Soda can solar heater, v2, completed | Hemmings Blog: Classic and collectible cars and parts
I’ve had plenty of people asking me lately what’s going on with Project HMX, and unfortunately, progress on it has stalled for a number of reasons. Chief among them are the other projects that have taken time away or quite literally blocked me from getting to the HMX. Over the weekend, I got one of those projects out of the way. Ever since I built my first soda can solar heater three years ago, I’ve received plenty of input on how to improve the design for better heat output. For that reason, I never hooked up the first one – in fact, I gave it away to a friend – and set about building a bigger, better version, suffering through three cold winters in the garage. I started out by looking for a sliding glass door, which I found locally for free, then took all my measurements from that. Recall that the first version pushed out a paltry 15 degree temperature differential.
New York Mini-Studio
A couple years ago, Manhattan architect Luke Clark Tyler lived in a 96 square foot apartment. Instead of upsizing with his latest move, he chose to squeeze himself and his belongings into even less space. Luke now lives in a 78 square foot shoebox studio. It’s too narrow to fit a bed lengthwise, but using a bit of plywood and 2x4s he built his own custom bed/couch. When it’s down as a bed the room is mostly bed and when it’s up as a couch he has a very close relationship with the wall, “but I just use it as an excuse not to buy an ottoman because… I can just prop my feet right up on the wall.” He keeps his clothes, plates, microwave, books, spices and shaving and cleaning supplies in a large built-in cabinet. While he admits he misses being able to cook a real meal- though he’s vegetarian so eats a lot of vegetables and nuts and can even microwave eggs- Luke doesn’t see living small as a sacrifice.
Tunes in Tiles: Recycling Records & CDs into Roof Shingles
Round, flat, thin, durable and uniform in both shape and size … it is no wonder more than one person has thought to turn old vinyl records and music CDs into a new (not to mention bright and variegated!) material for tiling rooftops. For better or worse, these are apt to stand out a bit more than your average-type metal, asphalt and clay varieties. There is a point where a CD/DVD or record simply becomes too scratched to play, landing them largely in landfills due to the difficulty of recycling them by conventional means in some places – hence these projects from Jayefuu and Matt Glassmeyer. While the central holes in each music-playing format may lend themselves to a more clever attachment solution down the line, for now these projects do involve additional drilling for more conventional nails and screws (as directly hammering can cause unwanted cracks or breaks).
A Beautiful House Made from Trash & Recycled Materials
Driftwood railings line the rickety bridge leading to the cattle-bone numbers next to the front door of this unique recycled home – featuring far more than the sum of its scraps and parts, a beauty that emerges from the textured materials of which it was made (by hand). It starts with stacked corks and bottles, old newspapers, scrap wood and recycled metal … and culminates in layered color-sample ceiling tiles and shards of mirrored glass arranged piece by piece to assemble an amazing interior wall mosaic. Old t-shirts form the floors in one room while an antique wood-burning stove adorns the next and glass wine bottles allow light and distorted views from one space to another. Less an interior design or decorating project and more a work of collaborative art, it is clear that each contributor to the construction process added their own custom (and often unplanned) elements.
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Strawbale House Building Books: Build your own energy-efficient house of straw!
Strawbale House ConstructionBooks & Overviewby Thomas J. Elpel, Author of Living Homes Strawbale buildings are all the rage in alternative construction today, and with good reason--they are cheap, easy to build, and very energy efficient. Strawbale buildings look similar to adobe, with massive walls, wide window sills and typically rounded corners, but with the added benefit of a higher insulation value. Strawbale homes and outbuildings were first developed by pioneers in the Sand Hills of Nebraska where there was lots of straw, but few trees. Due to publicity in the 1980's and 1990's there are now strawbale buildings popping up all over the world--in wet and dry climates, from hot southern environments to chilling northern extremes. Strawbale homes are very well insulated. There are two types of strawbale houses. Living Homes Stone Masonry, Log, and Strawbale Construction by Thomas J. The Strawbale Houseby Athena and Bill Steen Hoping to build a strawbale house? Quick Summaries:
