This afternoon, I had the good fortune to witness one of the most vivid sun dogs I have ever seen. Sun dogs are an optical phenomenon that occurs fairly often in Fairbanks, though I don’t recall ever before seeing them so early in the winter season. Unfortunately, I had only my phone camera available and […]
First Sun Dog of the season Read More »
The chart accompanying today’s post shows the temperatures measured in the biomeiler at a height of 4’ above the ground. This height marks the boundary between the existing biomeiler and the recent extension. The data were collected by a thermocouple buried in the pile at that height at the very center of the inner core,
October Experimental Results, part 2 Read More »
In early October, the outdoor air temperatures were low enough that it seemed prudent to reconfigure the ventilation system for the chicken coop. During the summer, the air was drawn from beneath the coop in order to cool the air as much as possible for the benefit of the birds. The ground beneath the
October Experimental Results Read More »
Ordinarily, we are disinclined to have young birds in the fall, but, this year, circumstances forced us to reconsider the matter. Our coop is divided into an 11’x11’ side and an 11’x4’ side. The larger side is where the hens and our single rooster live, cage-free. The external door opens to the smaller side of
I recently picked up a load of sawdust to use as bedding in the coop this winter. My trailer measures 4’x8’ and was filled a bit more than 4’ high. Thus, the load has a volume of close to 5 cubic yards. In past years, a similar volume of wood shavings has been sufficient for
For the last two weeks, work has continued, quite unsteadily, on the extension to the outer shell, or “mantle,” of the biomeiler. Over these two weeks I have grown increasingly pleased that I decided to make only an upgrade and did not attempt a complete rebuild of the pile. The second trailer load of shavings
Biomeiler Mantle Extension Complete Read More »
Since the last post, I have been working steadily on the extension to the outer shell, or “mantle,” of the biomeiler. The mantle has the geometrical form of a ring with an inner radius of 3’, an outer radius of 6’, and a height of 28”. As such, it has a volume of 195 cubic
Biomeiler Mantle Extension Read More »
Building the extension to the outer core of the biomeiler followed a procedure nearly identical to that which I described in my last post. I began by clearing away the insulating layer of wood shavings. Next, I attached the perimeter fence. Lastly, I filled the extension with alternating layers of used chicken litter and thatch
Biomeiler Outer Core Extension Read More »
Today, nature provided me with a cool, crisp fall day, with a clear blue sky and I decided to enjoy the day outdoors. So, shortly after finishing the morning chores, I set myself to the task of extending the inner core of the biomeiler. The first step of the operation was to clear the insulating
Biomeiler Inner Core Extension Read More »
Last year, we had a long, gently-cooling fall season which lulled me into complacency to the point that I took too much time with the biomeiler construction, finishing it in below-freezing temperatures. This year, the fall season is cooling at a markedly greater pace. The weather forecast suggests that, even today, if I were to
The 2025 Biomeiler Project Read More »