Homesteading Through 3 Years of Drought in Spain
Vložit
- čas přidán 4. 05. 2024
- Hi, we are Harriet and Mauro and in February 2021 we bought an abandoned smallholding in Castellón, Spain. In these videos we share our life as we restore and improve our little stone house, learn to grow and preserve our own food, and bring our 4 acres of farmland back to productivity.
If you would like to support us in return for early access, ad-free videos and other perks, you can find us on Patreon:
/ littlespanishfarmstead
Or if you're looking for a way to say a quick one-off thanks for the work that goes into making these videos, you can treat us to a little coffee here 🥰:
ko-fi.com/littlespanishfarmstead
----
Follow us on Instagram: / little.spanish.farmstead
Read our Newsletter: littlespanishfarmstead.substac...
VOLUNTEER/STAY WITH US:
Latest information about staying with us/visiting us is available on our website:
Our website: www.littlespanishfarmstead.co...
---
✉️ GET IN TOUCH ✉️
Want to collaborate on something? Email us at:
littlespanishfarmstead@gmail.com
Personal?
Send me a DM on Instagram :)
---
Music in this video:
A Nightingale's Journey - Wanderer's Trove
You Shine So Bright - Ten Towers
Bebop Rhythm - Vendla
Kailua Beach Park - Paper Twins
Day of Mine - Biddy Sullivan
From EpidemicSound
I ❤️ you and Mauro's cando attitude. You don't sit around and moan. You just get on with it, with a smile and a joke. Everything crossed that your solution works.
Maybe painting the pipe white would help to keep the temperature down. Also be careful of putting heavy rocks on hot pipe as it could collapse the pipe. Roof tiles are genius!
Proud of you two! “Water Warriors” go drink a cup of coffee You’ve done well!
How scary to have to worry about getting water. I hope your big water project helps to alleviate those fears.
Very wise to implement your emergency water plan. Living off-grid must have been hard enough when the earth was kind. Coping with climate change is sure to raise many challenges.
Clima change is a scam and only implemented to control humanity and suck them out. Everything about climachange is lied and statistics have been faked. Do not believe anything and question every thing before you believe it's true.
In California they use floating balls to ensure the evaporation is held to a minimum,. Is it possible that some of the loss is evaporation and not leaking? If this is the case then some form of shade for the rock reservoir may help. Either floating balls or a sun sail from a DIY shop may help.
We’ve been hearing about the drought in Spain over here … praying for rain ☔️ for you ❤
Mauro con un cafe despues de todo el esfuerzo y ya es feliz,la felicidad esta en las pequeñas cosas.SALUDOS😗
You' re the epitome of a pioneer woman. wow.
You guys are great problem solvers!❤
Love how ur a team, and solve these issues together 💪 praying that u have good pressure for amazing showers! 🙏🛁😉
Oh I wish you a good old downpour to give everything a good watering, isn't it strange that Portugal are getting good showers but Spain isn't. Hopefully you will get good pressure down at the house, take care xxxx
Hola nosotros en las obras donde van este tipo de tuberías les ponemos unas fundas anticongelante y nunca hemos tenido problemas con ninguna instalación. Soy Antonio un Arquitecto de Madrid, un saludo a los tres y hasta otro momento.
i wish we could send you some of the rain we have had in the uk
Hi, just watching video now, some intended to be helpful comments. Good Luck!
1, Thinking not stacking the IBC's is a good thing. IBC's in USA hold 275 gallons , with water at 8.33 pounds per gallon, that's over 2200 pounds. for a full IBC.
2, Hope you have included isolation valves to split up your storage/supply capacity. Incase you have a problem you will not lose it all at once.
3, Consider enough IBC's to cover standard (optimum) delivery quantity plus what you would be drawing from while awaiting delivery.
4, Sounded like you are considering the increased pressure, that's good. FYI, it's 0.433 psi per foot of elevation.
1. I think the IBC metal cages are designed to be stackable, so I assume they would hold the weight. But I agree with you, it's better not to find out the hard way
2. We have, there's one after the T of the "last" IBC and we will put valves on each branch we make for different parts of the land so that we can isolate and work on them separately
3. We are going to try for a 10.000L delivery for the first time, but we think we can go up to 15.000L with more IBCs downstream (we currently have 3 more) and overflow into the stone deposit we use for the donkey water.
4. Hydrostatic pressure for the win!
Great work! Yes, you've a coffee! ☕ And a great shower! 🚿😀
very worrying about the drought, sending you some uk rain your way we have had over load of it this spring
It's a good idea to use roof tiles 🌝👍
Are you able to hook up to the local water when it gets like this? I hope this becomes resolved for you soon. Mauro is strong. Thank goodness. Do you have any insulation left you can put on top of the pipes and then rocks on top of that? Roof tiles, brilliant idea. At least you have each other to throw ideas about. Thank you for showing ups and downs of living off grid. It is not so easy sometimes and you really have to be a strong willed person to cope in a calm way. You two are quite calm. It is very rewarding to figure out how to fix these problems. Bravo Brava Katie
No, the water network doesn't reach our land.
@@MauroGestoso I understand. I am starting a project very soon. I bought an ancient cottage in the village. But the village has water connections. You both made a beautiful home together. I am thinking of trying a drip irrigation system for my small garden and use one of the water containers like you have done to your house. Thanks for your videos. I learn so much from both of you.
Beautiful piece of land and the house is charming.
Is good to see you back on track, looking good and healthy and full of energy 😊
I hope you get rain and it will be a steady rain for the parched earth and for your water storage project. Praying it works out 🙏 praying for rain🙏
I am off grid for water, too and its a worry as rainfall changes. I'm glad you are making options available and those options will give you the opportunity to repair the deposits. We too in SW Western Australia are struggling after a record hot summer with weeks over 40C and no rain for about 7 months.
Wishing you ease with the resolutions.
Then in Eastern African countries of Kenya Tanzania etc the heaviest rains in century, lists of flooding... This world is unpredictable
Fingers crossed 🤞🏼 it works. Well done you two, tricky job and you both put in the effort. I’ll hope for plentiful rain for you 🌧️
Aún no he acabado el video, pero como yo también tengo paranoia y soy medio neurótica, comparto ya. Yo estoy en Catalunya, y esta siendo horrible. Mi casa es mucho más pequeña y vivo sola, pero explico que he hecho por si sirve, tengo pozo. He puesto canales y bidones para recoger cada gota de agua de los tejados, como me sobra, la devuelvo al pozo en dos de los cuatro que tengo (voy a poner otro más), uso una manguera de riego exudante que serpentea por donde quiero regar, árboles por ejemplo (compro en cocopot, ahí al lado vuestro). Necesito deshumidificadores y saco un montón de agua de ahí, para lavar la comida, limpiarme los dientes y la cara... uso pedales de esos navales en los grifos. No tengo agua corriente la de beber y cocinar me la traen de una empresa. Tengo cuatro bancales y en todos uso ollas de riego enterradas para hidratar. Y tengo el suelo todo cubierto con paja en todo el terreno. Yo que se, al final es supervivencia. Espero que os sirva de algo.
Muchas gracias por tu comentario! Ahora mismo no estamos invirtiendo esfuerzo en medidas para capturar agua de lluvia porque no llueve nada, pero con el tiempo lo iremos haciendo.
Llevo tiempo queriendo instalar bombas a pedal para los grifos, me parece una muy buena solucion para ahorrar agua y electricidad.
@@MauroGestoso no llueve, no. A mi se me volvieron a llenar en una tormenta que tuvimos.
Los pedales van súper bien.
Escucha, habéis mirado hacia qué topo de clima estamos yendo? Para ajustar calendarios y tipo de cosecha. Encuentro información dispar.
Southern Italy also in drought.
Crazy how we are getting so much rain in New Jersey, US..I wish I could send some your way!
Great job. Fingers crossed, no leaks!
Maybe add foam pipe insulation little by little? It's pretty cheap in the US, but I'm not sure prices in Spain. You also aren't going to lose water to evaporation. Yay!
In case you want to revisit the stacking: don't stack them straight but interleaved (?) In a brick pattern, so 3 on top of 4. Then, the middle of the lower layer has infinite clearance to the top. I hope your solution works out well and you get some more rain! I'm slightly worried you might have used the 25/40mm pipes the wrong way round; the connection between the tanks needs lots of capacity and flow rate, so the filling up goes fast, while your water usage is a much lower flow (and your elevation drop is likely plenty). I'm not an expert (I ordered 40mm for my garden when I should have used 25mm. Someone stopped and told me it wont work but it's fine) so I hope this commwnt reaches you after a successful fill up!
Thank you for giving us some stuff to think about. The 25mm connecting pipe probably should have been 32, since that was the size on the cap adaptors (which I could only find in one size). It was purely stinginess reducing to 25mm, for cheaper pieces and pipe. Maybe a mistake, we'll see.
Instead of covering your Inc's with pastic, can you build a roof of pallet wood?
Its a dire situation. Water in such areas must be fixed high up and used well before it reaches areas which do not use it well. Store everything you can in all manners you can imagine. Best of luck.
Very true. And when it rains, everything is just lost to the sea, carrying tonnes of topsoil with it 😔
Hi from New Zealand with the ibc tanks maybe you could pack up the tank to give more room for taps..Asia is going through a heat wave as well.all the best to you both .may rain comes sooner than expected.
Ah someone else mentioned putting a pallet in between, i couldn't think why, now I see! Great idea!!
Can’t wait for next week! You work so hard…Hope every thing works as you planned. Buena suerte !!!Os lo merecéis!❤❤❤
I am amazed at Harriet’s knowledge. Where did you learn your skill set?
Great teamwork!
That really is a worst case scenario. I relaxed a little when I saw the IBCs. It looks so hot and dry. The roof tiles are a good idea.
Job well done ❤
The drought has been tough this year. Let’s hope we get some late spring rains to recharge the aquifers. Enjoyed the jazz sprinkled in the video. The water pressure will be great on that hill. I’ve only got one IBC and it’s only about a meter high. It gives me acceptable pressure for filling watering cans.
🙏🙏🙏
Ojalá pudieran hacer un pozo para tener agua. Fuerza!!! 💚🌱🇨🇱
Otra idea era pintar la tubería de blanco, ese que ponen en las carreteras que aguanta la lluvia y el sol sin deteriorarse , pero las piedras y tejas también es un recurso y se pueden refugiar bichos del calor abrasador.
Yo he pintado con ese blanco las balsas de agua que tienen plástico negro para evitar filtraciones, y así se evita que el agua esté hirviendo (o casi) y no puedan ni beber los animales, y funciona evidentemente.
🌱🌿💧🌧🌻💛✨️
Well done you two ❤
Hope it all works guys😊
The road going past your land will have water runoff, so it's possible to get the water if you have a small pit with a container at the lowest point, trenches toward there.
That cement tough is likely to cause evaporation, is it possible to put some sort of cover?
Some people build a small pond at the highest elevation on the land which provides water to the trees below, which in turn keeps the moisture in the soil. If you get one of those downpours, that's a reserve water.
We are not exploring rain water catchment solutions at the moment because our current problem is that there is no rain, so it feels counterproductive. I don't think we can make any modifications to that road since it doesn't belong to us (nor our town hall). But we have thought about it for the road that goes into our land when we decide to fix it.
Mauro, I brought it up so there are more options. Of course you can't alter the road, but there is usually water drainage off the road, although I do realize it's not a paved road.
When the going gets tough Harriet gets going! ❤
Love your bantering😊. Painting the stones white might help reducing the heating of the water?
Great job connecting all of the tanks.
Awesome work you guys 👌👍💚
the drought really is bad this year, we are still hoping there might be some rain for the trees before summer comes, great job on the IBC's, love the hoola hoop!
Stones, will break the pipe once it's hot. I would try and find another way to keep the pipes cool.
Great job! You are so brave !!!
Вы молодцы! Все у вас получится…. В поддержку вашего канала, и привет из России❤😊
Спасибо! 😄
Wow great work guys, wahoo yiu will have good pressure for your water i am sure of it! See ya next time xxx
You guys are amazing! Good job 👏 hopefully it will solve your water problems!😊👍
Hello, I am very sorry because of your water Problem. I Hope you can fix IT for all Times.
You are so brave! Folowing your chanel is a source of strengt and a blessing our hearts.
Greetings,
Surprised that Spain is still allowing plastic bags.
Cheers,
Upstate NY
You have to pay for them though!
absolutely sokoban! 😅💪 You two are soo sweet 🥰
I have a tool
Like that too. 😄 But he’s very cuddly too so that an an extra advantage !
Madre mía, no me quiero imaginar tener que pasar tantos apuros para conseguir un poco de agua, como decís, comprar mas bidones de 1000 litros os ahorrara algunos quebraderos de cabeza, pero con las sequias recurrentes que estamos teniendo, no sabemos como será el sobrevivir sin agua que este conectada a la linea de abastecimiento típica de los pueblos, nosotros estamos preocupados por que usamos agua de pozo, intentamos gastar lo menos que podamos y reutilizar la que gastamos para el huerto.
We've buried similar pipe under six feet of rocks with no problem. I'm sure the few rocks you are using will not come close to collapsing the pipe.
Yeah, I agree. The pipe feels super strong (you can see how inflexible it is when we were carrying it up the hill)
As suggested the foam insulation is good to help prevent freezing, but no good in the sun. X
Plumbing always seems like the most complicated thing for a home/land. It’s my hubby’s, who’s very handy, least favorite thing to work on, and finding the correct pieces at a hardware store always takes forever…….
Tell me about it!! 😅
I have seen someone using what they call a strimmer or a bush hog to trim all your bushes. I t s maddening to see no water😮 also its a good time to clean the muck in your waterway. Your baby is getting big !!!❤❤ m
this looks like a great water plan and i hope it works well i love watching all you both do to make your home work better and the way you dive in and have a go at the different jobs you do and your baby is beautiful keep your videos coming i love them here in australia much love 😘
The old tiles to cover the pipe is genius! I’d be careful of piling stones on the pipe. If the pipe is hot you could squash or damage the pipe. We don’t realise just how lucky we are just turning a tap on and knowing we will get water! ❤
I have insulation rolls for my pipes that ly on top of the earth, together with a heating band, that starts heating in freazing temperatures
I'd get a cheap pipe cutter for the next project. Much cleaner and safer cuts. I'd also consider adding valves to some of the tanks so you can tailor the number of tanks in use and avoid that all of them fill to 20%
Mauro was saying the same about the valves. When we see how we end up using the tanks and whether the plumping a holds up, whether to stack them eventually etc, we'll think where to add valves!
Good luck with your water issues!
It's hard when there is drought, but you seem to cope well and made a good plan to rectify your water shortage.
Cuando yo vivía en el campo (de los 9 a los 19) mi madre tenía un pozo que rellenábamos con un camión que venía porque no teníamos agua potable y tampoco una fuente. Igual es una opción
You could also create 3 small terraces 1-2ft high and have 6 on one, 6 on the next, and 6 on the lower terrace. (all within the same space as they already are. But it would be loads of work.especially if its mostly rock.
Sois valientes! No podría vivir con tantas incomodidades.
Deberíais de escabar un pozo para retener el agua de lluvia cuando llueva
Thank You for sharing ❤
The glands were difficult to tighten because you didn't apply silicone grease to the threads.
Ooooohhhhhhh
Great job. 🙏🤞🏼everything works
+1 for the Sokoban joke, jaja
Como estan chicos? Cuando puedan hagan una estructura con palos y alambres, para cuando llueva puedan desplegar en ese lugar un plástico para juntar agua y llenar esos tanques! Pocas veces tendrían que pagar para que les lleve agua, no se imaginan la cantidad de agua que se puede juntar
gorse es un tojo o aulaga.pincha y tiene flores amarillas
Estupendo trabajo chicos, el proximo paso puede ser poner un techo, protegería los depósitos y podriais recoger agua de lluvia directa a cargarlos. Aquí en mi casa ( CUANDO LLOVÍA ) . que ya ni me acuerdo, recogemos hasta 25.000 litros, de nuestro tejado. Saludos y salud.
Good job guys, ❤
Put a pallet between each layered ibc. Or just a couple oif 4x4x4ft spacers.
Mauro turns coffee into pure manly strength :D
I brew high octane coffee 💪
Laundry flakes would keep green mold down, rap bend connections with good Asian electrical tape, etc. cover with round roof tiles
There will be no leaks you guys are good plumbers🎉🎉🎉great job. Open the lits so long then it can catch a bit of rain😂😂😂
Hahaha that's the energy we're here for!!
Ihr könnt eine Kompost Trockentoilette bauen, falls ihr nicht schon eine habt ..
They use a composting toilet already
Buenos días, saben si el inodoro seco funciona bien con ceniza? Muchas gracias
@@dianaborges4191 No lo sé, tal vez lo pruebe, pero funciona de maravilla con aserrín.
@@dianaborges4191 Das weiss ich nicht, vielleicht ausprobieren, aber mit Sägespäne funktioniert das wunderbar.
@@dianaborges4191 Si, nosotros mezclamos ceniza con serrin y funciona muy bien, sobre todo evita que no crezcan gusanos y otros bichos en las heces. Lo que desconozco es si usar puramente ceniza cambiara mucho el PH del compost resultante (que dependiendo del tipo de suelo en el que se vaya a aplicar podria ser importante).
Thanks for your vid 😇💟💟💟 Love and bless you guys, good work, maybe drill a hole for water 💦
Such a good job you two!!!! Great solution for the watter problem!!!! 😊😊😊😊😊😊
At 5 mins in you can see theres a ridge the water has to reach before going into the trough. Id put a chisel to that. Its at least 2" from what I can guess. water should then reach the trough.
Hmmm yeah I think that has to be there so that the trough retains at least some water. It's the water source for local shepherds to come with their goats and sheep.
Also, it doesn't belong to us so we can't modify it.
Scary that the Pistacia lentiscus is suffering. How many cm of rain did you get this winter?
Practically zero. I can count with one hand the amount of times it rained and it was never a lot.
May try insulating with hay or straw like animal bedding under the rocks or tiles.
@bertibear1300 I know, I'm sorry. It's all the Mediterranean. Here it has rained a bit. I hope you have water soon❤
❤ ojalá ésa perdida hecharla en algún sitio, os deseo un feliz día
Get a downer to find some water maybe would be useful.
Would you consider doing a crowd fund for drilling your own well near the house?
Wonder if you could put one of the IBCs at the bottom of the slope and to shade it well for the water to be passed through before connecting to the garden pipes - this would drop the temperature of the water as it sat in the tank but keep the flow and take the pressure off covering the pipes?
That's such a good idea!! Need to share all these good ideas in a future video, there have been some gems!
este sí es un gran proyecto que os hará la vida más fácil.
no veo problema en que el agua llegue caliente a la casa, al contrario, para limpieza y duchas es una ventaja y para beber, pues no hace falta que bebáis directamente del grifo.
no sé si sería perjudicial para el riego, pero se puede regar por la mañana temprano o por la noche.
eso sí, el tetris ese me parece feo y rompe la estética del mote. podríais plantar una hiedra o buganvilla y que lo cubra.
Ojalá se les solucione el problema del agua, qué gran esfuerzo. Se me ocurre si no deberían poner esas lonas que se ponen en el suelo para que no crezca la maleza, solo alrededor, para que no se les cubran las mangueras y conexiones y puedan caminar bien y vigilar. Un gran abrazo.
Muy buena idea pero ahora es demasiado tarde :(
@@MauroGestoso No crean, bajo las tuberías en línea en el borde creo que se puede. Debajo de los depósitos, como no hay mucha luz, no creo que crezcan. Bueno, ustedes lo verán mejor.
finger crossed for now leeks!
¿No os habéis planteado tapar el canal de agua para evitar la evaporación? Desde Vigo mucha fuerza y mucho ánimo. Gracias por los videos.
En canal al principio no es nuestro, es del municipio, y el trozo de canal al final... pues, sí, pero lo queremos reconstruir desde 0 porque está en muy mala condición
Con lo que ha llovido en Andalucia esta primavera, pensaba que mas o menos habría sido igual en el levante