Charles McIntosh - Senior Project

10th Blog

Greetings Everyone,

Hope everybody's holiday was spectacular and that everyone had plenty of turkey :-)

Last week I continued to make my compost heaps that will all be placed my in RBHS. all the compost heaps are above 120 degrees. Its 10 degrees lower than what I want, but the water storage tank/heater will be able to raise the water temp 10 degrees. The reason why the temperature of the compost heaps are so low is because of all the rain that we have been getting and its been slowing the composting process. 

I decided not to purchase my insulated pex pipe, but rather make it. The company that sells it said that I need to buy a minimum of 100 feet. The pipe sells for $30 a foot, and it costs $700 to ship it. Im also looking for a oxygen meter that is less than $800. I found a thermometer that can connect to my computer via USB. It can measure my RBHS in 3 separate locations simultaneously.

NYSERDA wrote me a few days ago and they suggested that I get funding for my project. I will attend a agriculture video conference on December 10th to get more information on funding 

9th Blog

Greetings Everyone,

This week I have started construction on my RBHS and I got a 15 cubic foot load of wood chips. I also went to a conference in Troy, New York. It consisted of innovations in agriculture. I learned so much that could help me in Sr. Project.  Also I talked to a Mr. Martin Loojie of Loojie Agrotechnics. He designs and builds green house farms. They range from small personal greenhouses to 60+ acre greenhouses. I talked to him about my Sr. Project and he offered me a internship in the Netherlands for this whole summer.

8th Blog

Greetings Everyone, 

I've gotten alot of materials this past week and Im ready to start building my RBHS. On tuesday, I acquired 90 pounds of wasted vegetables that I can use as bio-fuel for my RBHS. on wednesday I cut my old oil tank so my 40 gallon water tank can sit in. The water tank will stand up in the cut oil tank, and both of them would be in my RBHS. The reason why Im doing this is so the water tank wont move when I aerate the compost. On thursday I collected 45 pounds of coffee grounds from the Starbucks in East Hampton and Medford.  Tonight I should get more coffee grounds from the Starbucks in Medford. 

7th Blog

Greetings everyone,

These past two weeks have been very busy and challenging.

Last Thursday I obtained 175 lbs of wasted or old bio-waste from Stop and Shop in Mastic Shirley, thanks to Mr. Jason and Mr. Evans. My 120 gal water storage tank with heat exchanger came in on Thursday too and my dad, Mr. Rich and I installed it on Saturday. Friday I visited Starbucks in East Hampton and they generously gave me 30 lbs of coffee grounds. On Monday, I visited Starbucks in Medford, and asked them if they could save me their coffee grounds over the week. Unfortunately, last night I visited them and they lost the bags earlier that day. hopefully when I visit them again today they would've found them. On Wednesday Stop and shop gave me another 75 lbs of bio-waste. Tonight I will order my materials from Home Depot so I could build my Residential Bio-mass Heating System.

6th Blog

Greetings Everyone,

This week has been very hectic in getting supplies for my product. But on Wednesday I ordered an 120 gal hot water heater/storage tank. My original design of my biomass system consisted of a 10 gal hot water storage tank. So if I stayed with that design I would have two water heaters in my basement which isn't very sufficient at all. The water tank that I ordered has a heat exchanger already installed. So if the water from my biomass container came into my house at 90 degrees, the 130 degree residential water would heat the cooler water. The heat exchanger would allow this flow of heat to occur without the water mixing with the residential water. 

I also came across a roadblock with the design of the water tank that will be inside of my biomass container. the original tank that I have chosen is not designed to hold hot water under pressure...thats not good at all. I might go back to the coil concept for my biomass container, or I will have to find a new steel tank that is designed to hold water under pressure. I also started clearing out the area where my biomass container would be located around 20 feet from my house. 

5th Blog

Greetings everyone,
 Last Saturday I purchased a wood chipper and electric lawnmower. They both work well and the the wood chipper extremely fun to operate :-)

Back in August we started looking for tickets to attend the recycling organics seminar in Minneapolis Minnesota. After getting approval I registered for the seminar, made hotel reservations (that reminds me, I have to cancel my hotel and seminar reservations) and then tried to buy airline tickets. There was a problem with the airline ticketing system and when I tried to go back to purchase the tickets, I was prevented from logging in. In the meanwhile my grandfather passed away and when i finally got back to the site, the ticket prices had more than doubled. I contacted the airlines to tell them of my plight but they wouldn't honor the original ticket prices. By the time they answered, the ticket prices had doubled again. So it looks like attending the seminar will not happen. There is a similar seminar in Troy, New York, and it looks like that's the one I will attend. 

4th Blog

Greetings everyone,

The past couple of weeks have been difficult for my family and I. So I hear by dedicate my Sr. Project to Charles A. McIntosh II, or to family and friends The Moose. 

This week I found a good used wood chipper, and I'm currently negotiating the purchase price. I recently contacted cornell extension program for assistance in compost bin construction. I also started putting together the questions for my survey. Im trying to identify sources for automated data gathering equipment for dissolved oxygen, carbon dioxide and Ph for my compost pile. 

3rd Blog

Greetings everyone,

 This week I accomplished alot. On Sunday, I collected two bins of wood chips, roughly 500 lbs off of Rt. 112. I met the property owner of where i collect the wood chips and he told my dad and I that he would deliver all the wood chips to my house. On tuesday Starbucks and Stop & Shop replied to my request on collecting vegetable waste and coffee grinds. Stop & Shop said they will help me out and I will contact the store manger at the Mastic-Shirley Stop & Shop this weekend. Starbucks said I could go to my local Starbucks store and collect 5 lbs bags of coffee grinds a day. I will contact the store mangers in Medford and East Hampton also this weekend. 

I started the process for my Sr. Project trip to Minneapolis for a composting conference during the third week of October. The conference will go over new techniques of composting and compost engineering. This conference will help me understand more about the science of composting. 

2nd Blog

Greeting Everyone,

 This week I have been very busy. Saturday I fed my test compost heap 100 lbs of wasted food and coffee grinds from my house and my grandparents. The core temperature of the compost was 118 degrees Fahrenheit, it's a little low for a compost heap but its only 2 degrees lower than what I need for my water temperature. On Sunday I wrote Starbucks, Dunkin Donuts and Boarders and asked them if i could go to one of their stores and pick up a days worth of coffee grinds to use in my compost heap. I also wrote Pathmark and Shop and Stop to see if i could get vegetable waste from them. On Tuesday I had a meeting with my mentor. Wednesday my basement was poured with new concrete, covering my radiant heating tubing and foam insulation. Also on Wednesday A&P Food (Pathmark and Shop and Stop) declined my request for their vegetable waste.

Next week I plan to start construction of my 9'x9'x9' residential biomass heater and start to collect materials for the biomass heater.

2nd Blog

Greeting Everyone,

 This week I have been very busy. Saturday I fed my test compost heap 100 lbs of wasted food and coffee grinds from my house and my grandparents. The core temperature of the compost was 118 degrees Fahrenheit, it's a little low for a compost heap but its only 2 degrees lower than what I need for my water temperature. On Sunday I wrote Starbucks, Dunkin Donuts and Boarders and asked them if i could go to one of their stores and pick up a days worth of coffee grinds to use in my compost heap. I also wrote Pathmark and Shop and Stop to see if i could get vegetable waste from them. On Tuesday I had a meeting with my mentor. Wednesday my basement was poured with new concrete, covering my radiant heating tubing and foam insulation. Also on Wednesday A&P Food (Pathmark and Shop and Stop) declined my request for their vegetable waste.

Next week I plan to start construction of my 9'x9'x9' residential biomass heater and start to collect materials for the biomass heater.