Why don't we start a commune, ohh ok then

[hollowpoint]

LOL, I couldn't think of a better term to describe what I've been thinking about for some time.
If we could gather up a number of members, disabled, to all live together in one area, like cottages witha main lodge theme. we could have the docs come to us, because of efficeintcy?, our pooled resources will more than cover our expenses, and we will have a little bag of seeds. for tomatos, vegetables, fruit, etc to sustain us year around.
we would have to set it up in a warm dry climate to accomodate more of the members who can't tolerate the cold.
All decisions making would be handled by a commitee, voted in by the peers for a fixed term, etc.
Has anyone else had that idea, or something similar? I am dead serious about this. can you imagine the insurance agents trying to sneak around an operation like that, without us videotaping thier underhanded tactics.
I started having this idea about 5 years ago and everytime I see a roadblock, a solution is presented quickly, so I think I am being led down that path. I am no leader, I'm the do-er. I manage things well. I have lots of emergency medical and fire/rescue training, others will be better at gardening, but we all will have to chip in either through labour or another commodity of use, and there are many.
am I in a pipedream, or is this feasible?? let me know, both sides of the argument, as I can't possibly forsee everything, well not yet anyway, I plan on being perfect after june of this year, lol.

[swampy]

I see the same thing Hollowpoint :D

[nuevogro]

Well the term "commune" generally has a negative image these days. I think the new term is "planned community" or something like that. Not many of them from the 60's & 70's survived, but there are still a few around. Many were destroyed by the members themselves, so determining a great method to "govern" the community is key. I would do some research on the existing communes and possibly contact them to see how they survived - could be alot of great information there.

I like the idea in some ways, but also recognize that I have too much of an independent strain in me to live within one of these communities, but probably wouldn't mind living next door and being friends.

[Buffalo Bill]

The Kona coast on the Big Island of Hawaii. All homes sell without heaters or air conditioners. The property cost is outrageous, but with a bit of searching maybe someone could get lucky. When I was there last week, I did see a few places that were set up as bed and breakfasts with a main house along with 3 or 4 bedrooms with seperate entrances from the outside and a bath & kitchenette. Way too expensive, but.... Five miles or less above town with a coastline view on a private piece of property with no houses around. The speed limit is 35 mph and 15 mph in town. Did I say laid back? Kathy and I are seriously dreaming about retiring there in 5-10 years. There is no place like it. Did I say laid back?

[salmayo]

Gated Communities are the new Politically Correct Communes.

Coop is also a new PC version of a commune.

How about a "GATED COMMUNITY and cyber coop".



Why no, officer, I'm afraid this is a secured facility and I'll have to have the facilities Attorney review this warrant before I can allow you to enter, with a full security escort of course.
(The day is coming, we are building the future.) :cool:

[Grant]

Goddamn hippies....sounds ideal....yet Marxist all at once. I never knew hippies were Bolsheviks?

[1JoeSky_IVXX]

Hey a kanadian Kibbutz! excellent.

[swampy]

I will be tanning my feet in a hammock betwen 2 plants waiting for you Bill :D

[zardoz]

Allthough.. in my community the housing will be quite a bit further apart. It does not need to be a great "physical distance" but you really don't want to see and hear your neighbour..

There are a few of us here that are looking for the same sort of thing and some of us are actively looking for land right now. There are a number of "allternative" building methods that are very well suited to such a project given the freedom of NOT being connected to "The grid".

I KNOW it can be done.. the land can be had for cheap.. the buildings put up and populated for cheap, sustaining the community could be a problem if members do not have a "viable" means of "some limited income". I don't think the "final " fiscal load would be all that bad... but getting there could take a reasonable "chunk of change".

Gord




LOL, I couldn't think of a better term to describe what I've been thinking about for some time.
If we could gather up a number of members, disabled, to all live together in one area, like cottages witha main lodge theme. we could have the docs come to us, because of efficeintcy?, our pooled resources will more than cover our expenses, and we will have a little bag of seeds. for tomatos, vegetables, fruit, etc to sustain us year around.
we would have to set it up in a warm dry climate to accomodate more of the members who can't tolerate the cold.
All decisions making would be handled by a commitee, voted in by the peers for a fixed term, etc.
Has anyone else had that idea, or something similar? I am dead serious about this. can you imagine the insurance agents trying to sneak around an operation like that, without us videotaping thier underhanded tactics.
I started having this idea about 5 years ago and everytime I see a roadblock, a solution is presented quickly, so I think I am being led down that path. I am no leader, I'm the do-er. I manage things well. I have lots of emergency medical and fire/rescue training, others will be better at gardening, but we all will have to chip in either through labour or another commodity of use, and there are many.
am I in a pipedream, or is this feasible?? let me know, both sides of the argument, as I can't possibly forsee everything, well not yet anyway, I plan on being perfect after june of this year, lol.

[Grant]

Staw bale building, solar/wind power and geothermal heating and cooling.

[salmayo]

Earth shelterred housing with optimized solar orientation, and of course abjoining indoor/outdoor Greenhouses and Aquarium/Terreriums. Did I mention solar panels...

And a shrubry... Nhi! (Monty Python and the Holy Grail)

[swampy]

I was impressed with the straw buildings Grant great idea, me Im gona race Bill to Hawaii and laugh at the weather till the volcano blows :D I sure liked my tree-house when I was a kid

[myeika]

Guys...

This sounds great, it's a dream I feel many of us have had for some time now.
I am sure as eggs are eggs it will happen, there are many good people not just wanting this but needing it now. The internet gives us all a chance to 'get together', and our hearts and deads bring us closer enabling people to create their dreams and desires.

A quick question though....with you accept visitors from over the water??!!!
Steady though as these visitors....just might not want to go back home again!

On the subject of wind/solar energy, I remember seeing something that I found very interesting some years back, and I am not sure if it ever came to fruitation, it was creating energy by a magnet set up. Has anyone heard of this?

[micah]

The same idea was brought to my attention several yrs back, before the government shut down our site the CMMA. We had the idea of getting the government to lease to us an old army base that would be complete with a hospital setting for our very ill patients and a research area for our medical strains. Patients would be brought in (from all over the world) assessed for symptom/strain selection, taught the basics of growing their own.
We would conduct the research for various medical conditions and how cannabis helps with treating these ailments. Unfortunately the govt had other ideas.....micah
________
PROBLEMS WITH PAXIL (http://www.classactionsettlements.org/lawsuit/paxil/)

[myeika]

We would conduct the research for various medical conditions and how cannabis helps with treating these ailments. Unfortunately the govt had other ideas.....micah

As they always do!!!!!!!!

We know what is best for us, we live it every day!!!!!!

[Buffalo Bill]

I saw a 5 acre ranch with some coastline views near Hilo for $250K. The ranch already had one home and one livable cottage on it. Lots of room for more homes and gardens Many homes use solar panels for their water heaters, so the only electricity needed is for lights tunes and tubes. The weather is perfect. The pace isn't as laid back as Kona is on the west coast, but housing is cheaper on the east side. You can always find a cheap place near Honolulu on Oahu, but the pace is the same rat race as everywhere else, until you get outta town. However, the "aloha" spirit surrounds you and it sure does feel gooooood. I couldn't live there without a boat, so some of us could fish daily for fun and what we don't keep for ourselves, we can sell at the fish market. If Kathy and I go in the next 5 years, she will have to get some kind of job for another 5 years or so. If we must wait for 10 years until she retires here, we will go over then. It is no longer a matter of if, but when. Living on the coast of the Gulf of Mexico is almost paradise, but living in Kona would be true paradise! For real estate, check out http://webre2.hawaiiinformation.com. Take care and be well...
FYI; Hawaii is a legal mmj state... :)

[zardoz]

Hi myeika :) I personally don't have a problem with "where" anyone comes from, so long as their intent is honourable :)

I think you may be refering to "The Brake Drum Windmill" which is an invention of a Scottish fellow by the name of "Hugh Scoraig". It is the basis for a VERY strong DIY windmill, that has built in "overspeed protection" features. I have the plans for the Brake Drum windmill, I just don't have the tower.... yet ;)

You can find out about Hugh over here... http://www.scoraigwind.com/

Gord


Guys...

This sounds great, it's a dream I feel many of us have had for some time now.
I am sure as eggs are eggs it will happen, there are many good people not just wanting this but needing it now. The internet gives us all a chance to 'get together', and our hearts and deads bring us closer enabling people to create their dreams and desires.

A quick question though....with you accept visitors from over the water??!!!
Steady though as these visitors....just might not want to go back home again!

On the subject of wind/solar energy, I remember seeing something that I found very interesting some years back, and I am not sure if it ever came to fruitation, it was creating energy by a magnet set up. Has anyone heard of this?

[zardoz]

That The Canadian Armed forces has shut down CFB Cornwallis, complete facillity.. hospital, base community centre all sorts of available facillities. I have no idea what is being done with the base now... I should see what I can find out :)

Gord


The same idea was brought to my attention several yrs back, before the government shut down our site the CMMA. We had the idea of getting the government to lease to us an old army base that would be complete with a hospital setting for our very ill patients and a research area for our medical strains. Patients would be brought in (from all over the world) assessed for symptom/strain selection, taught the basics of growing their own.
We would conduct the research for various medical conditions and how cannabis helps with treating these ailments. Unfortunately the govt had other ideas.....micah

[nuevogro]

I think you may be refering to "The Brake Drum Windmill" which is an invention of a Scottish fellow by the name of "Hugh Scoraig". It is the basis for a VERY strong DIY windmill, that has built in "overspeed protection" features. I have the plans for the Brake Drum windmill, I just don't have the tower.... yet ;)

You can find out about Hugh over here... http://www.scoraigwind.com/

GordJust a quick correction. His name is Hugh Piggott, and he lives in the Scoraig area of Scottland. He really knows what he's talking about and has helped companies like African Windpower design some really nice lower RPM wind turbines that are great generators. (I've met with the US import/distributor of African Windpower a few times.) His newer design, the axial flux turbine, is a step up in efficency and output. If you have a good wind resource, even seasonally, it's worth it for you to look into his books and materials even to learn the background on wind generators.

If you are interested in more self sustained energy solutions I highly recommend http://www.homepower.com. Great people there that I'm happy to call my friends putting out a great magazine. (I have a lifetime subscription.)

I have a friend with a little information on his website about is home office that is solar powered: http://solar.metcalfs.com. Interesting little primer on solar related components. :p

[Green Medicine]

I was wondering what you think of TRACE inverters....I have 2 Trace SW4048 with remote panels just sitting around. They were spares on a ISP's backup system.
I got them new at an auction. I know 8kw is PLENTY for a home or retreat..
but what would be able to keep up the charge on 48 "8D" 12v deep cycle batteries?

Will I have to use a wind turbine to keep them charged or is that many solar panels too pricey?

Just Wondering,
GM

[Grant]

I was impressed with the straw buildings Grant great idea, me Im gona race Bill to Hawaii and laugh at the weather till the volcano blows :D I sure liked my tree-house when I was a kidI used to have the most kick ass treehouse ever. Three stories, counterweighted lifting system and running water (garden hose).

My oldman used to say to me "If you fall out of that damn thing and break both your legs don't come running to me".

Wise words.....

[Biggs]

I think that is a cool idea.

A good inexpensive place to go with good weather beach is San Carlos Mexico.

The building codes are not as strict as in the US.

Many Americans are moving to this part of Mexico to retire. You can now buy land in Mexico and own it.

Or other parts of the Baja.

One thing that I think would be cool is to have a earthship type house.
http://www.earthship.org/learn/rentals.php

There are already solar housing working successfully in Arizona.

The technology is here. In Tucson they have brand new houses fully powered by solar and they also have water recycling.

Another subdivision the houses are all straw bale with solar.

Need to use the resources we have.

Just ideas.

[Green Medicine]

With this group, I hope the straw is fireproof.

[nuevogro]

I was wondering what you think of TRACE inverters....I have 2 Trace SW4048 with remote panels just sitting around. They were spares on a ISP's backup system.
I got them new at an auction. I know 8kw is PLENTY for a home or retreat..
but what would be able to keep up the charge on 48 "8D" 12v deep cycle batteries?

Will I have to use a wind turbine to keep them charged or is that many solar panels too pricey?

Just Wondering,
GMWell the Trace SW4048 used to be the market leader. While it doesn't have the cleanest power signature it's close enough to actual sine wave power that you shouldn't have problems with almost anything. I think it's sine wave is 64 steps if the unit is working properly, which looks pretty good on an oscilloscope. I think you'll have enough inverter power to run just about anything a normal household would need.

Hmmm... If the "8D" batteries you are talking about is anything like this one: http://www.dcbattery.com/rolls.html that's alot of power when you have 48 of them! 275AH x 12vdc x 48 = 158kWh of storage! Seriously though you probably don't want to run more than 2 or 3 parallel battery strings if you want to keep them running good for a long time. 1 string would be 48v (inverter voltage) / 12v (battery voltage) = 4 batteries. So let's say 8 batteries (2 parallel strings) would give you about 26kWh of storage, and probably at least 18kWh of usable storage. You need to be able to charge the batteries with at least a c/10 rate (capacity/10 hours), which would mean 2.6kWh of solar, wind, hydro or even generator. That's not too hard to do with solar these days, but it does cost a pretty penny! I would guess about $15k for the panels? Even a sizable wind generator will cost you alot, because of the tower, anchors, crane to install, etc. Usually the wind generator is about 1/2 of the total cost of getting it connected to your system.

If you are in California and own a utility connected home, cabin, or whatever you might qualify for a state rebate on your panels if you connect the system to the utility for selling power back to the grid. Some people have setup their systems with time of use metering and with the increased day rates and discounted night rates have basically offset their electric bills to 0. (Still a connection fee, but it's pretty low.)

Hope I didn't bore most of you with all this tech talk, but if you are interested in living in the boonies you'll have to learn a little about how to keep your power going - it's not that hard once setup by a competent installer though.

[Green Medicine]

HDTV-DVD-A/C-PlayStation-HID

I might live "off the grid" but I'm taking societies best gifts with me. :)

[swampy]

Thanks Neuvogrow I like that kinda info :D I can see Grant will never leave but only build more stories so we should have the biggest tree house in Hawaii
then he will probably plant in buckets in the tree-tops

[nuevogro]

HDTV-DVD-A/C-PlayStation-HID

I might live "off the grid" but I'm taking societies best gifts with me. :)Yeah, I have 40 acres in Oregon that I want to build on, but have issues with easements at the moment. Maybe someday... Today with solar, wind, hydro you can live just about anywhere. Add in Sat TV, sat Internet, cell phones & FedEx/UPS and you have a real life, just away from everyone else! Imagine what you could grow on 40 acres :p

[zardoz]

Yes I stand corrected on Hugh's last name, I am prepared to build a brake drum mill... but i'd also like to look at building one of these for sure!... http://www.otherpower.com/bigmills1.html

I LOATHE the power company... ALL of them! So every advance in DIY technology that allows us to get that much closer to "independence" is a boon to us all.

Here in Nova Scotia... there isn't a big problem with the amout of available wind, of course you could end up with a piece of land that is "shadowed" and if the shadow can't be relieved and a taller tower isn't an option then wind is maybe not a good option for you.... for me it's next to perfect ;)

The other generating field I'm interested in is "bio-diesel", whereby a diesel engine is run to turn as many allternators as is practical and feasable. The diesel is fed with "bio diesel" which is used french fry grease converted to be used in a diesel engine or diesel fuel burning appliance ie: water heater or furnace or pool/spa heater.

Gord

[Grant]

There is one energy source that keeps getting overlooked. Steam! You can heat homes with it, drive equipment, pump water, and purify water.

I have a question: How much energy would an electric motor producing 8 HP@ 3000RPM consume?

[nuevogro]

Yeah, I've seen the otherpower site before. Have you seen their "test rig" for some of their smaller wind generators? Really interesting site there.

Grant, I did a little lookup for ya. 8HP electric motor? That must be a 3 phase unit. Anyway a 115vac 2HP @ 3450rpm full load is 19-23amps. 3 phase 230vac 7.5hp is about 22amps. That's alot of energy! You building the worlds largest BUBBLE blender or what? I can see the headlines now "Bubble World - Man builds canna dreamland!"

[Grant]

Nope not a blender but using the electric motor to drive a 5KW generator. To see if it is worth the output of X amount of power to make X amount of power. Maybe it's worth it? Maybe not.
Yeah, I've seen the otherpower site before. Have you seen their "test rig" for some of their smaller wind generators? Really interesting site there.

Grant, I did a little lookup for ya. 8HP electric motor? That must be a 3 phase unit. Anyway a 115vac 2HP @ 3450rpm full load is 19-23amps. 3 phase 230vac 7.5hp is about 22amps. That's alot of energy! You building the worlds largest BUBBLE blender or what? I can see the headlines now "Bubble World - Man builds canna dreamland!"