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blue80
ParticipantTo start, the foundation:
Good building practice and building codes dictate that all organic material (topsoil) be stripped from below the future building envelope. Organic material has no compressive strength and can’t be trusted to stay put.Whatever structure you build with, you will need a frost protected foundation. For a pole barn style one can go with piers which saves some money, depending on your snow loads and post bearing capacities. Google “SFPF” or “Shallow Frost Protected Foundation” for alternative code approved foundation specs. which also discourage energy loss.
Otherwise usually poured concrete walls or stacked cmu block are used for foundations, and in some localities must be insulated. It is beneficial to use an insulated, sealed crawlspace if a crawl is in your plans. Google “non vented crawl space assembly” to prove it to your building inspector.
Insulated concrete forms are a nice do it yourself way to pour concrete walls. In fact we pour this system to the roofline for a super insulating, quiet, disaster resistant structure. http://www.icfinstall.com is our website. Howerver this is expensive in relation to building with cardboard boxes or even wood. Industry standard says it is about 10%more than “conventional” construction…..
Just keep in mind with regards to insulation that R value only measures conduction, that is energy passing through solid matter. Fiberglass insulation and cellulose, installed at proper compaction, dry, without wind, solve conductive losses. But building scientists have proven that convection losses are much more to blame, that is energy passing through the air. That is, a structure that leaks….. Foam- whether spray foam, Structural Insulated Panels, or ICF’s solve the convective losses, while also dealing with conductive losses at the same time. The third type of energy loss, radiation, is less of a factor in northern climates…Only about 20% of your energy losses occur through walls. Windows and doors and roof affect energy losses the most.
Radiant floor heating is fantastic and sage way to heat. A gas boiler can go off grid easily with a few watts, while a geothermal needs a lot of generator power to kickstart… Insulating the bottom of the concrete radiant slab is proven money well spent.
Healthy indoor air quality is also important, controlling humidity between 45-55% is beneficial for mucus membranes, mold and mildew growth, and window condensation.
We are all short on money, but we have decided to build it tight, build it right, and upgrade the finishes later…
A word about pole structures. Be sure to oversee rodent and bug detailing, as these type of fiberglass insulated structures are notorious for encouraging runways for creatures to make your domicile a little overpopulated.
http://www.buildingscience.com has some nice details and food for thought.
Best, Kevin
ParticipantWe have two of these cultimulchers; an 8 ft. and a 4 foot with a pole. They are fantastic implements;
We went with Maynard Miller of Shipshe Farm Supply out of Shipshewana In. phone 260-768-7271. Maynard readily sent a brochure with pricing options, and was good to communicate with.The units are made in modular form, so you can gang them together with a large yoke.
These make very stable platforms for training both animals and teamsters. I like the Shipshe model as it has the crumbler roller baskets front and rear, and really levels out the ground, which is paramount in furrow flood irrigated land.
Adjusting the spring tines and adding corrugator shovels in place of the chisel points has allowed us to scratch corrugations into existing ground.We have worked down over 200 acres with them this year. A couple broken welds, mainly due to a bobcat operator stressing the platform when loading the 8 ft. on a trailer…. It would sure be nice for these implements to have “pick points” so we could load them easier and safer.
ParticipantGeorge, the new mowers can really lay down some hay. Just putting ours to consistent work this past week, rotating two teams every two hours for 11 hrs in the field I cut 20 acres on Tuesday using the I and j big cart and 9 ft. mower. So a weekend could lay down all your hay ready for raking and tractor baling….
Kevin
Participant80 acres, 5 tillable, flood irrigated. 10 sheep, 250 free range chickens, two great pyrenees, 50 layers, 4 drafts, 4 saddle horses. goat, and a milking cow.
Main crop has been weeds, though we are irrigating our first crop dedicated to establishing long term turf grass.
5 % of our income has been from the farm, 4 % of that is agritourism vacation rental,
but it makes a great legal and viable tax writeoff for the construction company.Have you looked into the land link programs at all to help you get on some land with infrastructure?
ParticipantRobert, we purchased a Nolts raised bed layer, they have distribution points in Iowa and Pennsylvania.
Iowa 641-228-4496
PA 717-656-9764They don’t have a website that I know of, but answer the phone and will send you a catalog, including a large variety of produce supplies.
We bought the 3 pt version to go on the White Horse 3pt hitch which doesn’t work at the 4 ft. bed width due to the wings sticking out too far forward….I’ll try to get some pics and will try to do a product review of the produce mulch layer one of these days…
I believe a tongue, HD version is also available at higher cost.ParticipantWes feel free to leg up your animals down here, we are cutting and raking with a few I and J carts and mowers all week on the side of Heart Mountian just outside Powell…..
Some of it is 3 ton alfalfa, lodged terrible due to the 10 inches of snow a couple weeks back. Farmer decided to get a swather in to do 50 of the worst of the 110 acres we have to do…Kevin
ParticipantGreg sorry to hear that. Growing up with a large animal vet as a dad I was in on the inspection end of barn fires from time to time. Your post brings back a lot of memories.
I was thinking of sending you some hames and older harness, but if it was up to me I’d rather just send some money towards new gear instead of paying shipping for old stuff; then you could just get new what you wanted where you wanted. But let us know what works best for you to proceed,Kevin
ParticipantYoure right George, some groups are taking this seriously and reacting, we need to do the same.
ParticipantThis is an interesting article with some sources to follow up on,
Kevin
ParticipantLooks great!
Looks like you used 2 team sets of lines so you have complete control of all three horses? That seems smart.
ParticipantLots of times if you go into a paddock with several animals, maybe one animal will “decide” to move away from your advance. If they don’t turn and face you and give you respect, I’ll pick the single animal out, and walk at their shoulder. When they trot, I kiss; when they gallup, I kiss loudly; when they slow, I speak “eeesay;” when they stop I say “whoa” This single animal will usually run circles around the other animals, who I just ignore, and tend to ignore me. The goal is to keep the horse moving. Maybe it’ll take an hour or more, sometimes 2 minutes, but when they turn and face you, give them a minute to relax, then move forward with no pressure and try to put a hand on their shoulder. Use a little grass or something in your hand to “buy” their respect if you have to. The goal is to be able to catch your animal without a feed bucket, and have them turn and face you when you are around them. I have been known to be seen “chasing” horses around well after dark if needed; can’t begin to wonder what the local cowboys have to say to each other… Just keep in mind, don’t start something you don’t have time to finish. The reason for this is, once they know they can get away, they will….
If say 5 horses all want to gallup away from you, put them in a dry lot, get them hungry, then bring in some hay. 4 horses will stand and eat while you “work” the 5th…..That 5th horse will learn it has to stand and face you to get a mouthful of feed…..Be sure to categorize your horse before you start. If they are fearful, you should draw them in with love brushing etc. before pushing or pressuring them. If they are disrespectful and dominant, push and pressure them, then reward them with love. Its the Clinton Anderson training method; drive then draw vs. draw then drive thing….
ParticipantWe received shipment on a couple 9 ft. mowers late this fall, have spent maybe 20 hrs. mowing. Really like them, though have had no support with regards to adjustments, setup, things to watch out for , etc.
Will keep you posted, as I know more.
February 3, 2012 at 3:54 pm in reply to: Look who the keynote speaker is for Oregon small farmer’s conference. #71580ParticipantMaybe I’m assumptive, but the promotion “Kristen and Mark Kimball run a full diet, free choice, year round, draft animal powered csa from their New York Essex farm” sets the bar extremely high. It indicates a successful operation.
Maybe I am defensive, but when I read this on the internet months ago, I immediately felt like I was doing something wrong, because we’ve been working so hard to farm and are not successful, other than gaining knowledge the hard way…..
When Essex advertised for a draft horse person to lead the farm into becoming fossil fuel free in the next several years, and Mark said on the phone nobody had shown interest in the position, I flew out there to see if I could contribute.
I wish Mark and Kristen the best, and have offered to help them in any way neccessary. I do have 4 kids and a mortgage, so decisions to pull stakes and move long term can not be easily made. I have, however, offered to help for a season and take some of the burden of growth of the farm, and help them reach Marks goals.
Of the 500 acres, 400 acres are rented, unimproved pasture. Feeder pigs are being fed on pasture now, in winter. The cattle herd consists of calves of every age. About 1 acre of fall plowing was completed before winter; there are a couple hundred loads of manure to spread before spring breakup; onions, potatoes, squash consists of the full winter diet for vegetables and fruits unless other has been canned by the csa membership; a stiff storm and buildings on the farm will fall down; Tractor PTO’s with no guards on them. And Mark is gallavanting around the country giving speeches. So no its not perfect, but the young farmers are working hard their butts of to keep things going, and even make some great changes.
The point of this is not in any way to hurt the farm. The only reason I stick my neck out and risk friendship with Mark and Kristin is to encourage those at these cross country speaking engagements to get real and solve some problems. It is my hope and recommendation that those who attend make sure you make the most of the time you have together and get some roundtable
full diet vs. specialty csa
year round vs. seasonal
pounds of produce vs. quality of produce
private financing vs. government programs
apprenticeship vs. internship vs. paid positionsdiscussions going. There are a lot of different ways to live and grow, and do business. I in no way want to run someone elses business. I just want to help a few people who have goals, to achieve them.
I talked at length with Mark about who was promoting the farm as labelled above Mark indicated that the media is inflating what the farm really is. Mark has stated he rates his farm at a .5 out of 10. I think its at least a 2.5….. And the fun thing is Mark wants ideas, and he really is great at, and I think enjoys, falling back and punting.
I think we have to be very wary that the media is looking to hype up sustainable, green farms making heroes out of some who are just regular families tired struggling and yearning for something better.Some interesting studies out there of how ranches started grass co-ops based on media hype of other grass co-ops. After huge investments of individual ranches and then failures of these co-ops, a common deduction was made that better research, planning and financial coordination should have been instituted before taking the medias hype that small ranchers united could compete with the megalopolys of the beef industry….
I believe Mark and Kristen know I wish them the best, I just want others to know and be reminded their is no silver bullet here. Good food, good water, clean air are building blocks to good community. I was sure encouraged by the liberal hippy locals in NY and the availability of nice farm ground with absence of GMO crops. It is going to be fantastic watching Essex and other farms nearby in the future. Maybe I’ll move there yet….
ParticipantDon’t forget than any structure well done has a good foundation. Research a little and then find a local reputable builder who is using ICF’s and volunteer on a job or two, and its easy for handy people to pour their own foundations properly.
Happy to help with advice/support if needed,
Kevin
http://www.icfinstall.comParticipantLast I heard Essex Farm, Essex NY was hiring. Less of an apprenticeship, more of a paid working position from what I gather. If you know how to work teams I think you would be able to learn a lot by being around the other parts of the operation….
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