We’ve had (drywood) termite problems on and off for years. Since there’s no way I’m going to have the house tented and permeated with Vikane gas,* I would periodically get the bug guys to do the microwave treatment. It cost $2,000 initially, then about $500 per year for future treatment when needed.(I believe orange oil is also used these days for people leery of insecticides.)
A few years ago, I decided to try Greenbug spray, which is (said to be) made of cedar and natural ingredients. I’ve been spraying this stuff on the wood where I see termite frass (pellets) and to my amazement, there are no more pellets. I say “amazing” because this is topical treatment and it doesn’t seem it would get into the wood where termites live. (All of our termites are in ceilings.)
The stuff smells great, like cedar oil, and I am just now buying a 2nd gallon (about $60). I pour it into squeeze/pump bottles (like Windex bottles) and spray until it drips a little (it’s water-soluble). Haven’t had the bug guys out for many years.
Greenbug is one of the few products in the world not sold by Amazon.
https://shop.greenbugallnatural.com/Greenbug-Ready-to-Use-one-gallon-GRTU128.htm
*First, Vikane is made by Dow — red alert. And, if it can penetrate into the wood and kill termites, I am suspicious of residual effect.
Above: Sami people in the late 1800s Sweden/Norway..…
“The Sami people (also Sámi or Saami), traditionally known in English as Lapps or Laplanders, are an indigenous Finno-Ugric people inhabiting the Arctic area of Sápmi, which today encompasses parts of far northern Norway, Sweden, Finland, the Kola Peninsula of Russia, and the border area between south and middle Sweden and Norway.…
Their best-known means of livelihood is semi-nomadic reindeer herding. Currently about 10% of the Sami are connected to reindeer herding, providing them with meat, fur, and transportation. 2,800 Sami people are actively involved in herding on a full-time basis. For traditional, environmental, cultural, and political reasons, reindeer herding is legally reserved only for Sami people in certain regions of the Nordic countries.…”
https://www.whitewolfpack.com/2015/12/rare-old-photos-of-indigenous-sami.html
From Rick Gordon
Bill and Athena Steen, the strawbale/earthen plaster maestro/maestra team from Arizona are helping build this home, which will be featured in our new book, Small Homes.
Bill writes: “Interior adobe wall in a clay plastered straw bale house we are helping our boys build in Sonoita, AZ.”
(Bill shoots pretty much all his photos with an iPhone, has been doing it for a few years. I’ve finally come around to doing this. Both of us still use the big cameras (him a Nikon, me an Olympus OM-D) for serious shoots, but the iPhone for every day shots. The new iPhone 6S has a super new camera.)
I’ve been shooting photos of this little building along Highway One for years. It now looks about ready to fold.
I was shooting photos of the old one and Louie said, Hey, the one across the street is identical. Sure enough. Twins. On the ocean side of the highway in Fort Bragg.
In keeping with the Brotherhood of Beach Builders: no nails.
I really like this. The curved roofs, the corrugated siding (never needs paint), the nifty balconies, the alternating symmetries…
Kudos to the good architects, of whom there are unfortunately few these days.
Yogan came to California from France and is exploring (and working wherever he stays) along the Pacific west coast this fall. I dropped him off in Pt. Arena (Calif.) 2 weeks ago and as he makes his way northward, he is shooting photos and posting them on his blog:
https://yogan.over-blog.com/
His website: https://www.yogancharpentier.com/
This photo from The Salmon Creek Farm in Mendocino County
He’s now heading up to visit SunRay Kelley in Washington.
Tags: builders, building, carpentry, farming, natural building, natural materials, off-the-grid, roadtrip, tiny homes, tiny houses, treehouses
A few years ago, I decided to try Greenbug spray, which is (said to be) made of cedar and natural ingredients. I’ve been spraying this stuff on the wood where I see termite frass (pellets) and to my amazement, there are no more pellets. I say “amazing” because this is topical treatment and it doesn’t seem it would get into the wood where termites live. (All of our termites are in ceilings.)
Above: Sami people in the late 1800s Sweden/Norway..…
