blenderbender

Trying to harden mild steel likely will not yield any more hardness. Due to its low carbon and alloy elements content, mild steel does not form a martensite structure when quenched after being heated. But handy tip for the "where did that tap go?" situation.

Thanks... I'm going to try this. Although I'm no birdhouse expert, I have read in more places than one that the perch on the outside is totally unnecessary and even a hazard as it gives predators like raccoons, squirrels, etc. a perch to hang on to while burglarizing the nest. I've made a point to watch the birds around here and none of them seem to have a problem perching on the entry hole while investigating their future home.

I've know about swamp coolers and realize that in high humidity situations they aren't effective. Can anyone tell me exactly what the cutoff point is in terms of humidity before they fail to work?

I made a similar sifter using a Harbor Freight 3-1/2 cu. ft. cement mixer. Using the easy to find 20-25% off coupons they can be had for around $165 - $180. The mixer barrel portion is two halves bolted together. I removed the front half, discarded for re-purposing, and then modified a 55 gallon steel drum by removing much of the barrel skin with plasma cutter, leaving the ribs and rims intact, then welded four angle iron stiffeners lengthwise along the outside of the drum. I left the bottom of the drum intact and cut out the top, then lined the inside with a length of 1/2" wire mesh. The bottom barrel rim was nearly a perfect fit to weld onto the rim of the mixer barrel. It works great.

I've had the same issue.... if I scroll back to the top of the page and then scroll back down a bit the bar pops up with the favorite button, etc. This seems to work most of the time.

Remove or loosen drive belt(s) from drive pulley to allow easier hand rotation of chuck.

Will this work for smaller particulate such as sheet rock dust?

Amen to that!

thanks for that!

I'm just curious if you're garage is attached or detached?

As I understand it, and I need to re-read the specifics on temperatures, during a thermal aerobic composting the temps can get too high and will kill beneficial microbial life as well as pathogenic. Therefore the temps need to be limited to somewhere around 140-150 deg F. if I recall correctly. Too high you kill everything and too low doesn't rid pathogens. I suppose this would apply to an anaerobic compost also.... just guessing. What kind of timeframe are you speaking of before yours gets all nice and fluffy? I can imagine that the contents of an IBC just drying out slowly from the top down would take a considerably long time to reach that stage.

"Just ideas. In the UK the word 'could' does not mean 'will".... I can totally relate to that! good luck... will be following your ideas/progress.

Read Joseph C. Jenkins "The Humanure Handbook" for the lowdown on eliminating pathogens in 'humanure'. He would cringe with this system as there is no significant heat created in an IBC full of feces to kill harmful pathogens. I don't think anyone would call this composting. Note that the author warns of using end product on any food that might come in contact with it. What does that tell you about safety of it? I wouldn't want to use it anywhere near anything I was producing for food.

Joseph Jenkins does have some credentials, including a Master of Science in sustainable systems. Regarding hsteinbe's comment, to my knowledge any septic systems contents first goes through a municipal wastewater treatment facility before it is turned out as sludge, unless it's done illegally, or perhaps some municipalities have very lax laws. I'd be curious about the heat generated in your system too as anaerobic composting tends to be cooler and will not kill weed seed or other plant pathogens, not to mention human pathogens. Thanks for your efforts.

Great stuff for these hot summer days! I doubled recipe and used 1/2 coconut milk with 1/2 yogurt....... very satisfying!