Slow Day

Not much happened in project-land today. Catch up on other stuff from many days of neglect.
I found a book of this artist, Olafur Eliasson. He does amazing stuff. I want to do that kind of stuff, but maybe have it also be useful. Maybe one day.

http://www.olafureliasson.net/

-carl

ice scuplture

Ice scuplture. no, really. But not so much like sculptures of pigs or carousels or the like. I'm thinking of ice as more of an engineered material.

I found this photo (i'd love to just post it, but this blogger software will NOT let me put a photo up.must. make. workaround)

its some frost on a chicken wire mesh and all the ice has been blown horizontally, awesome shot.
http://www.flickr.com/photos/54788032@N00/1141279468/

I am trying to address the operating costs of a greenhouse by creating a still air-pocket around it. I am thinking that cast ice components may be able to shape winds away from structures and toward generators. These may be viable structures for 8 months of the year in places.

Is it very windy where you are?
Is there anything done, structurally, to create windbreaks?

This might also be useful in places other than immediately around a greenhouse, like maybe in a common space. And there is a lot of opportunity for weird forms. Weird like cellular creatures and diatoms and pinecone-like things.

I had a sculpture teacher who taught a workshop to kids in Prince George, BC. Some mix-up in the planning stages had him arrive with absolutely no supplies, so he taught the kids how to cast ice into ice-molds (using a plastic bag in between). I am no expert, not nearly enough to teach anyone, and I don't know I could set this up but...

a challenge.
the highest temperature inside a structure, the most energy generated off of the surface, the least cost of materials and the best looking form.

I'd like to see that! I'd like to do that!

A freezer! A freezer!

I have discovered the need for a really big walk-in feezer. I need to do testing. I am hoping to use some kind of climatic kung-fu to make a really cheap, no fuss way of reducing heat loss due to wind motion. Its what goose down and wool and the hairs on your body that raise when you get cold are all doing: creating a pocket of still air next to the body.
I am hoping to use cold to do this. Its free, locally available and there is lots to go around. But to test this I will need to find a great big freezer.
I also need to keep the blog updated regularly, and make it more fun n' stuff. I agrees.
Carl

Findings

After a hectic week of compiling data, writing reports and defining my direction I can take a wee break and update the blog.

My findings, such as they are, reside here:
http://www.fletcherdesignlab.ca/HLG/ResearchReport.pdf
9.9MB

and here:

http://www.fletcherdesignlab.ca/HLG/DesignBrief.pdf
763KB

but those are big long documents, so here is an executive, executive summary...

many problems with growing.
many opportunities.

there is need. there is demand.
Efficiencies improve with larger structures.
There are some impressive material options, but cost is a limiting factor.
People seemed inclined to share their facilities, but wish for some autonomy in this.

I concluded that as a solution (there may be many) I would focus on a material/structure approach to provide insulation value at a low cost. It would allow sunlight through. This material/structure would be shown in the context of a public facility.

There are other approaches, like energy generation rather than efficiency, that look promising in some locations. Wind power looks like an option, but one that would work better at a community scale than an individual one. And there are other things which could be done, like making bio-diesel from algae-based scrubbers attached to the diesel fuel generators, which may make a little bit of energy. Both of these looked like interesting tangents, but I have researched the viability only a little.

yet to do:

materials ideas + research
prototyping a material
testing
drafting a proposal for a public project (as this falls WELL outside of my knowledge it will be only a very rough draft)
making visuals etc. for presentation.

there may be a few more surveys ;) and there will definitely be some pictures.
but now, to the drawing board!

-Carl

Surveys pt 1 & 2

Here is survey part 1 - Growing in your town
Click Here to take survey pt 1

And here is survey part 2 - Produce availability and quality
Click Here to take survey pt 2

I should send an original art-picture to all my respondants by email, but they will need to ask for it because the survey doesn't track emails. Feel free to ask, everyone.

update and sickness

Ok , back again. It's fall so I should stop acting as if its summer. I've been stuffed up and sneezy, lately. Not out much, still hooked up to the computer so I can still work some.
I have to do more first hand research, that's what they say. Got plenty of studies, climate data, reports and whatnot.
Surveys, that what I need. I drafted up a couple of surveys and am going to try to shop them about to get some response.
I don't feel like I am much further in my process, but maybe I can justify my position better at least.

Ups and Downs in project-land

OK.
Yeah... so I talked about my project with an architect. It was encouraging, I learned stuff and have new avenues for research. I got a yummy book about the new uses of glass in architecture. Big ups to Sophia Books!! I sent an email to a man who is running a greenhouse in Iqaluit. I hope that he writes me back. those are the "ups".
The "Downs" are that I have not heard back from a potential "industry partner" after the first few encouraging emails. I guess that they figured out that I wasn't going to buy anything ( I feel that I was pretty open about that.) So I guess that I have to go hunting for other manufacturers.The BC greenhouse growers association suggested a few to me, but at first glance they seem to be doing huge monster-greenhouses that would have different heat/power issues etc. but I can has going to send them email or calling them on the phone tomorrow.
Also, I am getting quite behind in submitting any progress reports to my project supervisers. I ought to do this ASAFP, but I really don't want to hear that this won't work because A, B and C...
yeah... so there it all is.