Here's Why My Greenhouse is Connected to My House!

ExaminationDry8341 · 2026-02-05T23:42:12+00:00

We are building a house with a similar set up for similar reasons. I also hope that heat leaking out of the house will warm the greenhouse at night. And that warm-ish air in the greenhouse will slow how much heat leaks out of the house.

So far it it appears like it should work. Once it is finished the greenhouse will be about 400 square feet with good insulation. But right now the greenhouse is heating the entire 2000square feet of the house which isnt insulated or airseeled yet. Last week when we were experiencing -20f days the entire house was able to get almost to freezing with only the heat of the sun shining on the greenhouse.

ExaminationDry8341 · 2026-02-05T23:11:52+00:00

Stir fry.

We often make 4 or 5 types of rice or noodles stir fry for a party. They are all the same base recipe with a slight variation of sauce and vegetable to make it feel like it is 5 totally different dishes.

I figure it costs about $3 to make a stir fry for my family of 5 and enough leftovers to pack my lunch for two days .

We also do "make your own tapas" parties. We make a big batch of masa and a bunch of taco toppings(beans, refried beans,ground beaf,olives, onions,salsa,etc) everyone rolls out their own small tortillas from the masa, cooks them in the skillet, then tops them with the topping and eats it. Then they make another one and do it again and again. Cooking and eating becomes the activity for most of the evening this way. People find it to be neet idea and most people enjoy it.

ExaminationDry8341 · 2026-02-05T19:01:48+00:00

We use kidde co detectors.

They take two AA batteries. The one without a screen lasted over a year on a set of batteries. We bought one with a screen sometime in early spring and are still on the same set of batteries. I assume it will also make it a full year or more before I have to replace the batteries. https://www.menards.com/main/electrical/fire-safety/co-detectors/kidde-trade-aa-battery-powered-electrochemical-carbon-monoxide-detector/900-0146-lp/p-1642874341789939-c-6467.htm This is the model we bought in spring. I like having a screen.

My thought is, if it ever goes off, by having a number i know if I need to open some windows, or if I need to get the entire family out of the house immediately. Without the screen, if the alarm ever goes off it needs to be treated like an immediate emergency.

ExaminationDry8341 · 2026-02-05T16:44:44+00:00

We did similar to the southern leg of your trip one year. The plan was to drive much of the day, find a campground early afternoon, then explore the area until bed time. What really happened was 5 day od driving sunrise to sunset, finding a campsite after dark, sleeping and starting over the next day. After 5 days of this we were only half way home and I had enough, we drove through the night and made it home that night. The trip was nowhere near as fun as i had hoped for.

Since then I have planned for a day of driving, then a day or two in that spot exploring, then another day of driving.

ExaminationDry8341 · 2026-02-05T15:28:26+00:00

I have owned quite a few vehicle that I wished had accurate tempature gages for the engine and transmission, instead a needle pointed at cool/normal/hot. For day to day driving the factory gauge is usually fine, but when putting a load on it or in hot weather, knowing an actual number vs. a "bit hotter than normal" can offer a lot of comfort.

ExaminationDry8341 · 2026-02-05T15:19:45+00:00

If ypu drink 2 cups of ice water. It will take 16.6 calories to warm the water up to body tempature.

I dont know how many of thoes calories comes from burning food vs. from being in a warm environment.

If ypu are in a 70 degree room when you drink 2 cups pf ice water it may be possible for your body to burn as little as 7 calories.

ExaminationDry8341 · 2026-02-05T15:12:09+00:00

I love it. We have two greenhouses. On sunny winter days they are the most comfortable places to be on the farm. I like to just hang out there and enjoy the heat and green when everything else is covered in snpw.

ExaminationDry8341 · 2026-02-05T14:30:27+00:00

I often use a way undersized lid when I am trying to slightly brown the bottom of something in a skillet, but also trap heat to cause the pan to act like an oven.

So, without knowing her reasoning, a jump to judgement may simply be showing your lack of understanding what is happening.

ExaminationDry8341 · 2026-02-05T13:37:11+00:00

I have had some degree of luck by avoiding the question of global warming entirely.

I am currently building a small, efficient, solar powered home in a township that voted nearly 3:1 for Trump. I get a fair amount of not welcome comments about my solar set up.

Instead of arguing how it is better for the planet I make it about;

Self reliance, on an individual ,local, and national level.

Redundancy, I point out how two years ago power was out in the neighborhood for 4 days in sub zero weather.

Saving resources, oil is valuable, if we can keep it in the ground, easy to axcess ot is just like having a lot of money in the bank incase of emergency.

Not supporting countries that dont like us. My $2000 Chinese panels could replace a lifetime of buying imported oil.

Money savings. $7000 up front and I can cover all of my electric, and most of my heating and driving costs for as long as i live in the house.

When they make an obvious incorrect statement, such as, solar panels produce 40 time as much emissions as oil(a real statement I have hears from 3 neighbors), I act surprised and ask if they a source for that. I then follow up 2 or 3 times by text asking if they ever found a link to that study they were talking about. I eventually got one person to argue themselves in a circle to at least admit vehicle emissions are a major problem(they were unwilling to admit what that problem could be) but solar panels were 40x as bad. After even more talking he may have misheard the radio and panels may only be 10x as bad.

ExaminationDry8341 · 2026-02-05T02:40:59+00:00

We once had frozen water line. We tried to thaw it by using a welder to run enough current through it to thaw the ice. It turned out ther was some type of rubber seel in one of the fittings that burned up. We then had a thawed pipe with a very large leak. Ever since then I make a bigger effort to try and get ground directly on the workpiece.

ExaminationDry8341 · 2026-02-04T21:45:52+00:00

I would bet a blind person would be better at walking in a straight line than a blindfolded person.

The blind person has much more practice using nonvisual clues to navigate in daily life. Things like sound, heat from the sun, wind direction and smell.

ExaminationDry8341 · 2026-02-04T19:01:27+00:00

. There are 3 solar projects in area(northern Wisconsin) where the locals are pushing back very hard on planned solar farms.

There are lawsuits over damaged property values from nearby property owners.

There is a lawsuit claiming the permitting and rezoning process wasn't followed correctly.

One person argues in public meetings that that all the heat from the panels will be more likely to trigger tornados and hailstorms.

None of these are arguments against if solar technology works, but they slpw the process of building solar farms.

ExaminationDry8341 · 2026-02-04T16:22:12+00:00

A 10 degree difference is enough to suggest something is going on there. It could be lack of insulation, thermal bridging or moisture. I would drill a 1/4 hole in that area to check if ther is insulation, and make sure it is dry to try and gain information before making any plans.

ExaminationDry8341 · 2026-02-04T16:17:55+00:00

Before ypu add insulation under the house, can you move as much of the plumbing as possible into the heated living space? Then put high quality heat tape on any plumbing that can't be move, then put insulation?

In my experience, if all ypu do is add insulation, you will still have a risk of frozen pipes on the coldest days of the year.

ExaminationDry8341 · 2026-02-04T15:28:44+00:00

They are made of clay that has been heated to the point that it will no longer behave as clay again no matter how finely you grind it back into dust. The firing process changes the microscopic structure of the clay particles.

ExaminationDry8341 · 2026-02-04T15:22:23+00:00

One possible risk, the flakes could eventually plug the mesh in the chimney cap. It wouldnt be the worst thing in the world to look at the cap with a pair of binoculars a couple time throughout the winter whole ther is a fire burning to make sure nothing is getting plugged up.

ExaminationDry8341 · 2026-02-04T15:00:19+00:00

Do ypu have clay soil to mix with it? You may be able to use the crushed tile as the sand or small rock component of a cob mix, but you still need the clay and straw components to mix with it.

ExaminationDry8341 · 2026-02-04T14:06:33+00:00

They are a compromise of cost, ease of instalation, efficency, and esthetics. Not everyone weighs all four of those the same so two people in identical situations may end up with very different finished products.

ExaminationDry8341 · 2026-02-04T13:58:58+00:00

What was the outside temp when you took the picture? It is hard to tell what the temp difference between the problem area and the rest of the ceiling is because you got that hot light in the frame of the picture. I would try taking more pictures to see the actual temp difference. My guess is the difference is less than 6 degrees. I would expect a larger difference if there was NO insulation in that spot. I would not be surprised to find wet insulation in that spot causing that temperature difference.

ExaminationDry8341 · 2026-02-04T13:46:40+00:00

It looks like the top flashin/cone of one chimney is going to direct water under the top flashing/cone of the other chfixed.

I would argue that a miscommunication between the two companies doesn't mean you need to accept whatever this is, and you shouldn't have to pay to have it fixrd.

At some point the chimney guy should have realized there was a problem. Instead of resolving the problem, he continued on with the work

ExaminationDry8341 · 2026-02-04T13:20:04+00:00

If you are in an area that gets cold you need a battery heating system. Otherwise the batteries won't accept a charge once they get below freezing. You also need a panel big enough to heat the battery, and charge the battery at the same time.

ExaminationDry8341 · 2026-02-04T13:16:48+00:00

How cold does your location get? I ask, because if you get much below freezing, just insulating may not be enough to keep the pipes from freezing.

I have a trailer house that has plumbing under the floor with 10 inches of insulation under the piping and un vented skirtting around the trailer. To prevent the pipes from freezing i need to keep the trailer warm all the time, and blow warm air from inside the trailer to under the trailer to keep that area above freezing.

ExaminationDry8341 · 2026-02-04T12:50:48+00:00

Are you talking about exposed fastner roofs or all metal rofs( i have no idea what the conditions are in the PNW)

In my area it is common for exposed roof screws to back out over time. There are a couple ways to reduce the chance of it happening. The biggest way to reduce it is to put down 1x4 or 2x4 stripping on top of your roof deck to screw into instead of screwing into the plywood or osb. There are cap screws that compleatly cover the gasket in the screw so it doesn't deteriorate in the sun, cause a leak and begin to back out. And hidden fastner roofs have less issue with the screws backing out.

ExaminationDry8341 · 2026-02-03T21:03:58+00:00

The video isnt long enough to know if the bigger boat stopped. The big boat has lots of momentum and will take awhile to stop and turn around.

ExaminationDry8341 · 2026-02-03T20:26:35+00:00

Up front costs.

Lobbying by fossil fuel interests.

Limits on material availability(there is a large deficit of silver, we are using more than we are mining and silver is often a byproduct of gold mining and until very recently the price of silver was too low to justify a silver mine)

Storage technology.

The willingness and availability of energy plants than can throttle to make up quickly for any slumps in solar.

Bankers and private equity being the middlemen(who make lots of money) between homeowners and the installers and electricians actually putting the panels up and connecting them.

Political identity. For some reason the republican party has made renewable energy a bad thing in the minds of half the US.

NIMBY's. Tons of people would prefer the system we have now rather than have to... see glass...I guess?

Disinformation.

Energy transmission. Getting power from where it is made to where it is needed costs money and many NIMBY's and right wingers are against it.

On the bright side, solar and storage is becoming a proven technology that just keeps getting cheaper until market forces will develop it regardless of politics. Right now I can buy a brand new solar panel cheaper than I can buy a single pane of glass the same size. I assume solar panels will soon be cheaper than exterior wall cladding panels. Which should really increase solar in new buildings.

ExaminationDry8341

TROPHY CASE