What worked? What didn't?

ibdave · Post by **ibdave** » Sat Mar 11, 2006 10:43 am

Maybe make this a Sticky???

diane o'thirst · Post by **diane o'thirst** » Sat Mar 11, 2006 12:43 pm

What worked:
- Solar lanterns
- Kerosene lanterns — worked brilliantly!
- Pitching an Operatic fit when there came a difference of opinion over fuel for said kerosene lanterns
- Indian bedspreads for shade and curtains
- Coordinating with my next-door neighbour in camp and pooling our shade canopies to bridge our camps.
- White canvas dropcloth for camp flooring (sweeping dust off and keeping it clean is effortless!)
- Chicken quesadillas
- Trail mix
- Parking our vehicles with nose to windward and covering the dashboard with blankets (cut down on interior dust appreciably)
- Converting an Egyptian cotton window scarf into a head/body wrap — kept me a lot warmer than one would think and looked beautiful.
- Driving home to Oregon via Susanville and Chico, stopping at the headwaters for the Sacramento River and taking a drink of pure snowmelt filtered by 500 feet of granite

Also, my campmate is an importer of Indian goods. She got hold of a passel of plastic woven mats from India, made from recycled bottles. We laid them out on our 1,000 square-foot gathering space and they worked as well as my other campmate's canvas dropcloth. These mats were not only beautiful but protected the Playa underneath from such MOOP as liquid latex, rubber scraps, thread, fabric, food and glitter.

What didn't work:
- Trying to get a live-action roleplaying game together for the Playa!
- Enclosing our shared shade space with too many drapes and turning it into a sanctum — nobody dropped in to visit!

Sorry I don't have more that didn't work, but I have seven Burns under my belt and I'm making fewer and fewer mistakes...think the learning curve is turning into a plateau. But I'm doing something I haven't done before this year so I'll probably have a bunch of "What Didn't Works" come October...

HughMungus · Post by **HughMungus** » Sat Mar 11, 2006 1:24 pm

AntiM wrote:Since we have entered early planning phase: bump!

3 pages from post-2005: http://eplaya.burningman.org/viewtopic. ... highlight=

phil · Post by **phil** » Sat Mar 11, 2006 2:02 pm

Parking our vehicles with nose to windward and covering the dashboard with blankets (cut down on interior dust appreciably)

We found that covering the air intake below the windshield works wonders on keepiing dust out of the passenger cabin. It's especially nice when you take it of, crank up the van, and turn on the air and _don't_ have a few pounds of dust blow out of the vents.

diane o'thirst · Post by **diane o'thirst** » Sat Mar 11, 2006 2:46 pm

What'd you cover it with?

I tried duct tape one year. Yuck. Melt. Meltdown. Forever to get off.

I'm thinking of getting a magnetic strip something-or-other for it this year since I'm going to shelter in my yurt and give my travelling companion the car to shelter in.

Kinetic IV · Post by **Kinetic IV** » Sat Mar 11, 2006 2:50 pm

phil wrote:
Parking our vehicles with nose to windward and covering the dashboard with blankets (cut down on interior dust appreciably)
We found that covering the air intake below the windshield works wonders on keepiing dust out of the passenger cabin. It's especially nice when you take it of, crank up the van, and turn on the air and _don't_ have a few pounds of dust blow out of the vents.

On older vehicles that seems to work. Some of the new vehicles have cabin air filters that do a good job of collecting the dust. I brought an extra one along with me and changed it out after I got back to Winnemucca and that was that.

phil · Post by **phil** » Sat Mar 11, 2006 4:06 pm

We rent a cargo van, so 'cabin filters' are a mystery to me. There don't seem to be any, as far as I can tell.

Duct tape leaves goo, so if you use it entirely, bring goo remover. We either use duct tape alone or tape some foil or fabric over the inlet with duct tape, then remove any of the ooze with goo remover. I hear that gaffer tape doesn't leave goo, but it's not a concern for me.

robotland · Post by **robotland** » Sun Mar 12, 2006 7:26 am

phil wrote:Duct tape leaves goo, so if you use it entirely, bring goo remover. .

GOO GONE is da bomb for taking off tape scum. There's also a product called GOOF OFF, that I bought a little tin of years ago just for laughs. Best technique involves squirting some onto a cloth rag or paper towel and then scrubbing up a patch- The goo residue will saturate the rag and make it impermeable to further goo, so you have to move on to a new spot of rag fairly often. On really dried-on patches you may have to marinate the area, but beware that the GOO GONE is a very thin, flowy oil that runs quickly.
Would you like to read a few more paragraphs about my experiences with tape scum removal? Oooo, fascinating! I just use LOTS of that stuff, almost as much as I do GOOP.

Kinetic IV · Post by **Kinetic IV** » Sun Mar 12, 2006 7:32 am

I've used WD40 in a pinch for removing some kinds of sticky goo like duct tape residues. But Goo Gone seems to work best for me too.

Bling · Post by **Bling** » Fri Feb 12, 2010 6:46 am

Giving this one a bump--I've been reading through the back posts, and this is one of the most useful threads I've seen! Coming soon: Lessons Learned from ePlaya.

MoonSplash · Post by **MoonSplash** » Fri Feb 12, 2010 4:16 pm

What worked:

battery operated fans - what a godsend!

driving over the edge of a large tarp, flipping it over roof of my car to anchor our shade canopy (I was worried about the tarp scratching my car paint, but it's an old car so I let it go... also it helped keep my car cooler for storing some items as well as keeping it cleaner)

covering the mesh of my tent with cheap silver foil panels using duct tape - that was a little additional work pre-burn, but I was totally dust free inside my tent and kept my tent slightly cooler

water truck showers - i did this on my last day - should have done it sooner

what didn't work:

Those Indian Tasty Bite meals everyone raved about - just plain nasty

Cheapo drugstore dust masks - too hot to breathe through

Not covering my hair during dust storms - never again! I have learned my lesson and will always keep my head covered

Old school gas grill that you have to prime and pump - this was borrowed from friends. it took forever to get that sucker started and the winds would blow out the flames.

we brought too much water

not having a good evap system for gray water really really really sucked. it was horrible driving home with 15 gallons of smelly water sloshing around.

phil · Post by **phil** » Fri Feb 12, 2010 5:21 pm

MoonSplash brings up a good point re: food and dust masks. A lot of stuff can be tested at home so you don't learn on the playa what sucks. I recommend highly that anything that sounds like a good idea should be tested at home if at all feasible. A week the playa with food you hate is not fun.

motskyroonmatick · Post by **motskyroonmatick** » Fri Feb 12, 2010 5:58 pm

What works,

Water in 5 gallon jugs with handles and pump top.
Massive amount of flat shade on custom made metal framework.
Hexayurt with computer fan and solar fan ventilation(neighbor dusty slept till 1:00)
Rice Milk!
Scar and Answer Girl. (awesome placers)
Bringing participatory art! (Bondage Barber Chair)(nutella)

Camping @ Stag Camp! You guys are the best!
RV's as a wind break for tents on the southern exposure street.
Working the Potty Project. Another fun year.
Paper plates.
Air mattress(when it is warm)
Sheet as a dust cover for bed.
Chaining one side of one trailer axle up and running the last 20 miles to the burn on 3 tires at max 25 mph after a blowout with no spare.
Leaving a message and texting another person in the rig to pick up a tire and bring it to the burn for me. Thanks Danny!
Mounting a trailer tire in camp with dawn soap, improvised tire bars and 12v air compressor. That was awesome!
Begging for transmission fluid in exodus line and getting a camp mate's RV going again.
Getting a 1/5th of vodka gifted to me after making a repair. Still enjoying that.
Golficus Carticus.
Gifting bikes.
Having bikes gifted to me.
Using a shop vac to pick up small moop and to clean up ground tarps.

What doesn't work.

Air mattress(when it is cold)
Having a trailer tire blowout on the way to burning man and not having a spare because the trailer is brand new and therefore "reliable."
Starting the burn with massive, massive sleep deprivation.
Trying to get mobile tire service out of Reno on a Friday night.
Not setting up shower.
Setting up shade on a southern exposure street. Yah we moved it right away.
Laying spare loading ramp on ground. That thing was a moop magnet. I spent a half hour picking up fine moop that had collected under it until I gave up and got the shop vac.
Not bringing and parking on small pieces of plywood to eliminate black tire patches on the playa.

Post by **AntiM** » Fri Feb 12, 2010 6:06 pm

Comforter clamped over the top of our small tent to cover the mesh vents. Leave the rain fly off! Kept the dust completely out, no gluing or sewing or taping.

teardropper · Post by **teardropper** » Fri Feb 12, 2010 6:25 pm

Worked:
Dr. Bronner's Peppermint Soap- Made a solution in a spray bottle, a spray bottle of clear water and either the hospital grade wipes or, at the end, a cloth and I felt pretty clean. And minty fresh.

Agree on the fans. Had a couple that used 6 D cell batteries and they lasted longer than I thought. Have tons of extra D batteries. Have a no A/C motorhome, very old, (no gennie) and we used 4 of them when we had to be inside during the day and aimed them at us when we tried to sleep late.

Precooked chicken. Made simple heat up meals. Lot's of no heat food. Canned stuff.

Using my MSR Reactor backpack stove to make coffee other boiled things. Boiled a litre of water in less than 3 minutes. Not having to heat up the stove was good.

Didn't:
Radios. Brought two small ones and both malfunctioned.

Camera. Had one fail the night of the Burn. Will bring a waterproof, dust proof and shock proof one this year.

Think the playa may be hard on electronic stuff

I was a little obsessive in planning, but it worked, I was prepared, so it was just a week long camping trip.

Elorrum · Post by **Elorrum** » Fri Feb 12, 2010 7:02 pm

worked:
-small led light that clipped on different hats and swiveled to point light on what needed light. surprised me that this turned out to be my go to light.
-canned soup

won't take again:
portable folding sling chair. too tricky to assemble and not very comfortable.

it was easy to carry a 5 dollar collapsible chair to the burn instead. sat way in the back, good view, and no crush

epic_elite · Post by **epic_elite** » Fri Feb 12, 2010 7:41 pm

AntiM wrote:Since we have entered early planning phase: bump!

early??? is that possible. im already thinking about the next next burn... :s

werked.

too much food
too much water
too many clothes
too many shade structures
too many tire repair kits for bike tires. (apparently it's really easy for a grown man to go through bike tires on a childs bike.) [especially in soft sand]

and i agree with an earlier mention. camping with 4, instead of 40.

didn't werk:

too many energy drinks (got heat exhaustion)
not enough blinkies/flashies/glowies/lighties

our side of town was completely dark. we took off our wearable el wire and strung it up a pole from a shade structure we didn't set up and set a solar lantern on top... we could hear people walking by saying, 'just look for the lit up pole', because there was only 1.... yes you read that right, only 1 lit up anything on our side of town... at night... at burning man... if that sounds like sacrelige, its because it is...

TomServo · Post by **TomServo** » Sat Feb 13, 2010 9:02 am

Worked:
The right kind of duct tape
T posts
T post puller
Cutting holes in shade tarps
Bloody mary's
Vinegar and water foot bath
Vise griips
Roller Derby

Didn't work:
U posts
My 6 1/2foot teddy bear suit
A strict diet of alcohol
Buried tent stakes vs. My foot

C.f.M. · Post by **C.f.M.** » Sat Feb 13, 2010 10:43 am

What doesn't work.

Air mattress(when it is cold)

Easy-peasy, put a blanket on it - I use a piece of polar fleece. Cold air problem solved.

At least for me, once I started doing this when I go camping.

Er, that is, a blanket on it, under you, as insulation/a barrier against the air in the mattress that turns cold at night.

Elorrum · Post by **Elorrum** » Sat Feb 13, 2010 10:49 am

I've used a car winsdshield solar shade (silver side up) under my air mattress to reflect heat back to me. I think it works.

C.f.M. · Post by **C.f.M.** » Sat Feb 13, 2010 11:42 am

Elorrum wrote:I've used a car winsdshield solar shade (silver side up) under my air mattress to reflect heat back to me. I think it works.

I'm no scientist or air doctor, but I'd think that only works because the material of the shade is acting as the aforementioned barrier, not because it is "reflecting" any actual heat.

Elorrum · Post by **Elorrum** » Sat Feb 13, 2010 9:46 pm

the point of the 'air gap' is to allow the heat from the warm radiant body to radiate and then reflect from the colder radiant barrier, without signficant transfer of heat to the radiant barrier though conduction or convection. (That's why Reflectix does work somewhat as a hammock pad while a mylar space blanket does not.)

C.f.M., You may be right, there's lots of discussion on this in the hammock ultralight forums, some say hooey, some think it matters.... I just thought I'd try it out and see. I use a cot, which can be cold. I put a thermarest on top of that, which makes it somewhat warmer and softer. I put a windsheild reflector under the thermarest, and it feels warmer than the plain thermarest. If I was still using a regular air mattress, I'd try the reflective layer with that and see how it worked. It entertains me.

Stitch · Post by **Stitch** » Sun Feb 14, 2010 6:18 pm

What worked:

-Bronner's lavender soap to keep that vajayjay fresh
-Prepacked basmati and rajma (red bean curry) served as good meal substitutes.
-LED glowsticks (1 lasted the week and beyond)
-Monistat chafing cream and baby powder! Oh my god a life saver for my thigh chub rub! Next time, I'm bringing shorts to give my legs time to recover.

What didn't:

-Going topless with Camelbak full of PBR. Heavy and caused back scars from chafing. Will pad the straps.
-Leaving pee in bottle for 3 days. Campmate crushed it after I emptied it and cursed at me for how rank it was.
-Packing up blankets the day before leaving. 40 degree night in a tutu on the ground with an airplane blanket is NOT fun.
-My bike seat. I wound up wrapping it with towels and fur and it was still an unpleasant ride.

shiznicks1 · Post by **shiznicks1** » Sun Feb 14, 2010 10:41 pm

LOVE this post!

What worked:
Having a shell to escape the wind,
parachute shade structure with large holes,
outdoor shower,
large hats,
sunblock,
booze! especially the tequilia,
interloping with the lamplighters,
toga's,
solo exploration and getting lost,
hacky sack in center camp,
bringing music,
our glass on glass friend maker :)
forgetting day and time asap,
drinking water when you can,
pancakes,
fruit,
helping others,
camelback,
bike,
watching the sun rise,
camping with the best people on earth,

What failed:
our 1971 dodge balboa motorhome-you get what you pay for,
loud generators,
bike seat w/o extra padding,
shrooms on Friday night-shoulda been done earlier in the week,
not dumping piss jar all week-we avoided it like the plague,
avoiding the sight of law enforcement vehicles,
trying to be at a place and time

geospyder · Post by **geospyder** » Mon Feb 15, 2010 10:38 am

Adding to the lists...

Worked:
Pee bottle - don't know why I never used this idea before camping.
PVC exo-skelton over tent poles
Playa Staples
el-wire all over bike
head and tail lamps on bike
Double high air mattress

Didn't work:
ear plugs - just get used to the sounds
medical type face masks - crushed in the back pack
Skorts - too damn tight trying to get on and off the bike
Didn't have a drink cup - that is a definite must

unjonharley · Post by **unjonharley** » Tue Feb 16, 2010 12:22 pm

Used an old iron fry pan 4 a solor oven.. It was rusted and nasty.. So a little black paint and discarded dubbel pain window and it worked as an oven.. The window was bout 12x 15. Put the food in boiling plastic, layed it in the pan, put the pan on foil on the ground covered it with the glass.. By noon it was hot to eat..

This year I want to make a box/suitcase that will hold the oven..

Fire_Moose · Post by **Fire_Moose** » Tue Feb 16, 2010 12:49 pm

Worked:
Those fat orange construction stakes.
Parachute cord
1/2" rebar
Giant fucking sledge
tying shade structure to truck\

Didn't:
< 1/2" rebar
misplacing head lamp on the way up to the burn
not having a tent to stand up in

ConnieH · Post by **ConnieH** » Tue Feb 16, 2010 1:11 pm

What worked:
A hammer tapped against my alternator after my car died in the exodus line - still soooo thankful for the random guys who came to help and the one who gave us a jump!

The Hexayurt...LOVE that thing!!

Glow in the dark tape! We taped all kinds of obstacles, even a campmates casted broken ankle

What didn't:
An art project that never left the car because we were having too much fun to set it up,

An evap swamp cooler that we "inherited" from someone who decided not to go last minute - again, we were having too much fun to set it up...

Note to self: don't offer to take on other people's projects!

knowmad · Post by **knowmad** » Tue Feb 16, 2010 1:19 pm

Worked: "Make me an offer!" written on my ass.
Didn't: "dirty mystery ground score pills"

Dr Helix · Post by **Dr Helix** » Tue Feb 16, 2010 1:29 pm

What worked:

My trailer. Fridge, stove and SHOWER! What a joy to come home covered with dust, and take a nice hot shower before bed. Heaven!

Parking shade structures. Strong, easy to erect and they have walls.

Grey water containers. Brought two 55 gallon plastic ones with screw lids. Filled them and then had the pumpers suck 'em out. Spread among 10 folks it wasn't very much at all.

Sharing one meal a night with all my campmates. Each person cooked a meal and everyone made a point of being there for it. Great check in time for all before we went our seperate ways.

Honda generator (The 2000). Super quiet and never stopped once. A real workhorse.

Kilts. Love 'em

Naps. Mandatory. In 08 (First year) I kept avoiding them and finally crashed badly on Friday. 09 I had a good nap from 2-4pm almost every day. Felt refreshed and lot o energy in the wee hours where the fun really comes out. Even saw a sunrise!

What didn't:

Camera. Bought an expensive one JUST for the playa and still got crummy pics much of the time due to dust. Need more training on what to do

Drinking before 6pm Done by Midnight

No motel reservation on the way out. Wanted a shower and one more night with my sweetheart before we parted company. But of course, everything was booked. Had to say goodbye in a cul de sac

and then spent a terrible night in the parking lot of Boomtown perched on a pile of stuff I had agreed to haul home for friends. Terrible!