10/17/22 (Monday)

Had class today first with Gunnar, then with Lou, and learned all about harvesting water and how the water systems work in an Earthship. It's amazing how they have evolved the process over time. They talked about utilizing tools like glycol lines under the roof and copper wiring in the gutters to melt the snow in colder climates so it does not cause any damage (while simultaneously producing useable water). They also discussed how the septic system design, which features an ET (evapotranspiration) bed, never has to be physically pumped out if installed correctly. It has been so eye-opening to learn about all of these autonomous processes.

It dawned on me late last night that I have not yet shared (in writing) the six principles behind the Earthship, so here they are: 1) natural and reused/recycled materials; 2) thermal heating and cooling; 3) renewable energy; 4) water harvesting; 5) black water treatment; and 6) food production. Over the last 2+ weeks of living in an Earthship, one of these principles has stood out to me more than the others--thermal heating and cooling. Most mornings are 35-45 degrees here. I initially (mistakenly) thought New Mexico was going to be a nice warm getaway, but we are pretty high up in elevation here in Taos (approx 7,000 feet). That said, I absolutely cannot believe how warm my bedroom has been in the mornings, and there's only six feet between it and the outdoors. I am perfectly content in a T-shirt and shorts, and that comfortable temperature (I'd guess around 70 degrees or so) has no cost or energy associated with it. It is created by a combination of the sun, the greenhouse buffer zone, and the thick thermal mass tire walls, which are said to release some of their heat at night as the temperature goes down. It is truly mind-blowing to experience, especially when thinking about how much I used to pay to fill up my oil tank as a conventional homeowner. I haven't had to open it up yet, but my bedroom also has a cooling tube coming in the back if I get too hot--I just open up the little hatch and let the air do its thing (cool air comes in; hotter air rises and goes out my transom window)--maybe not as effective as an AC unit, but you can't beat the cost!

We were back at U2 this afternoon and I ended up volunteering to help with carpentry work. As I would later confirm--not my jam. It was the same type of work I had helped out with last week at Deborah's site--measuring, cutting, drilling, and installing window stops for the exterior greenhouse windows. I partnered with my classmate Calista on this task and we spent almost the entire three hours working on a single window (through no fault of hers!). It was just a perfect storm of poor ladder angles, an uncooperative impact driver, and having to make many tiny cuts to the same piece of wood to get it just right. A frustrating experience for sure, but I suppose I'll only get better with practice! Mike was on-site again today; at 77 years old, he's an inspiration!