West wall and doors The greenhouse build continues. We have made some serious progress since our last post. We have created a door of windows and a door of door. We wanted a way to get the bulk water tanks in and out as well as a way to have tractor bucket access when we need to clean out or add soil, etc. I imagined two swinging barn doors that followed the roof angle. I also needed a regular entry door on this side of the greenhouse as the opposite side will be fenced in. This is the southwest wall, so blocking the sun is a terrible concern. We needed access for the tractor and we also needed a wall of windows to let the light in. I believe in the end we have designed something unique and functional. I must admit that I am not in love with the window up top on an angle, but it fit so well on the table I felt compelled. I suppose it will remain assuming there are no major leaks around it. Side doors open giving us an 8 foot openning which will allow for the moving of dirt and water tanks. Below We have a side by side photo of the West wall before and after. The first photo is the west wall from the outside when we were initially building. Given I planned to do windows later in the project, we needed a support wall to get both sections of roof built. The right side is this West wall rebuilt with a window. Two of the rafters were moved to the outside and run the entire height to support the wall ends. The center two were cut out and put aside. The window was framed, then the carrier beams were set atop to measure the space above. We cut the old rafters down and toenailed them into place. I snapped the picture and then left for the overnight shift. Sarah has since covered the top half of the west wall with roofing plastic. I was initially planning another window above this one, but Sarah was concerned with the extra framing blocking out even more winter sun, so we opted to simply place the studs and cover in plastic. As we looked at the design of the window-door, I was concerned about the first foot of the side wall. The front pony wall is four feet. With the far end of the door reaching a height of 8 feet, I had some concern about having enough hinges spaced out correctly. we moved the door out enough to add the window in the above picture. The hole under it will eventually have the gutter collection pipe and garden/animal water lines. Moving the door 18 inches to the left gave the right side of the door an additional foot and one more hinge. Sarah has also begun the window trim. Next post should have trim and siding. We are excited to get this build completed prior to frost setting in. Exciting stages to be completed: Trim outside of windows and doors. Build the back door possibly a french door, one big door, or a sliding barn door...tbd. Add snow load straps to back wall 2x4's that run horizontally accross the legnth of the back wall to keep studs from bowing due to heavy snow. wood side the exterior back Front steps for west door. Probably rocks Insulate roof line roofing windows doors cover interior walls with plastic sheeting Build platform for heatsink barrels 8-12, 55-gal black drums will be filled with water and stacked two or three high to cover the back wall Move the IBC totes inside and build a frame to support two stacked containers. Pipe the gutters into the totes Cut front rafters down to accept gutter Mount gutter and downspout Run waterlines out to paddock water troughs. Cut chimney pipe hole Build 55 gallon barrel stove and run chimney pipe out back wall or through roof Install vent fan Wire in a few outlets and lights Cut hole for wind turbine mounting pipe Install wind turbine and all its components turbine control board inverter batteries/charge control As you can see, we are almost done. Just a small list of incidental missions to complete. Oh yeah, I almost forgot, once the greenhouse is complete, we will begin an 8x10 shed on the back with a walkway. I believe I have explained in a previous post that the turbine components will be mounted in the hallway to protect them from the high moisture levels in the greenhouse and fish shed.

Homemade oil drum BBQ Welcome back to the Farm Life Farm Blog. It has been a while. Well I did just publish a greenhouse post, but prior to that I took a month-long hyatis. From the blog, not from the work. I have a friend and she has two boys; well men now. Ten years ago, her eldest took a welding class. We see our children grow and know that it will be hard to find quality time as they develop their independance. You cannot read your 19 year old son a bed time story. So she happened across half an oil tank, found a way to get it in an SUV, and brought it home so they could build a grill together. As the years past, it became more of a family joke than project. They could not devise a lid or find time to get together and work on it. Then one day she asked me if I had a welder and could help get the project done. We set a date and got together. I must admit that I have no technical training and did not aprentice or go to trade school. I have just tried things and read a lot. Youtube has helped a bit too. Her eldest son is an engineer. As we began the grill project, the eldest was writing things down and measuring other things and asking me technical questions. Unfortunately my answers remained a constant, "I dunno, we will see what works", which was met with mild consternation. I might have made it 20 minutes before asking, "are you an engineer?" I slowly backed away and took care of ancillary duties like cutting and grinding to get the pieces ready for welding. The brothers tackled the actual welding and designing. About 6 hours in, the boys were frustrated and I was tired. The welder overheated and we called it a day. I left all the gear there and they attacked it again a few days later. They had the back and sides on the day I was there and focused on the lid. Aparently they had a good day until they thought it was done: the lid did not close correctly. It was later relayed to me that the engineer commented that there might be legitamicy to the way I work. My next free day I returned and showed the younger son what they had done wrong and we got everything lined up nice and secured all the pieces with welds. What were we working with? A 40 year old Lincoln Mig Weld-pac 120v Half an oil tank Two 55 gallon maple syrup drums One tailgate from an 2004ish Chevy truck Inside the box I had cut the grate from a rock sorting machine to hold the charcoal or wood with two levels in there to choose how close to your food the heat is. We cut 2 inch flat steel to support the grill grates whch are stainless steel fish net. The flat top is a great addition. We added enough supports that all the grates and the flattop can be moved around based on heat or convenience. The lid handle is a piece of Maple tree that had a perfect natural curve.Sanding and painting has happened since I have been there. The vision has been realized and the family is happy with the results and mom is slowly seasoning the new paint with small fires in the grill.

Nothing exciting to report. Sarah remains at Scout camp. Phoebe and Harper are there with her. I continue through my busy work summer, and Colt is home caring for the farm.

Welcome to Farm Life Farm. Find handmade signs and soaps here. Eggs, Lamb, Pork, Poultry, and rabbits. Let us feed you and teach you to feed yourself! With our sawmill, we can mill your timber and build your outbuildings together HOME Phoebe's Page Shop Farm Education & Training Medical Education & Training Woodwork Tractor Work Saw Mill Rabbits Sheep Pigs & Lard-based Soaps Birds Horses About Blog Search our Site Rabbits will be ready September 19. Pigs are ready for slaughter. Call to order now. Offering whole, half, or quarter. Eggs are always available in our Farm Life Farmstand. Roasters will be ready in Mid October. WELCOME Welcome to Farm Life Farm Established 2024 We are a family owned and operated livestock farm in Connecticut's Northwest corner. Address 91 Prospect Mountain Rd Bantam CT 06750-1410 Phone 860-209-1590 Email farmlifefarmllc@gmail.com Connect

Laying Hens, Eggs, Chicks, Chickens, Turkeys, Poults, Ducks, Ducklings, and Duck eggs are all available at Farm Life Farm HOME Phoebe's Page Shop Farm Education & Training Medical Education & Training Woodwork Tractor Work Saw Mill Rabbits Sheep Pigs & Lard-based Soaps Birds Horses About Blog Search our Site Birds Our Chicken Breeds Orpington Rooster Isa Brown Hens New Hampshire Red Hens Barter White Hens We Hatch our birds on the farm. We also free range our flock. All of our hatchlings are Hybrid mixed breed Our Turkey Breed Dindon Porcelaine Turkeys (Heritage Breed) Turkeys not currently available Our Duck Breeds American Pekins Khaki Campbell Mallard Inquiries eggs chicks laying hens meat birds Contact us now ducks Ducks are a wonderful addition to any property. Ducks provide a wealth of benefits Eggs Duck eggs are large and delicious. They are great for baking as the large yolks make for a rich confection. Protein Duck is a wonderful addition to your freezer High protein content useful nutritious and delicious fat Stress & anxiety reduction Few things provide more stress relief than watching ducks play and quack Turkeys Farm Life Farm has a breading pair of Dindon Porcelaine Turkeys This is a Heritage Breed and are very similar to the Native Turkey found throughout the United States Why Turkeys Food Turkey is an excellent Protein source Turkeys take 14-30 weeks to grow to harvest size. Turkeys will provide 12-30 pounds of meat Turkey eggs are as good as duck eggs Easy to maintain and raise Turkeys are currently out of stock. Check back next year Inquiries eggs chicks laying hens meat birds Contact us now

Sheep and lambs are an easy addition to your farm and homestead. Farm Life Farm provides lambs and the training needed to properly care for them from birth to processing. HOME Phoebe's Page Shop Farm Education & Training Medical Education & Training Woodwork Tractor Work Saw Mill Rabbits Sheep Pigs & Lard-based Soaps Birds Horses About Blog Search our Site The Sheep Shack Sheep Our Sheep Breeds: Katahdin Ram Dorset/Romney Ewes Why sheep? Wool Meat Inquiries Breeding stock Wool Lambs Care & Training Contact us now Get Inspired