Category Archives: House

Stuff that sucks

December 12, 2008House, Technology, ThoughtsHouse, Technology, Thoughtswarren

So yesterday really sucked. This post is a vent as much as anything else…so, mostly, you should probably ignore me…

I design and write computer software for a living. I am around computers all day. You’d think I would be somewhat immune from viruses as I mostly understand how they work and how one gets them. Still, somehow I got a really really nasty virus on my main development machine (i.e. my bread and butter) yesterday. I spent all day and half the night chasing down and fixing the mess that it made. Of course, I really need to be working on the demo of the new project on which I am working. It is due Monday. This is not the time to be jerking around with a virus. I don’t hate much, but I hate computer viruses and the people who create them.

I love sauerkraut. I had some last night for supper along with some Polish sausage. I am starting my training for the New Year’s day kraut feast. Anyhow, about 15 minutes after eating it last night, my throat started to swell and blister. I guess I had some sort of an allergic reaction to the kraut. I also drank a Mt Dew with supper but I doubt my reaction was to it. Mt Dew makes up 22% of my blood so I don’t think I suffered an autoimmune reaction. Anyhow, an hour or so later, my throat was fine. I still love kraut and I hate the thought of being allergic. I will certainly try it again and soon, but I will be cautious too! I can’t really figure it out, but I’d rather not get a trip in the ambulance over eating kraut. I read that the Dutch eat donuts for good luck on New Years’s day so I may have to call upon my Dutch ancestry (or make some up) and cash in my kraut for donuts. That’s a tradition I can get behind!

We also got word that our house is indeed racing down the hill to the river. A structural engineer recommended 6 helical piers be inserted under our house. It may take 3-4 more depending on what they find. “Gosh, that sounds expensive”, you might say. “You are correct!”

Solar Furnace – Results

November 24, 2008Green, House, TinkeringGreen, House, Tinkeringwarren

We finally had a sunny day yesterday and I was able to get some real results from my solar furnace . I had to make a few changes for success though…

First of all, I discovered that the mercury switch was not sensitive enough to really work. The cold air outside was messing up the way it functioned. I could not insulate the part of the air box where the switch was since the switch has to be able to move (if you’ve never seen the setup, a mercury switch is placed on a temperature sensitive metal coil which moves and allows the mercury to open or close the switch). I decided to experiment with wiring the solar panel straight to the fan which actually worked very well. The fan only came on when the sun was out and shining pretty brightly which was precisely when the best heat was being made.

The pipes that run from the furnace to the house were white originally but it seems that enough cooling took place in the pipes to make the system not work as well as I had hoped. I painted them flat black like the rest of the system and it worked like a charm. The pipes absorbed heat from the sun while transferring the heat through the system, thus helping with the whole “hot air rises” thing.

I also discovered that I had a few air leaks around the pipes and in the holes for the air pipes in the furnace. I used silicone caulking (which will actually cure in about any temp regardless of what the instructions say) to patch all of the holes/gaps/leaks.

Once I made those three changes, I took temperature measurements of the cool air pipe from my family room floor and the warm air pipe from the furnace. My floor air was 63 deg F and my warmed air was 84 deg F! Hee-haw! Eureka! Ding Dang, y’all!

Ok, so I was pretty happy with the results. The fan kicks on and off with the sun which manages the heat pretty well. I still need to boost the power to the fan to get a little more air flow. I did some experimenting and was able to get a better temperature rise with a bit more air flow. I will probably add another cheap-o solar panel to run the fan better. I also need to find a better way to prevent backflow. I really don’t like hanging a piece of plastic in front of the vent. For now, it is working but I don’t like it as a long term solution. I have glass to build one more furnace so I will probably build it out then figure out some way to deal with both systems. Anyhow, for now, I am pleased with the solar furnace!

Solar furnace installation

November 18, 2008Green, House, Technology, TinkeringGreen, House, Technology, Tinkeringwarren

I last posted a week or so ago about my solar furnace. I mentioned that I needed to install the system in my window and get the fan/thermostat working. Well, my friends, wait no longer! This weekend I finished the installation of the solar furnace and even powered it with a small solar panel…but I am getting ahead of myself.

My downstairs family room has 5 windows, 3 of which face southward. A south facing panel is optimum because it gets sun almost all day as the sun progresses across the sky. I read that 20 degrees from due south results in a 5% decrease in performance. Luckily I have south windows but if I didn’t have due south, I would still try the furnace. A 5% decrease would still make things interesting. In addition to the direction, you have to consider the angle from horizontal of the panel so that it gets optimum sunlight in the winter when the sun is lower in the sky. I have read various thoughts on the optimum angle but the easy one for me to remember is “latitude + 10”. Here in Charleston, our latitude is 38 degrees.

According to this calculation then, the optimum angle from horizontal is 48 degrees. Using my trusty eyeball, I leaned the solar panel along the south wall of my house and tilted it at precisely 48 degrees. To be more exact, you should consider doing a site survey to make sure you really have things right. I will probably just mess with it until it gets the best sun. In a more permanent installation, you would want this to be much more precise. Mine is easily movable.

Anyhow, I built a box (which I insulated) to run a warm pipe and a cool pipe through my window. The thermostat and fan are inside the warm pipe inlet so the warm air should automatically rise and slowly flow across the thermostat. The rise in temperature should kick on the thermostat/fan and move the air a little better through the system. As the warm air evacuates, it will cool the thermostat and turn off the fan.

I mentioned in the last post on this topic that I could not drive the fan with a super cheap solar cell. I was rummaging through the junk bin at the office when I found a pair of fans (actually, quite a few fans) that were lower amperage than my original one. Anyhow, my new fan is rated at 12 volts and 0.16 amps. I know it will run at 9 volts so I figured I needed a solar panel that would produce 1.44 watts (i.e. 9 * 0.16). Harbor Freight sells a solar panel used for trickle charging auto batteries for $19.99. Actually, the website has it for $14.99 but in the store it is more. If I would have taken the printout to the store, they would have reduced the price. Apparently the store and website are somewhat independent. I didn’t have a printout and it wasn’t worth driving back for it so I paid $19.99. Ok, back to the story – it will produce 1.5 watts which will run my new fan. I don’t know if it always just produces 12 volts and the amps vary (because it produces differently depending on the strength of the sun) or if it produces 0-12 volts and constant amps, etc. All that is to say, I don’t know exactly what wattage is driving my fan but it turns it.

It occurs to me as I write this that I should measure the output with my mulitmeter…but really, for now, I don’t care. The fan turns fine in sun and that is my main goal. Unfortunately, the fan will not blow the dryer vent louver open. I had planned to use a dryer vent to close the inflow when not in use. I will have to resort to the “plastic over the hole” method I mentioned in the earlier post, to prevent back-siphoning. And let me tell you, back-siphoning is real and a problem if you don’t deal with it…I quickly learned a lesson on that topic!

Ok, lots of words to describe all this. The only problem is, I have not had a sunny day since I got this thing installed. I wanted to post about this progress but I don’t have any real results yet. I will have to post again with results. I know it will make a difference, but I don’t know the extent. Stay tuned!

Going Pink

November 11, 2008Green, HouseGreen, Housewarren

In an effort to make our house a bit more comfortable and to save on the energy bill, we have begun to add insulation to the crawlspace of our 70 year old house (which is otherwise uninsulated for the most part). Our place is very odd in design. We have a many levels in our house and all sorts of nooks and crannies. Half of our basement is walk-in and finished while the other half is sub-surface and unfinished. Even within our basement, there are two levels. The crawlspace in question is under the formal living room and dining room and measures 33×13. That’s lots of words for “it’s a pretty big space and pretty dang cold in the winter”.

So, we headed to the home repair place to get insulation. Abigail saw all of the pink and some of the blue foam insulation and insisted on getting pink (which was the appropriate type for our application luckily!) So, I have been installing insulation in the crawlspace of the house. In spots, I have 5 feet of headroom while in others I have 18 inches.

Of course, I don’t think anyone has dusted under there and spiders have enjoyed the landscape. I came out several times to breathe, covered in cobwebs. My bald head somewhat attracts them I guess, though I prefer bald to hairy in that situation. I also discovered that one branch off of the main trunk from the furnace was unconnected and heating the crawlspace. No wonder I have cold spots in the house! Anyhow, I reconnected that and sealed it up so that it works as it should. I have lots more to do but I have not yet worked up the courage to venture into spiderland again! I expect the weekend will see me back fighting the arachnid army!

Summer home…or my new shed

October 7, 2008HouseHousewarren

Our house is pretty fair sized but is seriously lacking in storage…especially “dirty storage”. Most of our basement is finished and the unfinished part is small so I have no place for my air compressor, turkey fryer and shop vac. We have an outdoor shed but it was pretty small too. I have been threatening to build a shed and Emily finally called my bluff a few weeks ago. We decided to make the new shed sort of match the old.

I figured that I am as likely as not to have to spend one or more nights in it so I decided to add some nicer features to the new shed.

Most notably is the addition of a “sun roof”. Most of the thing is roofed with galvanized metal but one section across the back is covered with polycarbonate that one would use in a greenhouse. It matches in pattern with the metal so they make a great weather-proof joint. It’s amazing how nice it is to have light enough to see the shovel falling off the wall rack and headed for your mellon!

Emily’s granddad helped me get the floor and walls in place and Emily helped me get the rafters and roof up as well as the siding hung. She painted the last bits of it this weekend so I can move in…I mean, I can move my stuff in!

I don’t think my kids learned too many new words on this project so I’d call it a success!

Rain Barrels

June 27, 2008Green, HouseGreen, Housewarren

This was the first rain barrel we installed. I went to a seminar put on by DNR and the city. They discussed the need, the benefits, etc and subsidized the cost. The best part about it was that it started out white. No need to paint it! I don’t like the bottom drain so much but it surely works.

My parents got some blue barrels that were originally full of vinegar. I painted them (is it that obvious?!) and hooked them up. Both drain to the location the down spouts originally fed.

Don’t forget to install a drain! I didn’t have drains at first thinking that it wouldn’t flood too bad…well, I got a lesson in how much rain runs off of a roof in a downpour. Drains are critical unless you don’t mind the water running down your foundation.

I hooked two barrels together on the side of the house where the gutter drains the largest amount of roof. I could probably use 10 barrels on that area but it wouldn’t look too hot. Anyhow, I also saw some other folks who had a contraption built to allow the first several gallons to pour out rather than go into the barrels. Basically, on mine the water goes down into the big pvc pipe which holds a small plastic ball. As it fills, the ball floats up to the neck between the big and small pipes. When it reaches the top, it seals the large vertical pipe and redirects water into the ‘y’ and down into the barrel. There is a small leak in the big pipe so it drains ‘automagically’ between downpours. The two barrels are joined together by the hose that connects the two via their spigots. I just leave both spigots open most of the time (but I can close the individually when I want to use some water). Water will level itself between the two barrels without my intervention.

I could probably use some lessons in spray painting but it blends with the house from a distance…unless you ask Emily.

The never ending bathroom project

June 25, 2008HouseHousewarren

Our house was built in 1939 and has a few sags and droops as anything that old would. We tore up our top-floor bathroom around Christmas time in 2007.

We’ve tried praying, cussing, crying and finally decided we’d have to go ahead and just work through the non-square corners, the rolling floors and the old plumbing. So, tonight we made some genuine progress in the last stages of the place. Please note that the toilet is no longer installed in the bathtub! We are going to put marble caps on the wood shelves on either end of the tub. We still need some trim around the windows and some other spots to be complete.

My Home Among The Hills

Life in WV!