I got the idea of using moving blankets in our off grid winter greenhouse to retain heat during cold winter nights. Our tiny house wood stove pipes disintegrated and we had to make emergency repairs.

 

We are trying to keep food growing in our off grid greenhouse this winter. Using and old Sears potbelly wood stove we are attempting to keep the greenhouse warm all winter. Two 55 gallon drums filled with water will act as a thermal mass to maintain heat all night.

 

But glass windows are not good at retaining heat. When the fire in the wood stove goes out, the temperature in the greenhouse starts to drop rapidly. There is nothing to hold the heat into the greenhouse at night.

 

 

 

So I got the idea of using moving blankets to insulate the windows at night. Moving blankets are multi layered, quilted blankets. They are very warm and comfortable actually. They make good, cheap survival blankets for the vehicle.

 

 

We got a few moving blankets on sale at TSC for only $5 each. Some dollar store ring binder clips and spring paper clips will make the curtain rings which will slide on some dollar store rope. A few eye hooks will hold the rope in place.

 

Melanie and I worked together on this project. I drilled holes for the eye hooks and then screwed them into the walls to hold the rope. Then I strung up the rope between the eye hooks. This will be our improvised curtain rod.

 

Next we put the clips and rings on the moving blankets and hung them onto the ropes. The blankets are 4 feet wide by 6 feet long. Three of them span the interior of the greenhouse nicely.

 

We also put up some curtains on each of the sides of the greenhouse to cover them.

 

Well, it looks good. Time will tell if our new homemade blankets for the greenhouse windows will hold in heat or not.

 

 

Back inside the off grid tiny house on wheels we had an emergency. The wood stove coupling between the stainless steel stove pipe and the through the roof box had disintegrated. There was nothing left of it and you could see through between the pipes. Smoke was billowing into the tiny house on wheels.

 

So we let the fire burn out. We had no fire in the off grid tiny house all day. And this was the coldest day of the year. We did not pick this day to do the job. It picked us.

 

Melanie helped me get the stove pipe down and off the wood stove. Then I removed the remnants of the old stove pipe coupling. There was not much left at all.

 

Next I put in the new coupling and then we both put the stove pipe back up through the roof box and onto the wood stove.

 

Finally we can get a fire going in our off grid tiny home.

 

We received some cards in the mail. Thank you both :)

 

You can watch the video of todays work here: DIY Greenhouse Curtains ~ Emergency House Repair & More

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Troy Reid

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