Aircrete

We've been getting a lot of rain lately. This is the first January I've spent in Hawaii. I knew this was the rainy season, but after a couple decades living in the Arizona desert, I guess I was unprepared for what a "rainy season" actually is. And yet, life goes on and, here on the property, there's much to be done. So we have to wait for breaks in the weather.

Every time we put out tools to use on a project, it seems, another shower blows our way. Sure, all those rainbows are beautiful. But they aren't really productive.

The winds usually comes from the east, which is the direction of the ocean from the top of Serenity Slope. But sometimes it swirls around the volcano, bringing downpours from a different direction.

So, as I said, we put stuff out and keep tarps handy for if they need to be protected while a squall passes overhead.

Ella usually stays behind in our shed when I go up to do work. Unless it involves meeting new people, she generally can't be bothered. But Lilly loves to be by either me or Keith, whoever is doing somethng more interesting. And she has a spot in each location she claims as hers.

Today's project is called aircrete. This is basically concrete with bubbles infused into it, creating a substance as hard as concrete but much lighter, as well as one that can be cut into shapes. Aircrete (or, as it is more properly known, "foam concrete") is also an extremely good insulator of both heat and sound.

The foam injection equipment can be quite expensive. But for something like $40, Zach built a perfectly serviceable unit out of easily available parts and scraps.

Another advantage of aircrete is that is uses less concrete than regular hydraulic cement (that's a cement, usually some form of lime, mixed with water into a sand and gravel slurry).

I will reserve my assessment of whether aircrete is actually less expensive than the usual kind, until I find out how many bottles of Suave body wash and shampoo it takes to result in a standard sidewalk slab.

This space is actually about twice the length of a standard sidewalk slab, Two five-gallon-cans-ful of the foma concrete wasn't quite enough to fill the frame.

Still, Zach learned a lot in this project, about concrete but also the value of home-grown tech.

Sunsets are always more satisfying when one feels one has accomplished something…even if it's just photo-journaling one's grandson's accomplishment!