Let me blow the dust off this blog--it has been over 3 years since I posted anything.
Circle of life update stuff: Mrs. Beasley the cat passed away. Our first born son is now two, and we have another TBA due in August.
Obsession with solar has not diminished. I am excited to announce some real progress in acting upon the obsession and creating something cool--or rather, consistently warm: a greenhouse/shed.
Built from the materials obtained 3 years ago mentioned previously in an old blog, this shed was designed from scratch.
Remember in high school when your math teacher introduced the subject of trigonometry? Someone in the class--maybe you--asked, "When am I ever going to use this?" Well I finally got my answer. The challenge was to create a greenhouse / shed of 10 ft. by 10 ft. with a 45 degree angle for the glass roof part and a 20 degree angle for the shingled roof. Oh yeah, and HOA rules said it couldn't be taller than 8 ft. Also, I wanted the door opening to be at least 6'3" so I wouldn't bump my head. Trig was the answer (the mathematics, not the Palin kid).
Fortunately, there's an app for that (kids - stay in school. I still needed to understand trig to know how to use the app)Speaking of cool apps, greenhouse orientation and placement is all about relation to the sun at different times of the day and year. This app, sun n moon, helped with that.
8 months later, the shed is mostly done. It ended up being taller than 8 feet, but the HOA can't do anything because they grandfathered all non conforming in on March 1st. Boo-yah!!! Sticking it to 'the man.' Oh wait, I am on the HOA board. Whatever.
I have come to the conclusion that the greenhouse / shed project may never really be done. There is always room for upgrades. My initial goal was to extend the growing season here in the front range by a couple of months. Tomatoes and peppers can do well in Colorado, but they like it warmer. Next post I will include some photos of the upgrades and an exclusive look inside my grow room. Hippies don't get too excited, nothing I am growing requires a license from the state of Colorado.
Here is a picture of the mostly competed shed. Still needs a coat of paint to match the house. You can see the grow tent I created to give extra thermal insulation. When this picture was taken, the temperature had dropped to about 42 degrees. You can see the storm clouds brewing from the north and west. Snow in the forecast and lows tonight in the upper 20's. Definitely not tomato and pepper friendly. However, inside the tent, it is about 65 degrees. Last night it never got colder than 55 degrees in the tent. Tonight, it probably will get colder. I will have an update tomorrow along with some more pics of the thermal tent.
Posts
