Hi everyone!
A slow week went by, with daily heavy rains it’s not always easy to find the motivation to work outside.
We installed a 50 square meter fleece and pond liner on top of the build, and started backfilling with dirt.
It’s a lot of work because we have to dig the overgrown pile of dirt that’s been sitting for 5 years on our lot, first getting rid of the roots in the top soil. But we have to do this manually as the back is only reachable through a narrow path in our neighbor’s garden.
My partner also installed the electrical panel with 24V circuits for RGBW LED strips, a PoE WiFi access point and connected the wall outlets to the 230V main. It was temporarily connected to test how bright the strips will be. They will later be mounted in metal railings across the whole length of the lower brick line, with a wood cladding.
We will then have to dig a 20 meter trench from the house main electric supply, lay a PVC pipe and pull a 3-phase copper line to the cellar. This will be the garden hub to provide electricity to the future outdoor kitchen.
The next few days we will work on the mortar joints, using the multitool diamond blades that arrived in the mail to finish the cleanup before grouting all the joints cleanly.
Have a great week and keep on doing it yourself!
That looks really nice! I want to build a root cellar but it’s just not feasible for my climate (humid subtropical) and location (no mountains or hills on my land to go into and water table too high to dig down). I would have to do mechanical cooling and ventilation on whatever I build at which point it’s basically a walk-in cooler.
yeah it’s purpose built for our space, until last winter, we had no idea what to do with that corner, it felt like it was pretty much useless space.
We will also have a small ventilation installed into the door frame to push in cold air at night on hot days, and evacuate excess humidity through the vent at the back.
Super cool! We’re looking to install a sizable root cellar and your project really inspires!
Thank you so much! I’m happy that it motivates others to realize new projects :)
It feels a bit sluggish as online content always seem to fit neatly in a 2 minute timelapse with upbeat music, the reality is less glamorous. But it’s the opportunity to hone problem solving skills and also maybe get in better physical shape, many upsides!
There are very small excavators https://m1.secondhandapp.at/w-i-mgl/62b8b943527e497c8bb42eda
Right now, we just have to fill the 30cm wide gap at the back and navigate between our neighbor’s plants, we’ll be done this week, it’s not really worth getting a small excavator just for that job.
The plan is to completely fill the slope up to the entrance, and dress it with granite boulders. We will then need a much bigger excavator to move that around, at least 4 to 6 tons. We found a guy who can come on his free time with his own excavator, definitely getting work done with him for the bigger earthworks.
Our main inspiration comes from a German garden designer, Peter Berg, who has beautiful projects https://gartenlandschaft.com/gartengestaltung/#hanggarten
Really cool project! But you really missed the chance to integrate a tiny hidden runnel right into your house to sneak in and out.
(Or you hid it really well ;))
It needs torches
If you’re doing that any way why not add pressure plates as well around the door?
I was thinking of a piston door with calibrated skulk sensors… 😬
We’re gonna install a Ubiquity RFID reader at the door for access control, integrated in HomeKit, so we can enter with our phone/watch
