The Hot Box (solar heater) // Calefaccion Solar

This house is nice and cool in summer because of the thick stone walls. Alas, that means that also in winter the house is cool, even when sunny and 20º outside, which is not pleasant. The house hardly has any windows at the sun side, so there is no heat coming in. That can be helped, with a solar heater. There are various types, but in principle it's a (wooden) box with a transparent front, and a black contraption on the inside, the "absorber". Air passed through the absorber heats up, and is led into the house. The transparent front can be glass, or a plastic or polycarbonate material. The idea is to isolate the collector from the cold outside air, to prevent heat loss.

The black absorber can be various types. Some people make a pipe of soda cans, painted black. Others use a sheet of black metal. Air passed behind that sheet heats up. A very efficient type is constructed with two or more layers of mosquito netting. Pass air through and it heats up.

If you're curious have a look at: https://rimstar.org/renewnrg/solar_air_heater_types_diy_homemade.htm en http://stonehavenlife.com/comparing-solar-air-heater-designs-performance/, en http://www.builditsolar.com/Experimental/AirColTesting/Index.htm for various types and an efficiency comparison.

I have chosen the "Screen solar air heater (matrix)", with two layers black mosquito netting. As the transparent material I have asked for a sheet of Makrolon 3000 x 2100 x 6 mm to be sawn in three 1 meter wide sheets, so I can build three individual solar heaters of 2.1 x 1 meters. Makrolon is sheet material for transparent roofs. The box is made of thin triplex (4 mm) and 20 x 20 mm wooden bars and some aluminium profile. Used 3 x 10 mm screws and D3 wood glue. A small fan and a 4 Watt solar pan0el for moving the air through.

Today it's ready for it's first test, at 17:00, so near sunset. Outside temperature: 14º C (50º F). Hot air temperature: 38º C (100º F).

Setting sun, eh! Very curious how it'll be in the full sun tomorrow!

I have not insulated the box, nor sprayed it black. I have material for 3 solar heaters, so I will experiment with insulation and black paint with those.

The box is oiled with Tung wood oil inside and outside. (Inside only once.)

Christmas 2017 - Moreno

In Amersfoort, we remember great restaurants like Avocado's, Saffraan, Blok's, and China Palace. In recent years, it's been tradition to dine at Saffraan on Christmas Eve, if they were open. Always a pleasure. Here, there's Juan Moreno in Vera. The Christmas menu below is for lunch on Christmas Day. It's a day more people get that impression, though, because all three rooms were packed. Room 1 is the actual restaurant, and it's beautiful; next to it is a second room, which is nice. And then, unexpectedly by us, there's a third room. It's more of a party room, with coat racks, restrooms, and our table at the back. There was no wine tasting this time either, so we kept it simple with a bottle of nice cava, although the sommelier did try to sell us a bottle of Moët & Chandon. Of course, he didn't succeed.

(See the bloody Buggy?)

But this compensates for all, the pig cheeks. Fantastic!

Christmas 2017 - lights

I like candles on the table. And I've looking rather keenly at the coloured through-and-through glass Kivi lights by Iittala, that are , unfortunately, also rather expensive. 18€ for the cheapest ones. But, this year NRC had a nice offer, that we (I) have fallen for, at 10€ per light. The red and green are nice, the clear one too, but the other three are a bit grey-ish. Hm. I had thought the blue one "rain:" would be that nice blue one, but when lighted it's grey as well. The real blue one is the turquoise of 18€, but unfortunately with 18€ postage and handling, so some other time, perhaps. And the yellow, the lavender, salmon and light blue, please. Perhaps if/when we win the Spanish "Gordo"?

Feliz año nuevo!

Gelukkig nieuwjaar! // Happy new year! // Feliz año nuevo!

Spanish tradition is to put one grape in your mouth every bang of the bell at midnight. You can purchase handy cans with 12 seedless grapes for this purpose. We on the other hand, were tired of working and went to bed at half eleven. No fireworks. At all. Quiet dogs, sleeping well. We remember poor Banjer.

Homework 3

There is progress, as you can see below. And the donkey ring is back in place again.

Yellow stone

The walls were built with local pebbles, sand, chalk and earth. Also my lovely green stones are used here and there. And, this very nice yellow with black spots one!

Someone must have held it 200 years ago, and thought "what a beautiful stone!, I must use it in this wall". And yet 200 years later the plaster is removed, and someone else wonders again "what a beautiful stone!".

I have not seen any yellow stones here of this yellow, until this week when walking the dogs in the sierra above, the sister stone of the stone in my wall!

For a stone sitting in a wall 200 years is not a long time, I guess. It must have been sitting in the ground for a few million years, until a few monkeys put it in a plastered wall. And who know how long that will last. 200 years more? 500? These stones will outlast us, and the house, a long long time.

I wonder if the stones enjoy to be together again, after 200 years..

Curiously, the yellow is just a thin layer.

Homework2

When you remove the plaster from a 200-year old house you are bound for surprises. Like old openngs in walls that were there in the past. This one is in the back wall of the house, and a lucky one. We wanted a new ventilation opening for the toilet,
as we used the old one for the pellet stove exhaust pipe, just around the corner at the same height. If only we'd known!

This we'll use as the toilet ventilation. And a nice big cap stone! Perfect!

Same with the front wall. We want a solar air heater there, that needs a pipe inside. That needs a hole in the wall. And it's already there! Near perfect spot!

Other surprises are that some people use old cement bags to "fill" holes, and simply plaster that over.
We call that "ansteystyle" work, after the previous owner, who used this kind of "finish" in more places.

Also at the back of the house: the donkey ring. That was used to tie your donkey. And that happened often,
as the ring is well worn. And see how it is attached to the wall? Smithy work around a pebble, and that set in mortar. Sorry the pebble is broken while removing the plaster.

I'm using the opportunity to treat all woodwork of the windowframes that are now accessible, with the plaster removed. Permethrin against termites and woodworm, and a few treatments with tung-oil for protection against water and humidity.
Around all window frames there's actual plaster (gypsum). That is traditional here, but also a bad idea. Gypsum is not waterproof. On the contrary, it attracts water. Lucky we have a dry climate here, and all woodwork is in very good condition. One exception is the lower beam of this window frame. It has been nibbled in the past. Now it has permethrin on/in it, and every termite or woodworm that sets its teeth in it will be taught a lesson.

If you look carefully you can see there was a door here, once.

The wooden beam is still in the wall. Just a bit of tree trunk, complete with bark. The bark is all gone (eaten), but the center wood still has some strength.

iSnow

It's time again: a new Snow for Mac, aka iSnow Classic. The old one from 2012 doesn't work well on the latest macOS anymore. An update is almost ready. And it also works on multiple monitors at the same time. 

The first snow was in 1984, on the first Macintosh. So now we're 33 years later. (Xsnow is from 1993.)

UPDATE: the update is accepted.

Homework

Here we go again. One more job, hopefully, because of the state of the house. The plaster is loose. Wether this is caused by age is a good question.
It's not 200 years. Yet it needs replacing. That will happen the next few weeks. With an electric thing the plaster is hammered off off the walls, and that's going pretty quickly. Which is for the better, as we have a lot of walls.

Grand Marnier ish

Grand Marnier is very nice, but not readily available here. At least not at Mercadona. They do have Cointreau, but no regular triple sec, while this is orange country. Odd. Mercadona does have a quite good tequila, so we don't have to spend our lives here without Margaritas. (Don't worry.)

Grand Marnier and triple sec are available, but in only one liquor shop that we know, in Vera. Mercadona does have a nice Spanish brandy, for less than 10€. The good thing is that this brandy mixed with common triple sec is not quite unlike Grand Marnier. Which makes life here a little cheaper again.

Still really unavailable is Poire William eau de vie. Unknown here. Which is a pity. What they do have here are the Williams pears themselves. Never seen those elsewhere.

Limes

So many limes from such a flimsy tree. And see the giant lime on top? Funny, this tree cost about 15 euro,
and already pays back in fruit. Yes, true, tub and soil cost money too, but that is not what really matters, eh. Much worse is there is not enough tequila in the house to consume them all!

Are these Australian finger limes ready yet..?

And the keffir limes / djeroek poeroet?

Citrus update 2

Do you remember this sorry orange tree, last year, 2015? Else have a look at Identify this citrus.

Watering, fertilising, and Zoomba peeing have paid off.

And look now, 2017.

Kitchen counter oil

Sanded, more or less lightly.

First layer tung oil. Pity the shine vanishes the moment the wood has absorbed the oil. Only after many layers the shine stays.

What a pity, it did not "hold". Apparently the previous owner did not use oil but some teak varnish or something, not oil. Dickhead. Some heavy sanding to gt it all off is in order. Not a great job, this is iroco wood, and very tough.

This is the fourth(!) treatment. Not layer. Oil does not really build up in layers. It sinks into the wood. Another layer tomorrow.

And the sink was put in place first, only then the counter top was treated. Under the rim just silicone. Because, what you don't see does not matter. Sigh.

Waaah! Cold!

It's November, and while the temparture of the pool water was 100º in the summer, it now is a measly 21º,
and that is... COLD! Yes, we're wuzzies, but we have a trick up our sleeves for that: exciting neoprene swimming suits. Sort of 2.5 mm stretchy foamy rubber that will insulate you from the poolwater.

And you look like a Kraftwerk robot too, this way.

Poolwater... HAHAHA!

Grapfruit

Flimsy tree, but so many grapefuit! The fruits are still green, though already bright red inside. Still I harvested them, as the tree loses leaves and has aphids. It's not doing well, so off with it’s fruit!