For those who think that they can escape the wrath of the politicians, think again. Just remember that many corporations, banks, insurance companies and anyone with money that loves power will have pull in governments regardless of the level. I personally believe that we are on a bad path to a world of hurt unless we stop this sort of thing.
Government going too far:
http://www.wsbtv.com/news/24979774/detail.html
Monday, September 13, 2010
Winter is coming: How does one keep warm without the electricity, and your house is ALL electric?
Well some of these tips are no brainers, but there are a lot of things to consider.
First and foremost, DO NOT USE PROPANE OR OTHER COMBUSTABLE GASES FOR HEATING WITHOUT VENTALATION!
http://www.ehow.com/how_5873762_keep-warm-house-electric.html
Now is the time to clean out your chimney and get the seasoned firewood.
http://www.googobits.com/articles/3046-get-the-most-from-your-fireplace.html
So I’ll start with the fireplace as something to consider if you have one. If you don’t have one, there are many other alternatives. But be warned ahead of time. There are many LP (Propane) space heaters that should NEVER be used indoors period! The reason why is simple. The heat and energy given off by one is so high that although there is no flame, they can, will and have burned people, things and houses down. In addition, a newer model home that is energy efficient and is sealed off cannot breathe well. Thus, the propane heater will consume the oxygen and put out Carbon Monoxide.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Carbon_monoxide
Now on to fireplaces and the things to consider:
The history of the fireplace is one of very rich tradition and old time memories. It is ironic that the very thing that could bring families together on a cold winters night became the bane of existence for many in the later end of the 20th century and many new homes do not have a fireplace, or have one that is electric or gas. It is the aspect here that I will first address. Fireplaces have specific issues that must be regularly dealt with. The first is the buildup of soot. (Wood ash) that collects on the inside of a chimney. This soot can contain creosote. Creosote is a chemical found in many trees and is especially present in soft woods like pine. It is especially high in content of wood when the wood is green. Outside of the fact that green un-seasoned wood won’t burn well, that green wood will let out the creosote which will adhere to the soot in the chimney wall, and will eventually combust. (Catch fire.) This is NOT a good combination in a home fireplace, especially when the walls are made of pine or Douglas fir stick build construction and is only a few inches thick with LOTS of insulation between beams. The heat buildup will cause the house to burn completely to the ground.
http://real-estate-agents.com/tips/fireplaces/chimney-fireplace-care/
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chimney_sweep
Yes there is even a US National Chimney sweep guild.
http://www.ncsg.org/Home/tabid/36/Default.aspx
Here they are promotoing a new PSA.
http://www.ncsg.org/NewsEvents/PressRoom/PRPSALaunch/tabid/318/Default.aspx
Next up, Why you CANNOT use a gas fireplace with wood!
Well some of these tips are no brainers, but there are a lot of things to consider.
First and foremost, DO NOT USE PROPANE OR OTHER COMBUSTABLE GASES FOR HEATING WITHOUT VENTALATION!
http://www.ehow.com/how_5873762_keep-warm-house-electric.html
Now is the time to clean out your chimney and get the seasoned firewood.
http://www.googobits.com/articles/3046-get-the-most-from-your-fireplace.html
So I’ll start with the fireplace as something to consider if you have one. If you don’t have one, there are many other alternatives. But be warned ahead of time. There are many LP (Propane) space heaters that should NEVER be used indoors period! The reason why is simple. The heat and energy given off by one is so high that although there is no flame, they can, will and have burned people, things and houses down. In addition, a newer model home that is energy efficient and is sealed off cannot breathe well. Thus, the propane heater will consume the oxygen and put out Carbon Monoxide.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Carbon_monoxide
Now on to fireplaces and the things to consider:
The history of the fireplace is one of very rich tradition and old time memories. It is ironic that the very thing that could bring families together on a cold winters night became the bane of existence for many in the later end of the 20th century and many new homes do not have a fireplace, or have one that is electric or gas. It is the aspect here that I will first address. Fireplaces have specific issues that must be regularly dealt with. The first is the buildup of soot. (Wood ash) that collects on the inside of a chimney. This soot can contain creosote. Creosote is a chemical found in many trees and is especially present in soft woods like pine. It is especially high in content of wood when the wood is green. Outside of the fact that green un-seasoned wood won’t burn well, that green wood will let out the creosote which will adhere to the soot in the chimney wall, and will eventually combust. (Catch fire.) This is NOT a good combination in a home fireplace, especially when the walls are made of pine or Douglas fir stick build construction and is only a few inches thick with LOTS of insulation between beams. The heat buildup will cause the house to burn completely to the ground.
http://real-estate-agents.com/tips/fireplaces/chimney-fireplace-care/
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chimney_sweep
Yes there is even a US National Chimney sweep guild.
http://www.ncsg.org/Home/tabid/36/Default.aspx
Here they are promotoing a new PSA.
http://www.ncsg.org/NewsEvents/PressRoom/PRPSALaunch/tabid/318/Default.aspx
Next up, Why you CANNOT use a gas fireplace with wood!
Tuesday, September 7, 2010
Keep up Appearances.
More on refrigerators:
The first commercially available refrigerator was actually what was known as an Ice Box. It literally was a box that had ice atop inside a cabinet, and the cold air sunk down to keep food stuff cold. Obviously the ice would melt and would have to be replaced almost daily. Refrigeration in the form we know it dates as far back as the 1700’s when William Cullen an English doctor created a small vacuum over some diethyl ether and caused it to boil. Though no practical application came from this discovery, it would lead the way to modern refrigeration.
But besides the history which can be found on Wikipedia here: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Icebox
And on About.com here: http://inventors.about.com/library/inventors/blrefrigerator.htm
The one real problem that has plagued ALL fridges from their first use is the nagging problem of the darn thing warming up. Well, in the old days, Ice boxes were lined with cork, wood shavings, straw and a variety of other materials to insulate it long enough to keep the ice for longer periods of time, and the box colder for longer.
With the advent of Styrofoam and its descendants, cooling down of a box became much more efficient. So much so, that the box can stay colder for longer periods of time without an additional cooling down.
The flip side is that it also will hold in heat, a lot of it!
So when storing food in an unpowered refrigerator, the one thing to remember is to keep the door open. If powered or if cooled down, keep the door closed!
Ok. So now here is the biggie: If you’re out of electricity, first as mentioned before, clean out the fridge, and re-prioritize the items in it. Put vegetables on the upper level, and the milk, cheese, eggs, meat on the lower levels. Keep the top shelf empty and get a plastic container. Fill it with ice and keep the ice coming once a day. Drain out the old water and keep this cycle going. Within a few days if enough ice has been put in, the ol’ fridge will be back in full service. There are a few things to remember:
1: Keep the fridge clean. This is important to keep out any molding items. Such items can spread mold spores quickly just by opening the door. (The spores travel via air currents.)
2: Prioritize items. Again; Keep veggies atop, and protein items below. This ensures that vegetables will not get too cold, nor wilt from heat.
3: Keep as many items on the lower end as possible. The cold will be absorbed by them and the more stuff on the bottom you have, the longer it will take for them to heat up.
4: Buy and keep ONLY what you can eat in a day or two. The logic here is multi fold. When buying food, the single biggest issue fridges created was the wanton waist of food in this world. How much food produced and how much wasted because we put it in the fridge and never ate it? This saves money, but also, if for some reason you cannot get any more ice, the food in the fridge will only last several days anyway.
Finally, get into the habit of rotating food. This old throwback from the 1950’s cold war paranoia was actually something practiced for many generations: Put new food to the back and move older food forward. This allows you to know when food was put in and how old it is.
The first commercially available refrigerator was actually what was known as an Ice Box. It literally was a box that had ice atop inside a cabinet, and the cold air sunk down to keep food stuff cold. Obviously the ice would melt and would have to be replaced almost daily. Refrigeration in the form we know it dates as far back as the 1700’s when William Cullen an English doctor created a small vacuum over some diethyl ether and caused it to boil. Though no practical application came from this discovery, it would lead the way to modern refrigeration.
But besides the history which can be found on Wikipedia here: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Icebox
And on About.com here: http://inventors.about.com/library/inventors/blrefrigerator.htm
The one real problem that has plagued ALL fridges from their first use is the nagging problem of the darn thing warming up. Well, in the old days, Ice boxes were lined with cork, wood shavings, straw and a variety of other materials to insulate it long enough to keep the ice for longer periods of time, and the box colder for longer.
With the advent of Styrofoam and its descendants, cooling down of a box became much more efficient. So much so, that the box can stay colder for longer periods of time without an additional cooling down.
The flip side is that it also will hold in heat, a lot of it!
So when storing food in an unpowered refrigerator, the one thing to remember is to keep the door open. If powered or if cooled down, keep the door closed!
Ok. So now here is the biggie: If you’re out of electricity, first as mentioned before, clean out the fridge, and re-prioritize the items in it. Put vegetables on the upper level, and the milk, cheese, eggs, meat on the lower levels. Keep the top shelf empty and get a plastic container. Fill it with ice and keep the ice coming once a day. Drain out the old water and keep this cycle going. Within a few days if enough ice has been put in, the ol’ fridge will be back in full service. There are a few things to remember:
1: Keep the fridge clean. This is important to keep out any molding items. Such items can spread mold spores quickly just by opening the door. (The spores travel via air currents.)
2: Prioritize items. Again; Keep veggies atop, and protein items below. This ensures that vegetables will not get too cold, nor wilt from heat.
3: Keep as many items on the lower end as possible. The cold will be absorbed by them and the more stuff on the bottom you have, the longer it will take for them to heat up.
4: Buy and keep ONLY what you can eat in a day or two. The logic here is multi fold. When buying food, the single biggest issue fridges created was the wanton waist of food in this world. How much food produced and how much wasted because we put it in the fridge and never ate it? This saves money, but also, if for some reason you cannot get any more ice, the food in the fridge will only last several days anyway.
Finally, get into the habit of rotating food. This old throwback from the 1950’s cold war paranoia was actually something practiced for many generations: Put new food to the back and move older food forward. This allows you to know when food was put in and how old it is.
Friday, September 3, 2010
Another word on oil lamps: they can and do leave behind a chemical odor. It is incumbent upon the user to make sure the odor does not build, and that windows should be open to some degree to purge out the fumes. In winter time, this can be problematic for several reasons. One: The newer home being built to high efficiency levels are near air tight. This can be very problematic.
Because winter is a time you obviously do not want open air coming in, the problem of a house not breathing comes into play. (Eventually the unintended circumstances come into play). I refer to the high efficiency homes having the issue of being air tight.
Homes built prior to the mid 1990s are not of high efficiency standards and such, this means that they do not have air flow of any great degree. This translates to home without air flow and have burning oil lamps or candles, burn up the oxygen.
Because winter is a time you obviously do not want open air coming in, the problem of a house not breathing comes into play. (Eventually the unintended circumstances come into play). I refer to the high efficiency homes having the issue of being air tight.
Homes built prior to the mid 1990s are not of high efficiency standards and such, this means that they do not have air flow of any great degree. This translates to home without air flow and have burning oil lamps or candles, burn up the oxygen.
In the beginning God said let ther be light:
Reading up on the oil lamps, I can tell you that the safest designs are those of the Ditz style lamps as long as they are made in recent times. Do NOT use Coman fuel in them.
Here is the link I found:
http://www.lanternnet.com/faqs.htm#FUEL
Here is the link I found:
http://www.lanternnet.com/faqs.htm#FUEL
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