We Were SHOCKED When We Measured The Water In Our Earthbag Cistern

[@ourselfreliantlife]

Thank you so much for watching!😃 🔶️Don't forget you can find us on Instagram here: instagram.com/greendreamproject 🔷️And Facebook here: facebook.com/greendreamproject1 🔶️Check out our Facebook group here: facebook.com/groups/greensteaders/

[@SatyrGrey]

What did you folks do to prevent rodents and burrowing creatures from putting a hole in the liner?

[@HalsPals]

Choya cacti is a very bad idea, Jess, from my experiences at my home in Vegas. The stickers are a huge annoyance and very painful & the arms break off so easily in the wind. After 7 years of endurance, my choya got a bad fungus that remained for 2 years until I joyfully eradicated them from my property. Crew will also be hating their stickers!!

[@patriciahazeltine9986]

The only creature that likes cholla cactus, are the Cactus Wrens. But the cholla cactus has claimed several of their babies, when they cannot fly and land in the spines, killing them. Also has killed many silly mourning doves and their babies.

[@paulmaydaynight9925]

one more thing to chop & drop... although all that brush is also going to waste while its still greenish for 3x3x3 composting, it must be nice to be able to ignore a/any valuable biomass resource on a tiny desert acre

[@paulmaydaynight9925]

@@patriciahazeltine9986 so... a good captive compost provider in the barren miles of desert

[@nyotauhura7412]

They're a devil to pets too.

[@travistippetts1604]

My kids and my dog and cats get those stickers all the time. My dog had two infected wounds on his chest from scratching a couple thorns that broke off in his chest.

[@hubertwebb9869]

Wow Jim you got Jess to dance with you, I thoroughly enjoyed that.

[@fernandochavez4312]

My mom loved the cactus’ fruit. We kids would get covered with spines. She would grab a branch from any nearby tree, strip all the leaves but a few at the tip. With that branch she’d knock down the ripest tunas and stir the fruits in the sand or dirt until all the stickers were gone. Picking them up and eating them. Genius. Thanks you two.

[@thestews4273]

Jess always Savin the wildlife even if it's only plant life..love the dancing ...jim ya took it too far!! Lmao

[@marymccowan6629]

Loved seeing Jess up there dancing the happy dance. You Go Girl. Pretty cacti

[@joejakubec9708]

We have been very fortunate to get the large amount of rain that we have received this year in Arizona. Enjoy it. From Prescott.

[@DesertDog8989]

I cannot thank you enough for filming that desert electrical storm. Huge thanks! Beautiful.

[@ourselfreliantlife]

Thank you! It was a cool catch.

[@curtk8715]

Loved that you fenced in your cactus to protect the fruit. juice it and make juice ice cubes- and then toss one in a smoothie about once a week.

[@StoneKathryn]

So glad you got your cistern filled this monsoon season! Beautiful lightning strike video! That slide CDS is awesome! Sunset is gorgeous! Love the mud hug💓 Cactus fruit. Nice. Juice! Love your Death Star mug Jim!👽 Wet! Those stick bugs are so cool. Thanks for this Jim and Jess. Enjoy the parents being near.

[@alwaysoffcourse4038]

Make a float system so as the float comes up In the cistern, you can measure how much cable comes up and then you know how much is in there. They have that type of system with fuel tanks for measuring.

[@stevethomas5209]

I'm a retired Shoe cobbler and I just want to tell Jess good job covering the toes on your boots. They look great. Your a natural at the trade.🤚

[@cm.4828]

It’s good to some people appreciate the wonders of nature. Taking the good with the bad. I love the rain too. Even if it holds up production. We do need it here in Arizona.

[@natarajanbalaji9387]

Dear...such a wonderful day work you are doing...great job 😀 hard working...have blessed 🙌 all

[@piariram746]

Hi folks well done, hard work is paying off.

[@coachcrystal1901]

Desert Rain is a Beautiful Love Song!❤️

[@sovereigns1grace]

Does your juicer filter out the teeny tiny stickers or did you remove them before you juiced? 7 inches in the cistern is remarkable! Good idea to cob as you go up every couple rows. Glad the DDS is helping so much! 💕

[@janetkaylor1131]

How tall will this house be.

[@ourselfreliantlife]

The juicer actually does get rid of the spines

[@tmaltez]

I was wondering the same about the juicer. I ate one once(skinned) but they cut a bunch of fruit with the same knife. My mouth felt prickly for a week if not more. Must be s good juicer.

[@Jay-pc6jx]

Finally got to see Jess do the Jig 5:10 ! Bless your family on your journey. See ya on the next one.

[@builtontherockhomestead9390]

Seems both of us are having a wet year. The other night I got 1.66 inches. It really came down. Still a mud pit here. Glad you're getting good rains.

[@ourselfreliantlife]

Whoa! Congratulations!

[@builtontherockhomestead9390]

@@ourselfreliantlife some folks had over 2 inches of rain. It was a massive storm, lasted all night and into the morning. House dog didn't think I should sleep. Major power outage too.

[@bobbiemooser7417]

Wow! The ladder delivery system works really well! You both are smiling now, it really helps save your strength. Congratulations! I can’t believe the rain you are getting’. Here in Northern Nevada’ it’s unbelievably dry.

[@Uri18]

Natives on northern México cherished them Tunas, they ate as many as they could, peeled and sun dried the ones that they could't eat and stored them for later use. They made flour with Mezquite seeds and dried Tunas to make Mesquitamal. They hollowed out a pricklypear cactus pad, filled it with the mezquite flour dough and cooked directly over hot coals on their fire pits overnight. I've never made them (yet), just wanted to share.

[@olberarosa2346]

YOU BOTH ARE doing SUCH WONDERFUL JOB FIXING YOUR home AND WOW so MUCH rain PLEASE SEND me some lol FROM TEXAS THANK YOU BOTH for SHARING your WONDERFUL VIDEO

[@bobjoatmon1993]

Suggestion: To collect more water you can lay a plastic sheet on the ground and raise the edges up 6 or 8 inches. A ridge of dirt works, it doesn't have to be boards. Make a sump hole in one corner and all the rain that falls into your plastic enclosure will drain into the sump where you can dip or pump it out. I used a 55 gallon drum buried flush with the ground and used black visquine so my collection area was 20 feet by 60 feet (a bit less than that as the edges were raised up). Just sealed the hole in the plastic sheet leading to the drum with aquarium silicone (no toxic chemicals) and had the pump suction leading to our big 500 gallon elevated tank. We kept the plastic rolled up until the rain would be coming then unrolled and weighted it down so it didn't collect dust or get damaged / holes poked in it.

[@CrankyBubushka]

Lol the dance party on the earth bag house! Jim dancing weird and poor Jess just giving hime a look lol

[@michaelrobinson3935]

You 2 made me laugh, shaking your wild thing on top of your Cobb home.🤣🤣

[@phyllisstein1837]

Just Imagine, by the time you build the 2nd dome you'll have all the kinks worked out. 😁

[@derekd1510]

Holy crap! A Ren & Stimpy t-shirt! That's a blast from the past! Are you sure you should be wearing that for cobbing? That might be a collectors item!

[@contentment164]

Nice job on your lift! Very smooth operation. Love, love, love that Death Star coffee mug!!

[@AGClaymore]

Wow, you guys have really got your process optimized! That ladder lift is amazing.

[@JabrilaO]

Yes the mosquitoe slap! Loved the dancing 🕺🏼

[@norm5785]

What progress, wonderful to keep such a great positive attitude due to the rain. Have a great weekend.

[@annaroland9746]

Kudos to the chatters who suggested the 2x4's on the ladder to make the lift work better! yay ! Jim don't be disheartened by the water in the Cistern, remember, the circumference SIZE of the darn thing (I don't know what that is but..)means there is quite a bit of water in there !

[@Richard-pr9tn]

Cholla. In Southwest Arizona we also call these 'Jumping Cactus." This is because the needles will seemingly lodge in your skin (or that of your horse) when you could swear you did not get close enough to touch them.

[@guenbarnes1659]

“Mud hug” how appropriate…made me think of muddy mudskipper seeing Jess wearing a Ren n Stimpy shirt…CLASSIC!

[@ameliasonger3758]

I can't wait to see the dome on. God Bless you both

[@ZonDog]

Wow those dark clouds and lightening was quite dramatic!!

[@lainabond352]

That cistern is amazing great job

[@reginasimms46]

Love ur persistence on the lift!! You have saved ur bodies a lot of pain!! Great job!

[@robertbass5283]

Glad to see the build, is going a lot smoother and it looks like you have the lift figured out ! The dome is getting higher, following !

[@annar6430]

Hi Jess and Jim. Getting so excited,can see the last row of bags coming very soon. So have already been thinking about furniture 🤣💚🐕🥰

[@kingtut5923]

Very good idea to get the stuff up the roof, I wish I could come and help you.

[@bondpaz]

That’s a good start for sure! Nice! ❤️😊👍 Cool walking stick.

[@ourselfreliantlife]

Thanks Pam! The walking stick was a cool find. Both Jess and I spotted it.😁

[@retiredreyes5084]

Love the look of your cistern, rocks

[@amyaguilar3800]

All the way to the top baby …all the way to the top…that’s what I wanted to see…how much water you’ve harvested…amazing…greetings and much love from NYC.

[@beachlife9419]

Nice work guys , super rain 🌧️ storms lol , stay dry

[@wildmanofthenorth1598]

I've got wheel cactus and prickly pear and a juicer. Didn't know it was that simple thanks.

[@chandrasutton4669]

Good job guys. Things are looking good!!!

[@donkintz281]

One step at a time looking great 👍

[@northstarprepsteader]

I’ve never seen a Death Star mug! Lol, so cool!

[@ourselfreliantlife]

It was a retirement gift from a coworker at my old job.😁

[@katewizer2736]

Here in Eastern N. M. the mosquitos have been HARSH & Thick this year! I also love to make prickly pear jelly & hard candy!

[@patriciahazeltine9986]

I found a recipe online for prickly pear lemonade....so good!!

[@abhishekash8466]

It really makes me happy that you guys are getting good amount of rains !! Kudos guys !

[@goodgrieflouiser5807]

Those Tuna’s make an awesome jelly. Wish I had those.

[@maribelaguilar7270]

Mexican grocery store will have it. 4 or 5 for Dollar

[@scotteddy1468]

Well if you want to figure it out 1" inch of rain on 1 Acer of land is 27,000 gal of water so the little rain you are catching from is pretty darn good. . Great job Jess you two work great together. Makes my soul happy 😊

[@michaeltempsch5282]

On a smaller scale than acres, 1" on 1 sq yd makes 3x3x1/12 ft^3. 7.481 US gl/ft3 by courtesy of Google), so 5.61 US gl With not too much confidence in that, I looked up US gl/yd^3 which Google said was 201.974. Divide by 3 to get to a ft, and then again by 12 for an inch... 201.974/36=5.61... So looks to check out... Meanwhile in metric, 1 mm of rain on 1 m^2 gives 1 liter

[@opusydaisy6563]

Glad to see everything going well .

[@creinicke1000]

Love the cob dance.

[@LastChanceTinyHouse]

A little bit of morter and a ball to check the slant should do it. As long as your water's flowing a smooth path to the drain you'll be good. I imagine that out in the desert water is like gold and your gonna need a lot of it if you plan to grow your own food.

[@leinahtan6731]

Jessica cracks me up!! Lmaoo yall are funny

[@larryparish5984]

I believe, if I remember right, that "Homesteadenomics" made a jam from those cacti fruit a while back.

[@tedtimmis8135]

The boards were a great idea.

[@michaelt5082]

Go, you guys! You literally got that from one shed roof. You will find other ways to capture that water soon. You got this.

[@13MoonsOverMayhem]

Wow, I'm glad you're getting so much rain this year after getting almost none last year. And, the breaks in the build are honestly probably good for you, anyway. You guys tend to just keep going when nothing is in your way. Admirable and productive! But you probably could use a bit more downtime than you would usually take on your own.

[@ourselfreliantlife]

Thank you Lynette! Actually with the lift the course are a lot easier. We could probably build more but there's a lot of other stuff going on.

[@annwithaplan9766]

Look @11:00 mark, you could be collecting all that water coming down. : ) That's a lot of prickly pear fruits! My sister sent me a jar of jam from AZ last year, but I wasn't that keen on it. She worked at a place that also made ice cream with it. I had wondered if you could run it through a juicer. Someone up the road from me has a good sized plant and I've seen the fruits on it each year. I'd often thought about stopping and asking if I could have some if they weren't going to.

[@Gawonii1Austencao]

good job on the lift. looks like it is running a little smoother

[@lanec5672]

So what was 'Fester' REALLY sipping from that Death Star.. hmm ??? 😉

[@ourselfreliantlife]

😆👍

[@gloriaa5060]

THUMBS up to this video!!!!! I was wondering how prickly pears was harvested and what they are good for. Stay positive and POSITIVE!!!!

[@kristieandjeff2720]

4:22 "where's Jess with her mosquito slap when I need it" 🤣

[@theadventuresofbrockinthai4325]

Hey Jim and Jess, enjoyed your video very much. I was so happy to see Jess juicing those beautiful red cactus fruit. I couldn't believe how much fruit your prickly pear had on it. Is it because it got so much rain this year ? Jess, you looked cold. Make sure you stay warm this winter, you don't look like you have any fat on your body so you probably should be eating warming foods. Dark greens are the best. I eat a lot of spinach in the winter time and I find it helps. The way you're going it looks like you may be finished soon with the building of your house. Then you can start doing the inside. If you were to finish the dome like the Sistine Chapel and paint it like Michelangelo did it would really be something to see. Might be a little weird to sleep under but it would still be something to look at. Lol Looking forward to your next video guys, always an adventure. LOL

[@CBsGreenhouseandGarden]

Rock on you two. Jess gonna slap you alright. Just hope it is not when your on top of the house. LOL. Hey it's not the fall that hurts but that sudden stop can be devastating. Stay safe folks.

[@ourselfreliantlife]

She already got me once, but you never know when the pesky "mosquito" might come back. 😆

[@patrickjobling8676]

Magnificent what ..jolly good carryon pip pips 😍😎😁

[@leestimis9264]

I love how he pushes the limits of dancing and then he takes it to the butt slap and then the, LOOK!! SO FUNNY!

[@Tanks-Link]

I like making prickly pear jam and prickly pear syrup

[@ArizonaHighDesertHomestead]

We finally have a nice sunny day today.. for 3 days we were socked in with rain..took its toll on the road..again lol. Stay safe my friends and have a great weekend 😀

[@jimh4167]

Looks like the sled is working out good Should save time on the rest of this dome and the second doom

[@dooleysmichiganhomestead8339]

Thumbs up from the Dooley's of Michigan Enjoyed The Video

[@hubertwebb9869]

I am so surprised at how many different insects you have in the desert. I never would have guessed. I thought it was only snake, scorpion and spider land, at least that's what I remember when I was in the Army at Fort Hood Texas.

[@santiagonavesgomez8332]

Bravo now we talk

[@dannettebouchee9887]

You guys kicked Cobb ass on that. Lift looks great may have to patten it

[@kfl611]

What a nice dog !

[@JahleeyahKalonji]

that prickly pear fruit is soo valuable and versatile.

[@raymondcoggins297]

Looking good

[@101kookieable]

for measuring your cistern use a pole that reach to the bottom of your tank with a float on the bottom of the pole {2 liter bottles ,three is what use) and a flag at the top, drill hole in center of tank and put a piece of PCV pipe for your pole to ride in easy peeze

[@chetbales3962]

i think i would measure everyday for awhile and make sure u dont have a leak. seems to me a ton of water has went in there.

[@millieschattime9924]

Heyyyy there guys 👋👋👋 can you place a large screen over the cistern opening just to let rain water just run in? Since it’s right on top!!

[@ourselfreliantlife]

We could, but I wouldn't want the light to get in.

[@millieschattime9924]

@@ourselfreliantlife awww got cha 🤔 crap what do I know 😂 keep up the great work guys

[@davewenners6722]

How high are you going with the new home? Love the videos you two do. It's making it easier to figure out where I want to move to

[@amirambenamram-segre2384]

Hello from Jerusalem folks, For more than a year now, I have really enjoyed following your work. Modesty, creativity, pioneering and determination that evoke empathy and appreciation. When you complete the work on the water reservoir, I suggest installing a fixed meter for the water level in the tank: an airtight plastic buoy attached to the bottom of a long vertical rod placed inside a thin pipe leading through the reservoir ceiling. This way you can remotely view the water level in the reservoir, without opening the tank lid. Regarding the Choya cactus - in Israel we have a species with a larger fruit, with large seeds (stones) and cruel thorns. We usually soak the picked fruit in a bucket with very cold water and then, with our hands in thick rubber gloves, peel the fruit skin with the thorns and enjoy the sweet core. And a question about the lightning storms - does the top of the dome you are building intend to install a lightning rod? ATB! Amiram

[@TheDentsRUs]

There is anyway you can check for leaks on the cistern the seems like very little water for all this rain

[@paulmaydaynight9925]

get a bunch of BIG tarps & bamboo poles so as to massively increase the top collection area before its to late, dig pits & line with simple bin bags to collect some more, spend 10 minutes making trench's to direct the run off there too.... or dont & do without later.

[@suecollins5174]

Love your channel!

[@KeepItSimpleSurvival]

Jim.....your roof on the Igloo....is going up....I was wondering how long it would take you to put the 2x4 railing in to stop the bump.....☺️

[@joseortiz5965]

Awesome

[@edallred53]

Good video. Thanks

[@Dr.Gunsmith]

Great lighting shots 🙏

[@thestews4273]

If you make the gutters slope slightly between your drainage holes like maybe small hills or something like that it may work better for water movement

[@Angelic2023]

That's how we'll keep doing it, Bags and forth lol 💗💗

[@anitamoolman168]

We wat the green ones here in South Africa and we also make a dark syrup from it. Delicious but a little sweet

[@lindat.fromillinois2560]

What is the sapphire in the yard? Have you considered to cover it with clear? Plastic & use it as a greenhouse?

[@dyannejohnson6184]

My goodness I’d have rowssss of prickly pear cacti

[@elizabethblane201]

Now you know why they named that magazine "Arizona Skys."

[@SamsLiberty]

Lift is on fleek