Build your own DIY solar dehydrator! This project was built using 1 piece of plywood, 10 food grade screens plus a bunch of salvaged materials that were then formed into a solar dehydrator on wheels. When the summer harvest is providing, Jasper Snow Rosen and John Muirhead have been thinking ahead to preserving goods for […]
This is the first of a series of videos that will chronicle my construction of building a sunken greenhouse, otherwise known as a Walipini or Pit Green house. This isn’t necessarily a ‘how to’ build a green house, but rather the steps that I’m taking to build one incase you would like to replicate aspects […]
What do you get with sunshine and an old plastic bottle filled with water and chlorine? Thanks to Alfred Moser and a group of MIT students, you get a 55-watt solar bulb that refracts sunlight! It’s powerful enough to light up a home but more than that it’s environmentally friendly, inexpensive, and easy to make. […]
The intensity of sunlight on Earth is about 1300 Watts per square meter. When you focus the sun’s rays using a magnifying glass (or in this case a sphere of water) you can increase the intensity roughly ten thousand fold. When focused on dry tinder, this increases the temperature of wood to its autoignition point, […]
Here’s how to make a non-compressor based “5 gallon bucket” air conditioner. A very simple DIY. The items needed include: a bucket, styrofoam liner, pvc pipe, small fan, and ice. A small solar panel is also optional if you want to power it using solar. One frozen gallon jug of water inside the bucket lasted 6 […]
Willow is very satisfying to work with and lends itself to making rustic screens, structures and supports for a beautiful natural look. No special tools needed! Willow structures make very useful and attractive features in a garden. They can be used to edge beds, screen off unsightly parts of the garden, or can even be […]
You can build trellising cages for your container and ground planted vegetables by using 14 gauge metal fencing. It is easier than you think and it will save you a lot of money. This cage is great for tomatoes, cucumbers, beans, peas, zucchini, squash, melons and more. You can also extend the cage easily to […]
When Canada’s top-ranked whitewater kayaker Ben Hayward (vanstarter.com) decided to pursue his Olympic dream, he began a life on the road racing in Europe. To afford this itinerant lifestyle, he crafted a 72-square-foot wooden home on the back of a flatbed truck, dubbing it the “Hobbit Van” for it’s big, round door and butterfly-style windows. […]
This is a water powered hammer called a “Monjolo”. It’s used for pulverizing materials into powder. I realize it’s under powered but built it as a proof of concept. I may make a larger one in future for milling cassava into flour. It could also be used as a stamp mill for crushing minerals up […]
Using solar energy to generate heat is something that’s common and widespread among those who live an off-the-grid lifestyle. But what about using solar power to cool your room? Is that even possible? It actually is and it costs less than you can imagine, as you can make a solar air cooler form only $15. […]