.centralbagcompany.com Kansas City, MO 1-816-471-0388 Contact: Chris Klimek
Fulton Pacific Packaging Co. www.fultonpacific.com 1-800-521-1414 Contact: Rett Schuler
MaxKatz Bag Co. P.O. Box 1666 Indianapolis, IN 46206-1666 1-800-225-3729 Contact: Don Katz, ext. 3666
NYP Corporation 805 East Grand St. Elizabeth, NJ 07201 1-908-351-6550
Donald Davis Bags1020 S. Church St. Ext. P.O. Box 8369, Spartanburg, S.C. 29305-83691-800-662-7756www.donalddavisbags.com

Another chicken egg

Ok so I wanted to try something a little more delicate and ornate than a skull. I'm not sure if I'm finished with this one yet. I really don't feel satisfied with it. I have another one I'm working on but it requires tools I don't have yet. It will be a functioning world globe on a chicken egg. Also my girlfriend said her sister had some brown eggs for us and those shells will be perfect for portraits.

House Plans

After doing research for the last several months looking for the best design for the area and using organic design; we think we finally found something we want. A hybrid organic using earthbag, strawbale and stick frame design. Using passive solar and an open floor plan we have even managed to incorporate an indoor greenhouse and a self cooling pantry.

This will be a three level structure south facing and the lower level will only be partially under ground and separated by a rail instead of a wall to allow for more even flow of air. I had hoped to do a house using just earthbags but this hybrid design seems to be better designed as far as insulating properties and self heating abilities.

We will be building up against the hill and using it to help with the thermal mass and this will also make it easier to incorporate a living roof on the back half of the structure; which will also add to the insulating properties.

We hope to be permitted to use a less conventional method of waste removal. Using a composting toilet and simply using waste drain water from sinks and showers for irrigation. In this way our landscaping efforts in permiculture will not be using extra water to be sustained but will become a part of our living home where everything has a purpose and nothing is wasted.

First Egg

Ok so this is a picture of the first carved egg I completed. I destroyed four others but everyone was a learning process. I will be making many more and will place there photos here. This one still needs soaked in bleach and clear coated but I still think it looks pretty good and it only took two hours start to finish. I'm thinking of trying a type of acid etching using vinegar but I need to go buy some more eggs. We will also be getting some eggs from Michael's' sister next time we go out there. These will be brown eggs and perfect for portrait carving as the color can be removed leaving the white calcium under shell left intact. Carving chicken eggs is kinda like petting a butterfly, you have to be so careful and gentle.

Random BS

So this is a satellite image of our property as you can see there is a creek that runs across the front and a small plateau in the back. From what I gather the creek is seasonal but until a well is dug we will be incorporating water storage tanks and collection, for us and the animals. My biggest concern is for my alligator making sure he gets enough heat and light. Running off of solar and propane we will have to rely on the windows for UV light and with a little extra insulation from a straw or hay wrap we should be good. My gators name is cuddles and will be the first critter set up for or little zoo. However there will be no petting him. We are considering several animal for this part of the business but haven't really decided on anything final yet. Likely we will talk to people in the area and get a feel for what they would like to see and get close to.

I have started a couple types of apple trees from seed, the cherry didn't take, and will be putting a small green house on the land where I will grow these trees and some other garden items for consumption including herbs and likely some tuber vegetables.

We will have a couple of chickens and ducks for eggs and eventually meat.

There is a lot to consider and more to do we have started several lists and think of more stuff every day. I am looking forward to the hard work ahead .

Ostrich Egg Art

One product we will be offering once we get up and going is ostrich eggs, both ornamental and for food ( one ostrich egg is equal to twelve chicken eggs, that's some omelet!!) The shells are very thick and make them perfect for carving, and their size make for great detail. We will be perfecting our technique using less expensive chicken and duck eggs. We figure if we can carve a little egg, we can carve a mega egg.

Wild Horses

As i have been checking news articles and such for the area I have found that the BLM is considering thinning the wild horse population by putting them down. When we move; within the first year, after building the necessary structures and fencing. Michael and I will be adopting at least two from the Winnemucca district office, where they take the horses after capture. Anyone reading this with facilities and enough money and time to care for a horse I would encourage to do the same. I know as humans push in wildlife is pushed out but I really hate to see them killed just so someone can have some more land.

Recycling a camper

This will be our home while building is taking place during the first three years. Very small and cozy for two adults but we really love each other and spend time just hanging out in our camper now so it will be OK.

This is a 18 foot camper i got from a junk yard for $400. It was in horrible shape and in need of major work. For the last 8months we have been tearing it apart and putting it back together. We are almost done with it just need a few more solar panels and batteries and some paint.

The counter top my girlfriend picked up at a discount store for $35 dollars; most of the storage is under the bed which is covered with down comforters to keep us warm on desert nights. We will also be wrapping the camper with bails of straw at least up to window level for extra insulation. I spent some time out in deathvalley when i was in the army and beleive me it gets cold.

Introduction to a green ostrich ranch

Well let's see, last year we purchased 20 acres in Nevada's' Pilot Valley and will be making our first trip very soon. On this visit we will be exploring the landscape and planning for our future home.

With everything that's going on in this country and no less the planet we feel it's important to take extreme steps toward green living. Planning on building a self sufficient ostrich ranch and possibly a small petting zoo as well where visitors will be welcome.

Currently I am looking into organic building techniques and want to build in a style known as earthbag. Using composting, solar power and wind generators; we want to stay off grid.

We will be posting as research continues, including photos and new ideas as they come in.

Any advice or comments are welcome. michaeltimestwo@yahoo.com