Living off Social Security

[perchie.girl]

I haven't read this long thread, so if someone else has suggested this, forgive the repeat.

I know a gal who has done something similar in her "retirement." She raises foul that have colorful feathers and is making a nice living selling the feathers to craft companies.

She uses a lot of feathers, so this isn't just walking around and picking up dropped feathers, so she breeds, raises, and butchers solely for the feathers.

She uses a lot of mille fleur Cochins, Cream Legbars, and turkeys (palm and several other showy breeds). She then also sells breeder eggs and started Cochins which make excellent brooding mothers. (She actually uses the Cochins to brood the turkey eggs.)

She is pretty self sustained, though I think she helps out at a feed store a few days a week, but her purpose is full retirement with this set up.

Just ideas.
LofMc

Very good and I want to do this... There are also chickens that are bred just for fly tieing.... Not the usual farm yard fare... Very pretty hackle feathers.

deb

 

[perchie.girl]

Home made bread is great, not just for toast. You can make croutons, french toast with those eggs, bread pudding.....or you can trade it!

I love Sourdough... Oooo trading is good... Carbs and I dont get along too well... So I probably will try bread making with Mesquite flour...

deb

 

[perchie.girl]

Just my Opinion but letting you all know that wind power is NOTHING compared to solar. We started out with a huge (expensive) wind turbine and have went solar since. The turbine just quit and our sales man said "You wouldn't believe how many of those I have in my backyard!" grrrrrr The solar has by far out performed the wind.

What I want are those Vertical turbines.... and I probably will build those from scratch... The bearings wear and the blades fail... controllers freak out... One of the issues is the whole unit is designed for an optimal air speed. If you notice those big ones for wind farms have blades that feather in high winds. The ones we built in the early eighties were for a wind farm.... HUGE. The gear box for it was more than a thousand pounds.

Very complex dependant on sensors and computers. No computer interface for me. but then I am a gear head not a sparky. so I will have professionals build me a solar array.

Solar for day.... wind for night... We will see

deb

 

[perchie.girl]

Just FYI verticle wind Turbine...

+

or

anything rotating has to be in perfect balance.... That may show up at certain speeds.... so it may take some work to balance it.

The beauty of these is they can take wind at any angle and transform that vector input into energy. With Regular wind mills they have to be pointed into the wind constantly...

I will probably buy a blade assembly....

deb

 

[biophiliac]

Just FYI verticle wind Turbine...

+

or

anything rotating has to be in perfect balance.... That may show up at certain speeds.... so it may take some work to balance it.

The beauty of these is they can take wind at any angle and transform that vector input into energy. With Regular wind mills they have to be pointed into the wind constantly...

I will probably buy a blade assembly....

deb

I really like that machine.

 

[R2elk]

What I want are those Vertical turbines.... and I probably will build those from scratch... The bearings wear and the blades fail... controllers freak out... One of the issues is the whole unit is designed for an optimal air speed. If you notice those big ones for wind farms have blades that feather in high winds. The ones we built in the early eighties were for a wind farm.... HUGE. The gear box for it was more than a thousand pounds.

Very complex dependant on sensors and computers. No computer interface for me. but then I am a gear head not a sparky. so I will have professionals build me a solar array.

Solar for day.... wind for night... We will see

deb

How harmful the big wind turbines are to wildlife is obscene.

 

[PouleChick]

Great thread! Some good ideas. We are trying to get solar sorted here too.

What is tilapia?

 

[Pork Pie]

Great thread! Some good ideas. We are trying to get solar sorted here too.

What is tilapia?

Tilapia is a fish originating in Lake Victoria but is farmed in many places these days.

 

[PouleChick]

Tilapia is a fish originating in Lake Victoria but is farmed in many places these days.

Ahhhh thanks Pork Pie There is my new thing learnt for the day!

 

[HenOnAJuneBug]

What is tilapia?

It's a tropical freshwater, vegetarian fish that tastes great. Eats algae and duckweed. I believe it's part of the cichlid family.