Trying to get an idea of how many cords of wood I am going to need. Have a log spliter and plenty of free logs around but unfortunately its still all too green so I would have to await until next year before I can burn it. Im thinking 15 to 20 pieces of wood a day is about what I would go through???
Well a year ago I would not have thought I'd be spending my mornings fixing fences, working on the tractor, and splitting and stacking fire wood. Been living in the house for a few weeks now although not totally moved in yet. Took the barn down and have all the permits for the new shop just waiting on the builders to come out and get started. I'm looking forward to when I can get back to casting. Next few casting projects will be strictly for myself. Want to get betsy finished for the east coast nationals this year as it's the 50th anniversary.
I can burn it, no problems in my area just have to spend $15.00 for a burn permit. Been cutting alot of it to length so I can fit it in the woodstove. Saved the newer tin roof and some lumber to build a lean to on the side of the garage for storing fire wood under.
Long haul but I'm sure will be well worth it......especially when you get the bulk of it in your rear view mirror. So what kind of shop are we talking here? ft2? Heat? AC? Electrical service #amps? Inquiring minds want to know! Best, Kelly
Shop (pole building) is a 40' x 40' x 14' with a 10' x 40' front porch 2 10x10 bay doors and a 36" entrance door and 6" concrete floors. Will be adding heat, electric, and a lift after it's up. Electric will probably just be 200a single phase
I could view that fine. That looks nice. 40x40 is a nice size. I have 200a service in my shop and as a single man shop, I never feel like I need more. I do have a rotary phase convertor and 3ph sub panel and outlets around the shop. I ran compressed air drops too. Are you going to finish it yourself?.....pull your own wire, insulate, sheet rock, etc? After the house renovation I figure you must still be panting pretty hard, Best, Kelly
Wasn't planning on finishing off the inside very much, but I will wire it and add lighting/heat. I have a 20 x 30 garage at the farm that I will be using as the machine shop and planning on doing most of my work in there...
I see a green muller on the right side of that demolished barn. The 20x30 looks like it could easily be kept heated, with "easy" being relative to the pole barn, unless you build a room in the pole barn. And it looks like you have plenty of space for a motocross track. Priorities you know. .
I was considering building a room on the one side of the pole barn. I doubt that it would be possible to heat a big metal box in the winter with 14' ceilings very well at all. The garage seems to stay warm without any heat probably built over a vein of uranium with my luck No motocross tracks for me. I don't heal as well as I used to. Planning on planting a vineyard out there for a pretty heavy tax break. That old cement mixer will be staying as is. I have one of the harbor freight ones that's converted into a muller
The way those pole barns are built and insulated these days you can just about heat them with a matchstick. I had a 54x54 (3000 sqft) added on to my print shop a few years ago which effectively increased my airspace by 30% and my gas consumption increased about 10%. I know it's not apples to apples because of shared furnaces, radiant floor, etc, but a couple of hanging units would certainly do the trick for your utility purposes. I know, I know, it's just one more thing (ching-ching). Even if you dont dig gas lines or plumbing right now it might not be a bad idea to make provisions for the future just in case. Pete
Hey David... Guys I know use goats for tax breaks. It's real easy work with prices and demand on the up. You just need something pooping or growing. Plus the goats mow for you. A vineyard is real work, goats or sheep are not.
@Petee716 the only utilities out here is electric and cable, no gas, no water, no sewer. Chances are my source of heat will either be a pellet stove or wood stove... if it weren't for wanting my beer cold in the summer I could easily go off grid. @Jason I grew up on a farm. The only thing goats are good for is milk and beef stew. With the vineyard, I get my tax break and can pull in 5 to 10k per acre by having a u pick type deal. If I started a winery I could generate anywhere between 50 and 100k per acre. Goats generate crap....literally
I agree.. goats are nasty. But a vineyard sounds like work to me. The only thing that grows slower is an olive farm. How many years will you have to wait for a decent crop?
3 years for a decent crop, 5 years for a good crop that will tell you what your future is. I have already been in touch with the MD wine association and had the soil testing done. Location is ideal, but going to need to ammend the soil a bit. Nothing 10 tons of sand, one ton of lime, and 30 gallons of diesel (for the tractor) wont cure. Still haven't ordered the plants. Keep researching things over and over again...
My dad had about 1200 ft. of vineyard on a one acre plot. The birds would eat mulberrys and then perch and crap in the vineyard. Every year we had to cut the saplings out. PITA! The wine was real good though. Concord grapes mostly.
