Off-Grid FOOD STORAGE - DIY Basement ROOT CELLAR BUILD
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- Опубліковано 25 вер 2021
- Most of us have been thinking about all of the shortages and food insecurity going on recently. Many people grew vegetables in their own garden this year, and that's awesome! But then, what about when winter comes? There's freezing and canning, but you only have so much room in your freezer and so much time to can (plus there's a canning lid shortage too). AND those things rely on electricity. How about a way to store FRESH vegetables all winter long - that doesn't even require electricity?! We're talkin total off-grid here. And it can be done in your own basement. With some pretty basic carpentry skills you can build a root cellar (or cold cellar) in your own basement, and it'll solve all of your problems. Just kidding. But, it will make so you can eat fresh vegetables all winter long. Boom.
Great job!..looks amazing!
Amazing video 👏👏👏👏❤
Best storage room for food I have seen, just have to add a secret access door. Thanks.
I feel for you. I often have to do stuff on my own. Having an extra hand would have made the world of difference.
Totally! I can usually have my wife’s help in situations like that, but I think she was in town or somethin when I was workin on that part 😏
You are inspiring ! Thanks !
You are so welcome!
Damned straight. Well done sir.
Thanks 😏
Great ideas thanks :)
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Great video new friend 👍🏻
Thank you!
Hey Cody, you are doing a good job with the videos. I think your oldest boy is close to the age you were the time you rode with me in your dads truck when we went to Indiana and Jeremy, Matt, & I helped your dad with chicken cages. Do you happen to remember that? Ivan Yoder
Thank you! Wow, that was a long time ago.. I don't remember that!
This is a video I just watched. Just sharing: How I Store ROOT VEGETABLES (that last through the winter!) | Market Garden | Grow GREAT carrots! - UA-cam
Thanks!
great video. thank you for sharing. now that the winter is ending and spring is here *fingers crossed*, how did your in-home cellar do? did you have problems with bugs? mold/rot on your stored foods? other unforeseen issues?
You're welcome! It did great! We had potatoes, sweet potatoes, onions, and squash in there. The potatoes sprouted a little sooner than I would've hoped. Some of the squash rotted, but that's pretty normal. We kept some store bought apples in there at different times, and it helped them stay good longer. No bug problems, no mold, no abnormal rot. I was pretty pleased. I didn't have a thermometer in there, but it seemed to stay a pretty consistent temperature in there. Never got too cold, never got warm.. so far at least. Still didn't get my shelving put up, but I hope to before next fall. Excited to try some more foods in there!
@@morethanfarmers keep the onions away from the potatoes and they wont sprout as quickly
@@shellisspace Good to know, I hadn't heard of that! Thanks!
@@morethanfarmers yep you're welcome. Onions omit a gas that sits that to potatoes
Apples as well. They off gas ethylene that speed the ripening of other veggies and fruits in storage.
God Bless Joe Scott Muddy Dog Ranch
What was your estimated cost to build this? Just seeing roughly what I’d need to set aside to tackle a project like this. Thanks!! Love your guys’ videos! God bless!
I used a lot of scrap lumber etc., and I didn't track the cost, but I'm thinkin it was $750-$1,000.
I have thought about doing this myself but when someone made the comment “Yiu can buy a hell of a lot of vegetables for what you spend in materials”. Not to mention your time is money,,,,, I had no argument to offer. I’m curious as to why people do this then? I’m not trying to be snarky or rude. I genuinely thought that was a statement worth thinking about. I would love people’s thoughts.
Good question! First of all it’ll depend on what kind of produce you’re buying. If you’re buying the cheapest veggies you can get it would take a lot longer to pay off than buying organic. When we do have to buy produce we only buy organic.. We can raise it ourselves and store it for a lot cheaper. (Also the produce we raise and store for ourselves is even so much higher quality than store bought organic). Part of the reason we do this is for convenience. How would you like to just walk down to your basement to get all the ingredients you need for meals in the cold snowy winter instead of making a trip to the grocery store? There is food security here too. We store enough vegetables in our root cellar to last us for the winter.. We’re not doomsday preppers, but if there’s a shortage or prices jump up we have that cushion. In short, it’s a lifestyle we choose to live and we love it 😊
@@morethanfarmers That is a great response and makes complete sense. Thank you for your thoughts and best always!!!
And now, just 8 months later, it makes even more sense to have less reliance on stores! Great job on the build!
@@morethanfarmersgreat answer! And you make such a good point
I love having food in the house already so I don’t have to rush to the grocery store in snowy cold weather!
hows the long term going? are u still happy with the material choices and is the insulation r rating high enough?
No complaints 👌
I saw something that said that the warm air vents should be flush with the ceiling or water will start building up around them. Have you had any issues with that?
Good thought! Pretty sure I had heard that too, but I wanted to be able to put a cap on. So far I haven't had any problems with it, but we'll see how it goes. I decided if it does become an issue I can still cut it off with a multimaster, and find another way to cap it off.
So, why finish out the walls and ceiling after all the insulation. Aesthetics?
👍
Question! I live in the Bahamas where our coldest temps could be 55-58 rarely and our highest temperature maybe 98 with a 100% humidity. Root cellars that I see on UA-cam are all in cold climates but I feel I can do a space like this and it would still be 15-20 degrees cooler then my garage for my long term storage items and produce. For the most part I can grow all year long and have 3-4 plantings per year. Having said that I don’t want to run a cool bot device as our electric costs are high and it would likely be too much for our solar system. So….. are these vent pipes necessary in our climate? We are digging 5’ into rock under our living room as we live on an incline. Shaded by the above floor. Five feet into the earth. Concrete floor. Wood/hardi board walls with 4” insulation on walls and ceilings. Just don’t understand what to do about venting. Pipes? Window? Fans? Etc. not sure how to reduce humidity either but I have to figure it out. We spent about $20,000 on long term food storage over a 3-4 year period and it needs to be in a cooler place. Along with canning items, fresh produce and supplies. What do you think?
Hard to give a solid answer to all of that 😏 so many variables. I will say though that the vents are not just for cooling, it is also for fresh air and gases emitted by the fruits and veggies. You definitely need something. It might not need to be exactly like what I have, but you do need to have something that will circulate the air. Also, I don’t think your outside temperature matters as much if you are down in the ground. The ground temperature is what really regulates your room temperature. I’d really recommend this root cellaring book here: www.amazon.com/dp/0882667033/ref=cm_sw_r_as_gl_api_gl_i_T80DWVSF2BVREJWSG027?linkCode=ml2&tag=morethanfarme-20 They have all kinds of advice and diagrams in there. It was really helpful for me. Good luck!
Thank you for adding this video. Awesome job. I bought a house with a root cellar already in it, but knew something was up when I noticed a strong musty smell. They didn't install any ventilation pipes! Since this will be a kind of retro-fit job, how might you recommend locating and boring the holes through the wooden joist ceiling and to the exterior (cellar is under my porch)? I know, tough question. Was hoping you showed how you made the through-holes in your video just right for your job. Thx!
Any issues with bugs entering through the pipe?
No.. It's covered with a screen mesh and then a slotted vent cap over that.
Is tgere a reason you chose matal over mold resistant drywall?
A couple reasons yes.. Mold resistant drywall can still soak up water. We get water in our basement sometimes so I need it to be waterproof. Mold resistant drywall is also just that.. resistant. Not mold-proof. And, I don't know 100% how it works, but I would be leery of chemical mold inhibitors in the drywall. With the way I wanted to create a solid barrier with the insulation covering the studs, I think it woulda been a little more iffy to fasten drywall on top of that. It's also something I've never used, so I'm not familiar with it.
As someone who is going to be making one in the future, how much should I budget to spend on this/what was your total cost?
I wish I could tell you 😁 I don't think I tracked it all. But I'm guessing for the wall and ceiling material I spent around $700 ?? The door was free. Shelving would be another cost.
@@morethanfarmers $700-$800 is what I was guesstimating as well and wanted to make sure my ballpark was a good ballpark. Thank you!
@@anlowman9228 No prob, good luck!
Question, why styrofoam insulation? Would any insulation be fine
Yes and no... Since there was going to be cold air (inside the cellar) meeting warm air (basement area) I wanted styrofoam as a vapor barrier, and something that mold wouldn't grow in. Styrofoam also packs more R-value in a smaller space. I wanted it as insulated as possible. All that being said, it's not like other kinds of insulation just wouldn't work.
what's name of that tool you used to make a hole in the sill?
Are you talkin about the holes to the outside for the vent pipes? That was a hole saw on a drill.
@@morethanfarmers yes thank you