I haven't mixed pc in quite a while other than a test batch with a barrel mixer that I'm improving. It was covered with ice this morning, a couple of inches thick. It did get down to ten degrees before dawn but it's in the mid-60's now.
The small dome frame is about 1/2 covered with chicken wire and the rest of the wire is sitting waiting for tuits. I'm looking for a small 3-4 cubic foot concrete mixer that I'll use for door footings and several other projects. Harbor Freight has a nice one but by the time you pay the extra freight it's about $400. Home Depot has one with a plastic drum that looks too low to pour into a wheel barrow but might be ok for setting beside a low form. I looked on Craig's List and used ones were $800-1,000, way out of my budget. Ebay is worse. I recently mixed enough concrete by hand in a wheelbarrow to make a small slab, and I'd rather avoid doing that again. I've seen the videos showing mixing on a tarp, but people who have done it say it's not as easy as it looks in the videos and by the end of the day you're still beat.
The small slab was for a shed containing the end of my hydronic tubes, a pump, and a water heater. At the moment it is a 50 gallon propane fired monster that was bought ten years ago but never installed. Within a week or two it will be replaced by a tankless and pilotless on-demand heater that will fire on water flow. The pump will be controlled by a thermostat in the dome and the radiant floor will finally be active. The planned solar collector and papercrete encased storage tank are back burner for now. This winter has been so warm here that the whole heating system has been low priority. On the warm days I'm even getting sourdough to rise.
Meanwhile the cold days are being utilized to organize my dome. A new cabinet now hides what was a pile of power tools on the floor. The cooking area is about to get a new pantry. A few other little projects and then it should be turning into spring around here in a month or so. Then I'll be back to covering the small dome with wire and pc.
spaceman All opinions expressed or implied are subject to change without notice upon receipt of new information. http://Starship-Enterprises.Net
On 1/28/2011 12:09 PM, JUDITH WILLIAMS wrote:
I'm pet sitting and feeling a bit cabin feverish so am going through all old group emails that I have saved for various reasons. These go back about 2 or 3 years - whenever this group got started.
Anyway, a lot of people wrote about interesting and exciting projects they were planning and starting. I would love to see some updates. How about it?
I haven't been doing any mixing in the cold weather but have managed to get some windows installed and am trying to set up a small crew to help with installing the doors. Wnen I get home next week I am going to get started on my interior plaster. The walls came out pretty irregular (even with the slip forming. I am learning the importance of getting those forms just right) so they need to be smoothed out with a papercrete plaster. If I remember correctly I used a mix of 1/2 paper and water slurry and 1/2 clay soil. What I've done looks pretty good so far. One thing I'm doing that seems to help is to make batches of papercrete without the cement - just paper and water. I pour it into the block mold and let it dry. Then when I want to make a batch of plaster I take some of the dry paper stuff, break it into a 5 gallon bucket, add water and clay soil and mix it with thed rill and paddle mixer. This way I have it in small amounts and don't feel the pressure of having to use up a huge amount of material. This is just for the scratch and brown. The finish plaster will be something smooth and lovely.
So anyway to those who have projects going or have some finished ones I would love to see what you have accomplished. Pretty soon we'll be back in the good weather and there will be less time for writing.
They who can give up essential liberty to obtain a little temporary safety, deserve neither liberty nor safety.
~ in Memoirs of the Life and Writings of Benjamin Franklin
Follow progress on the new project at http://www.papercretebyjudith.com/blog
More papercrete info at http://squidoo.com/papercretebyjudith
No virus found in this message.
Checked by AVG - www.avg.com
Version: 10.0.1204 / Virus Database: 1435/3408 - Release Date: 01/28/11
__._,_.___
