Wood burners
Have you used a wood burner with a jetstove.com chimney? They are supposed to be smokeless and put out twice the heat. I really like the concept of not letting all my heat go up in smoke and out the chimney. I talked to the guy who is making them and he will soon have the chimney available to add on to my present burner. Its in a test stage now and he said it looks promising.
I think I need to do one chimney on each of my wood burners — three for the house, one for the workshop and one full boiler burner for keeping the water from turning to ice in the barn. I have been using electric de-icers to keep the animal water thawed but our plan is to get off the grid by next spring…
I love the idea of the rocket mass heater design (rocketstoves.com) (where the jet stove design came from) but I live up north and when we burn, we burn 24/7… Last year we burned 5 cords for all the buildings — roughly 10 pick up loads. Sure, it only cost us $35 in gas to do it (chain saw, gas to haul and gas for splitter) but it took 22 days at 5 hours a day. If I can reduce that work load by any amount I would be a happy camper. And I don’t think a rocket mass barrel chimney would work because we’ve used a double barrel kit for the work shop and it really only lasted about a season before rust got it. The barrels just don’t take the heat like a heavy metal jet stove chimney unit could — at least, that’s my thought.
IF these really work as well as I think they would by burning off the smoke and releasing all the heat before it leaves the building, then there might be no end to the things it could do — make hot water, make a sauna (!), or even build a year-round greenhouse if we could run the chimney heat underground. That’s if it works as well as I hope. Are you familiar with these? I’d be very happy to hear experiences with using them!
Sherry
Lyle, Minnesota
Sorry, Sherry, but we’ve never heard of either a jetstove or a rocket mass heater. How about it? Any readers out there who have? Please let us know how your installation works for you. — Jackie
Peach preserves
Having found this, it looks good to me. My question, canning time? I’m keeping the freezer as open as possible due to the recent power outages, and winter a few months away.
Evaporated peaches ingredients:
15 pounds peaches
5 pounds sugar
1 cup vinegar
Choose fully ripe, sound peaches. Do not peel. Wash and slice. Pour 5 pounds sugar over peaches and let sit overnight. Then add 1 cup vinegar and cook slowly until mixture cooks down and is thick. Mash with potato masher and sweeten to taste. Can add almond flavoring if you wish.
Can be canned or frozen. These taste like real dried peaches. Use as you would dried peaches for making fried pies
Philip McRae
Middleboro, Massachusetts
This is basically a peach preserve recipe with the vinegar ensuring acidity. Pack the hot preserves within 1/2 inch of the top of hot, sterile jars then process in a boiling water bath canner for 10 minutes. (If you live at an altitude above 1,000 feet, consult your canning book for directions on increasing your processing time to suit your altitude, if necessary.) — Jackie.
Harvesting dry beans
First I would like to say you amaze me! I garden, and process foods (freeze and can) on a much lesser level than you do, and I get very tired. I don’t know where you get your energy. I planted a couple of rows of “Painted Pony” beans to use as a dry bean. When is he best time to harvest them? Do I need to wait until after a frost?
Sherry Wilhelm
Paulding, Ohio
Not so much energy, but having learned to pace myself and just keep plugging along. Yes, I DO get tired, but it’s such a great feeling to look at all we have accomplished in a day, a week, that it makes it all very worthwhile.
Harvest your dry beans when the pods are tan and dry. If you wait too long, they’ll pop open and spray beans everywhere. But don’t harvest them when they are at all moist and soft or they’ll mold. The best way to tell is to pop a couple pods open and check the beans out. They should be shiny and hard and relatively loose in the pod. You don’t have to wait for a frost. Once harvested, thresh out the beans and then dry them in shallow layers on trays in a protected area to make sure they are very dry for storage. — Jackie
Pumpkin puree
I read that I could can pumpkin puree and process it in a water bath on medium heat. The expected process time is from 3 to 5 hours, depending on boiling point. Can I reduce the heat and process longer and still get the same effect? I know canning pumpkin puree is not recommended, however I have found many people who do it.
Shawna Gracia
Somerville, Texas
It is absolutely NOT safe to can pumpkin puree or any other vegetable in a water bath canner. No way, no how. PLEASE keep safe and use a pressure canner. It is also not recommended any longer that we can pumpkin puree. Instead, you need to can pumpkin chunks then run it through a sieve prior to using it to puree it. Pumpkin and other thick foods are so thick that the heat necessary for safe processing may not reach the center of the jar for long enough to kill harmful bacteria and toxins.
I know some people still waterbath vegetables and even meats, as it was the old way. But this is one “old way” that is best forgot! — Jackie
I have been using a barrel stove in my garage for about 7-8 years. Not everyday, like in a house but most weekends and a day or two in the week.
I lined the bottom with sand mix leaving a trough to the bottom bung hole on the stove. That gives a little better air flow from underneath the wood.
The sand mix adds thermal mass and keeps the coals off the metal. I think this has let my barrel stove last so long.
I also added a Chimney blower that helps reclaim heat from the chimney that I got at a garage sale. That helps warm up the garage a bit faster and farther from the stove
I’ve got some green beans I’m letting go to seed. Most of the pods are tan, but with all the rain we’ve had I’m not sure they’ll ever be dry! I’ve got some that I picked and let dry indoors, but there’s still a lot out there.
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