Shelter: a short film on home building

A well done movie short about Lloyd Kahn and his take on home building.

SHELTER from jason sussberg on Vimeo.

Worm composting

I've been composting (well sorta.. many failed attempts, and several that worked but that I never got to use.. long story) for several years, but the biggest problem is not how to do it, but more importantly the methane gas that is produced. Methane is one of the worse green house gases, and regular composting produces it in large amounts.

Worm composting produces some methane, but less then traditional composting. After a few days of looking for how to for worm composting I found the best reference in the below video.

The general calculations are:

1 square foot of surface are can house 1 lb of worms which can digest 1/2 lb of food waste per day.

in metric

0.205 m^2/kg of worms. So a 30cm x 70 cm bin can support 1kg of worms and digest 500 g of food waste/day. In the video they use two plastic bins to house the worms, the top for the worms and the bottom to hold the water that passes through (which is also a fertilizer and a natural insecticide.)

The Enviromentals (Episode 1) How to Make a Worm Composting Bin from Hal Brindley on Vimeo.

White roofs do help

It seems so obvious that I'm surprised that a law has not been passed forcing all flat roof buildings to be painted white. But aside from that, I con't understand why people don't paint their house's roof white just to take down the heat in the summer. Here is CICESE the roofs were all white, but this last year they repainted all of them red.. which makes no sense and was a very uninformed move.

Well, there is not good data from simulations stating the obvious.. white roofs are a good idea; Computer modeling indicates white roofs may be a good idea.

Festival Eco Cultural la Raza

CEARTE, telar and various other groups in Ensenada are getting together to promote an ecofriendly festival. This is the same day as Day of climate action by the group 350.org (esp).

The festival is described as

La finalidad del festival es usar un espacio público para dar información, crear un ambiente de participación activa y multiplicar la visión de los grupos organizados en la ciudad en favor de una mejor calidad de vida.

Barrelponics- Aquaculture and Hydroponics

A Green Trust post on barrelponics, similar but much better designed to something I was planning at the bakery. The idea is to combine a fish tank and hydroponics system; called aquaponics. The fish clean and make nutrient rich the water that then is used by the plants. The plants clean and airiate the water for the fish. Barrelponics is a small version of this idea. I really like it, and hopefully when we get some land, I'll try making one of these.

Freewheel energy storage in buses

Gizmag has a good post on bolt-on flywheel system for city buses claiming to reduce energy consumption by 30%. I've recently read about flywheel systems for electrical energy storage and have also been talking to some local scientists about similar systems that were installed in Mexico's UNAM university as a electrical backup system back in the 70-80's. These systems seem like a good idea, tying to increase efficiency which is usually less expensive then energy generation, and in the case of flywheels, in a compact case.

Return to old; Al:silicate cement more environmentally friendly

From gizmag, a post about research in what they are calling a new type of cement; a great example of reading the comments giving the really important info!

This technology isn't as "new" as some people think. Cement used in the Roman Empire had a similar Aluminium-Silicate base as Geo-polymer cement (which is probably why so many of their structures are still standing after around 2000 years). Also, buildings in the former Soviet Union also used Aluminium-Silicate based cements over those using Calcium Oxide (Portland Cement).

Sort of makes you wonder what hold the makers of Portland Cement have over Governments & the Building Industry, that their obviously INFERIOR product has been a staple of construction-in the West-for the last couple of centuries.

Cut laundry water usage by 50%

Using the used rinse water from one load of laundry to wash the next load! A simple idea; DIY available as an instructible.

Goats to cut the grass

I've heard of using grazing to maintain grass.
Quoting from UofC


Weeder geese. Geese can often be used to manage grass weeds in vineyards. Geese prefer grass species and will eat other weeds and crops only after the grasses are gone and they become hungry. If confined, they will even dig up and eat johnsongrass and bermudagrass rhizomes, which they have a particular preference for. Both of these weeds can be especially troublesome in vineyards. Generally, about 4 geese per acre are needed. They require water for drinking, and some form of protection from predators (dogs, coyotes, etc.). Young geese are preferred, as they eat larger quantities of food, although having at least one older goose, helps to protect the younger birds. Consult the following Website for further information on geese: http://www.metzerfarms.com/weeder.htm. Other animals sometimes used in organic vineyards include sheep and goats. Sheep will effectively remove all weeds down to ground level. Goats are browsers and must be carefully managed to avoid damage to the vines. Both sheep and goats are generally used during the time when grapes are dormant and the chance of grazing damage is minimal.

Dwarf Goats

Apparently Google is doing this as well, bringing in goats once a year to cut the bush back.

Green Carier pathways

While I have a lot of work, it is wise to keep an eye open for new opportunities. In my case this is just being abreast of what work is out there. The Center for sustainable energy in San Diego has an upcoming fair on green jobs; costs $15 pre $20 door registration. Its on Aug 1st.. hope I'll close at hand to go...