Building the Frame

 After playing around with a few different ideas for the frame, I decided to start with a solid wheel base. For the steering mechanism I am using the largest hinges I could find at Lowes. I drilled one of the existing holes larger to accept the bolt from the bicycle wheels, then bolted it to the 2x6 that acts as the front of the frame.

For the back of the bike I am using the existing suspension of a mountain bike and attached it with a large section of all thread to the 2x3s that run the length of the frame. The suspension rod is attached using an old satellite dish mounting bracket. I still need to check how true the wheels are and if they hold air, but the wheel base is now complete.

A simple weight test showed that it could hold me and my daughter without any problems. Next I need to get the pedals attached and the chain and idlers installed. I also need to finish building the steering mechanism, and reconnect the rear brake and derailer. Once a seat is installed I should be able to drive it as a recumbent bike, after that I will probably work on the canopy, and lights, then install the electric assist after the fact.

I am really happy with my progress so far. Hopefully I will have it fully enclosed and electrified by the time fall hits.

Let me know your thoughts in the comments below.

First steps: Gathering Old Bikes

I put some feelers out on Facebook and had 4 bikes donated by neighbors who were looking to get rid of them. Between the 4 bikes I got enough parts to make 2 recumbent trikes, which is the base for my ebike. I was fortunate to get two bikes with rear suspension. This will make for a smoother ride when I get the trike assembled.

For the frame I am using scrap wood left over from several other projects, including a small pallet. This is just a prototype so I can learn the basics, the finished model will be much more streamlined.

A New Goal- an enclosed ebike!

 

After doing some research into the laws governing Electric Cars and NEVs in my area, I discovered it was going to be a real headache to get something inexpensive for me to drive around town. That was when it hit me. I don't need a Tesla or something like that if I am only going to use the electric car for travel around town, so I started looking at alternatives and discovered a bit of a loophole in the laws for the state of Idaho. 

A Class 2 electric assisted bicycle is defined as having up to three wheels, it can go up to 20 mph without pedaling, but can go faster if you do pedal. It is not restricted in what streets it can be driven on, but must stay to the right as much as possible. These bikes can be enclosed making them usable year round, and may have blinkers, windshield wipers, headlights, taillights, etc... They are not required to be registered, have insurance, or a license, so even my 14 year old son, could drive it!

In August 2019, the state of Idaho passed a measure that defined ebikes as bicycles. That means they can be used wherever bicycles are allowed. This opened a whole new door of inquiry for me, and I started looking around at ebike options.

Some companies are already building enclosed tricycles like the one I had in mind. (See the video above) However, to order one and get it shipped to me was still going to cost quite a bit! So I started drawing up plans and making a parts list, and figured I could build a prototype for less than $500. The major cost being the 750 watt conversion kit and batteries.

The basic trike without the electric assist is known as a velomobile, and is a lightweight, aerodynamic bicycle alternative that has been around for decades. This part is relatively easy to build and can be made with parts available at local stores and thrift shops.

Next week is earth week, and I hope to have the beginnings of my electric car/bike in the works before the end of the week is out!

Eliminating Garbage

I saw this video on Facebook and was very intrigued. The part of the video that I liked best was the fact that she isn't pushing her lifestyle on other people. We should never tell other people how to live, only invite them to see what we are doing and if they are interested help them make the same changes.

I am all for reusable containers, but this video really made me step back and think about taking that to the next level. I have struggled learning the process of composting, but I believe wholeheartedly in it. I will probably start looking into that again now that we are settled in our new house and possibly look at how I could make some of these other changes as well.

I experimented with an indoor garden for about a year and had some really good results. We moved recently and most of it has since died, but I plan on restarting it soon. The indoor garden was made from a metal shelf that we mounted two 100w CFL lightbulbs in. We lined the shelf with solar curtains that we mounted on cardboard to make them less likely to tear.

With this setup we successfully grew all of the following: Green Onions, tomatoes, radishes, bell peppers, jalapeno peppers, peas, green beans, spinach, carrots, and strawberries.

The biggest thing that I learned from this experience is how important it is to give plants enough space! I was growing everything in about 5 square feet, but the containers for each plant were not the size they needed to be. As a result the peppers were not as large as they could have been, and the peas and tomatoes kept snaking their way around the other plants, causing problems. When I restart this garden I plan on making full square foot boxes for the larger plants, and I will build a shelf for the milk jug pots to sit around the side so we still have 5 square feet of growing space.

Cookies in the Solar Oven

Made some chocolate chip cookies in the solar oven last week, and they were fantastic! Our second batch didn't cook as well because we had some cloud cover move in. But we still maintained between 150 and 200 degrees F. Each batch took about 2 hours to bake.

With a solar oven you need to adjust the direction it is facing about every 15 minutes to maintain your maximum heat.

Tuna Can Alcohol Stove

He uses Heet in the video, but you can also use rubbing alcohol as long as it is higher than 50%, but it will make the bottom of your pot black. Obviously the higher the percentage of alcohol, the more efficient the stove is and the less black will get on your pots.

Original "Cat Stove" Design:
http://jwbasecamp.com/Articles/SuperCat/index.html

Terra Cotta Pot Space Heater

These work really well to heat a small room and they don't cost much to put together, just make sure you have a safe container/surface for the candles. I have seen people put the candles in a pie tin to contain them a little better.

Lee Hite Biomass Briquette Press

Neat idea to conserve wood, or if you don't have a lot of wood at your disposal, you can use shredded paper, leaves, etc. to build up your fuel supply. Combined with a high efficiency stove, like the rocket stove mentioned in the previous post, you could cook and heat for a long time and never need wood. On their website there are diagrams for different shaped molds, including sticks which would be ideal for most rocket stoves.

Clay Rocket Stove

I have known about rocket stoves for quite sometime, but this was the first time I saw one made out of native clay:

Here is the rocket stove I built:



5 Things- A guide to editing your life

Too Much Stuff

I have been maried for seven years now, and I regret to admit that I brought more boxes of "stuff" into the marriage than anything else. We have moved 3 times during that time and each time we had to move boxes and boxes of my stuff. During the last few years, since we moved into our present home, I have come to the realization that I have used almost nothing from all those boxes of stuff.

So what is the big deal you ask? I have had to store all those boxes the past seven years and haven't used ANY of it. Those boxes have cost me time (each time I did try to find something), money (we had to buy a shed to store them in when we moved into our current home), and energy (each time we moved). This week I have determined that I will get rid of as many of those boxes as I possibly can, so I can use that space for things we do use that are crowding the house and yard (my tools, bicycles, etc...).

Solar Oven Redesign

Here is a redesign of my solar oven. After looking at how my parents set up theirs, these modifications seemed appropriate. It reaches roughly the same temperatures (roughly 175° - 200° F) without any insulation, so I imagine if I were to insulate the outside of the box now it would probably go higher and reach a more appropriate cooking temperature.

My previous design was precarious at best and difficult to use. The idea here is simple, and efficient.

Bucket Garden- 18 months

I started an indoor bucket garden 18 months ago, and I thought I would share my findings.
Overall I believe the bucket garden idea works, but it does take some patience and knowledge. I successfully grew several tomato plants in containers indoors, and have been harvesting the same green onions for over a year. Tomatoes and green onions can be grown in perpetuity. Here is a brief summary:

Bucket Garden

Indoor gardening is tough, especially in winter. I lost many of my plants on the shady side of the bucket, I think a narrow planter on a window sill would be more effective than trying to add pockets around the back side of the bucket. A taller bucket positioned with better sunlight would also probably have done better. I found overwatering to be a problem with containers six inches deep. My one foot deep container (left)was less prone to over watering and I was able to plant my green onions around the perimeter to help control water usage. So, long story short, taller bucket and don't add pockets to the shady side of the bucket unless you plan on rotating your bucket a quarter turn every few days.

Electric Lawnmower- Second Hand

Scored this electric lawnmower at the local second hand store last fall for $20. Runs like a champ!

It feels like you are vacuming your lawn as you drag the cord behind you. You also develop a different mowing pattern so you don't run over the cord.

It works much better than my homemade version and doesn't overheat. The bag is also nice so I don't have to rake afterward.

I would definately recommend getting an electric lawn mower if you have a small yard and can get your hands on one.

Wind Turbine = Electric Motor?

I recently acquired an old wind generator from my Dad. He had some high winds come through and beat the blades right off. They don't make replacement blades anymore, so he let me have it. It also has some sort of controller which I hope can be adapted to a motor controller (hook up the generator on the receiving end instead of the generating end). I will post pictures once I get a chance to go through the documentation.

Bucket Garden Update

I planted some radishes on the back half of the top of the bucket (I'm told they grow really fast). So far I have Lettuce, Swiss Chard, and one Radish that have sprouted. I added a plastic grocery sack over the bucket and the seed pods, I think this helped to maintain temperature over night (since the bucket is next to a window). As a result the seeds are doing better. I spray the pods and the top of the bucket each day with a water bottle to keep them moist but not soaked.

I recently purchased "All New Square Foot Gardening" by Mel Bartholomew and have started reading it. I found out I planted the seeds too close together on the top of the bucket, so I will have to transfer some of the plants to the side pockets of the bucket as they get larger.

I highly recommend this book. Mel was an engineer by trade and failed miserably with his first garden, so he decided to use his engineering skills to simplify gardening and make it more efficient. Chapter 1 goes over all the wasted materials and space that most "single row" gardens have and how he figured out how to cut them out of squarefoot gardening to make it simple and streamlined.

I will probably build two of these squarefoot garden boxes in my back yard this year after the snow melts. I am also considering a green house for growing lettuce and spinach next winter.

Bucket Garden

Here is an experiment I am trying. I found several videos on-line about these bucket/barrel gardens. The concept is to maximize your growing area by going vertical.  A 5 Gallon bucket is the equivalent of 25 "row feet" of garden space (or 25 plants). A 55 gallon drum is the equivalent of 100 "row feet" of garden space. Because it is vertical it takes up less space, but your yields are the same.

This one gallon bucket let me add one row of pockets around the side using a hairdryer and some wood shims. I planted carrots on the front half of the top, and I am estimating I can get three more plants on the top with another 7 in the pockets around the site. So roughly 10 "row feet" of space. I started some tomatoes, cherry tomatoes, lettuce, and Swiss chard in the pods. I will transfer them to the bucket after they sprout.

Solar lights from a bottle.

Here is a nifty way to reuse bottles to make lightbulbs. They are using this in electrically strained areas around the world.

Lawnmower links and timeline

Lawnmower Conversion Links:
http://www.arttec.net/Solar_Mower/index.html
(the site that motivated me)

http://www.builditsolar.com/Projects/Vehicles/LeeMower.htm

My Timeline:
2008- Gas lawnmower dies. Purchase adapter and blade, put new cord on electric motor, pull engine from the mowing deck, and mount electric motor to mower deck.

2008-2010- Graduate from college, change jobs twice, and move three times.

May 2011- Find bushing to fit blade adapter to drive shaft, put tin on underside of masonite, mount blade to drive shaft and blow several breakers on test run.

Electric Lawnmower Update

I have had some trouble with the electric lawnmower throwing breakers. I set it on the bare concrete the other day and plugged it in to see how long it would go before it threw the breaker. The answer is exactly 76 seconds. I assume there is something going on internally that is causing extra friction, and therefore too much Amp pull. I will need to take the motor apart and see what is going on. Because of this issue I have been using my old people powered Reel mower all summer, hopefully I can get the electric mower up and running reliably for next year. The one time I successfully used it, it worked like a champ. The grass looked like it had been mowed by a grass powered mower. Those who have used both rotary and reel mowers know the quality cut difference. For those who don't, it takes roughly 3-4 passes on a reel mower to get the same quality as one pass on a rotary mower.