Category: HVAC

Letter Re: An “Energy-Independent” Village in Germany

Mr. Rawles: As an engineer interested in long term sustainability I was most interested in the item from Troy H. mentioning Juhnde, Germany. I took a look at their web site and ran the numbers to look at whether such an installation is commercially viable. The capital costs listed were EU 5,400,000 or about USD $7,900,000 at present exchange rates; It’s not clear when the overall system was constructed but the hot water pipeline system was built around 2005. Apparently, and I will have to look into this further, all of the capital costs were from public funds. This translates …


Letter Re: Some Observations on Fortifications Versus Camouflaged Retreats

Last night I watched Jesse Ventura’s “Conspiracy Theory” show which centered around the government’s cover up of the coming 2012 scenario. The show featured people converting missile silos to survival bunkers. Historical precedent will quickly point out a glaring problem with this approach. Consider that relative to the technological level of their day, European castles were more heavily fortified than any bunker being built today (by virtue of the fact that your average monarch of Medieval times had far more resources available than anybody seeking to build a shelter). Still, no castle ever withstood siege indefinitely. No matter how much …


Letter Re: A Composting Hot Water Heater Experiment

Dear James Wesley, The following is a method of obtaining hot water in an off-grid situation. Even more exciting than the 6.5 earthquake this week was our new hot shower! We still have “no” indoor plumbing on our rather recent homestead. Showers in hot weather consist of a hot garden hose. Cold weather requires heating water on the stove and pouring it over ones self while standing on the yurt porch. Or just a spit bath with a washcloth if it’s too cold to stand on the porch. But I have seen what other clever off-grid folks cook up for …


Two Letters Re: “Cross-wire” Your Home Heating and Save Money

Mr. Rawles, First, let me extend my heartfelt sympathy to you and your family on the passing of your wife. As a Christian, I am confident she is in a good place and free of her suffering, though sorely missed by the rest of us. I have been a heating/ air-conditioning / refrigeration technician for the last 30 years. I own and use combustion analyzers to maximize performance of my customer’s appliances and both minimize the carbon monoxide (CO) they produce but also take a snap-shot of the ambient CO level in the building. I feel it is important to …


“Cross-wire” Your Home Heating and Save Money, by Ted B.

This article explains one way that you can configure a hybrid heating system for your house in a Schumeresque environment, but it is also potentially a way to cut your heating bills before TSHTF, depending on the prices of various heating fuels in your area. We live in North Idaho, in a house that would be better suited in Hawaii.  It’s watertight but mostly a heat sieve.  Each of the last few years as the propane prices jumped each winter, we ended up getting hit with astronomical bills to keep the inside of our rather large home livable in outdoor …


Letter Re: Survival Notes from the Dominican Republic

Jim, I’ve recently read several of your books and found them both interesting and educational. I would like to offer some personal insights based on my experiences from living in a small rural town one of the larger Caribbean islands. Most of my notes are cheap solutions used by people in developing nations all over the world. There may be better ways, but these work and cost next to nothing. Water: There is something especially disturbing about opening the faucet and hearing a sucking air sound. Not being able to shower, flush, or wash dishes is the worst. One or …


Letter Re: Wood Stove Selection, Operation, and Safety

James, You’ve had two good letters on woodstoves recently. I’d like to add a few thoughts based of heating and cooking with wood for a couple of decades in the Colorado mountains. I have never been more contented than when there’s a blizzard raging outside and I’m inside next to a nice warm woodstove. That being said, woodstoves and chainsaws account for the vast majority of domestic emergencies in many rural areas and a constant source of amusement for EMTs. As has been written, the importance of a properly installed chimney cannot overemphasized. Do get a quote for a good …


Lessons Learned from Hurricanes Ike, Rita, and Katrina, by TiredTubes

In September, 2008, Hurricane Ike–a Category 4 hurricane–pounded the Gulf Coast of the southern US. Some coastal communities like Crystal Beach no longer really exist. Inland, life was severely disrupted. For those of us on the South Coast hurricanes are a frequent reality. We were quite well prepared, but used the disruptions and dislocations as a test and opportunity to tune up our preparations. 1. Be ready to help others and to accept help We didn’t need much during Ike, but the power went out before a neighbor finished boarding up his house. My 1 KW inverter, hooked up to …


Letter Re: Lamar Alexander’s Solar Homesteading E-Book

Jim- Your recent link to an item in the Preparedness Forum (100 things that go first…) led me to other parts of the forum where I found a link to Lamar Alexander’s Solar Homesteading e-book. Besides the videos/pictures etc. an e-book is offered for $5. What a bargain! It is full of useful practical ideas, for example: a barrel-in-a-barrel digester that he uses to fuel his gasoline generator which he had converted to run on natural gas; how to dig a “driven-point” well; a solar dishwasher. And on and on. Your readers will want to get this e-book! BTW, I …


Letter Re: Wood Stove Selection, Operation, and Safety

James Wesley, We have heated our current home with a wood stove and a pellet stove for ten years now. I disagree with one aspect of the recent article on your web site. Our wood stove in the basement is set up to burn coal as well as wood. Where we live in Colorado there are a large number of dead trees — from pine beetles — that we can and do burn for free. However, with pine wood even the best stove will not hold the coals overnight. Hence the ability to use coal is a godsend. When the …


Wood Stove Selection, Operation, and Safety, by Kevin K.

Heating with wood has been a “necessary” tradition for thousands of years, but with the advent of the industrial revolution, and the advancement in methods of heating homes and buildings, heating with wood became less and less popular.  During the 1970s Energy Crises, there was interest in seeking “alternative” energy sources, and people started to rediscover the benefits of heating with wood. In the early 1990s, gas stoves and inserts took the place of traditional wood burning.  People were just too busy to deal with the time and energy required with wood.  In the last few years however, wood has …


Three Letters Re: Heating With Wood

James Wesley, That was a good informative article by SGT B., however there was one glaring omission in the safety section : “Which brings me to the always wear appropriate safety gear rule. Always do. Period. Long sleeves and pants, boots, gloves, helmet with a face-guard or safety glasses, hearing protection.” He didn’t mention Kevlar chainsaw safety chaps, which jam a chain in milliseconds are now considered required for wood cutting, one moment of inattentiveness and your thigh, shin, etc, can be hamburger. The least expensive, yet best ones out there are from Labonville. Remember chainsaws don’t just cut flesh …


Heating With Wood, by SGT B.

I don’t know that you would call my father a prepper. He was more just in love with the idea of economic independence and living in the woods. When I was nine (after the woods behind us were clear cut for an apartment complex), we sold our house in the suburbs, bought ten acres far enough out that he figured the developers would never find us, and built a home in the woods. We heated this house with wood, and as any of you who grew up with a wood stove can already guess, that meant I spent a good …


Letter Re: How to Make Your Own “Black Out” OPSEC Window Panels

James, Another good product for light shades is Reflectix Insulation. Basically Reflectix is bubble wrap with aluminum foil bonded to one or both sides. I have used it to make thermal drapes for my home, and know that it blocks all visible light. You can buy it at most Home Improvement centers. It commonly comes in 25′ rolls that are 16″, 24″, or 48″ in width. Last winter I bought a 4’x25′ roll and had enough to do my entire house. (9 windows of various sizes) the cost was about $40. Manufacturers claim that reflects up to 97% of all …


Letter Re: Where to Store Food When There is No Simple Answer

Mr. Editor: Like Margy, I also found myself building an ‘above ground cellar’ for temperature stable storage of food and other goods. Working with a detached three-car garage that had just a two-car door, I converted the extra ‘bay’ to a bonus room. With standard framing and insulation I noticed that that room remained noticeably more even in temperature throughout the day. I also have warm summers, 100F and occasionally more. Winters rarely drop below freezing for more than a day or two. I did some research once on passive temperature control and learned that water has a high specific …