diff --git a/alpine/kernel/README.md b/alpine/kernel/README.md
index 83c3e2693..cd83a8c7b 100644
--- a/alpine/kernel/README.md
+++ b/alpine/kernel/README.md
@@ -1,3 +1,24 @@
 Temporary non modular kernel config for pinata alpha
 
 TODO: build with Alpine and/or use Alpine kernels - needs some patches.
+
+The build is mostly silent. To view the output use `docker log -f <containerid>`. The build creates multiple containers, so multiple
+invocations may be necessary. To view the full build output one may also invoke `docker build .` and then copy the build artefacts from the image afterwards.
+
+To build with various debug options enabled, build the kernel with
+`make DEBUG=1`. The options enabled are listed in `kernel_config.debug`. This allocates a significant amount of memory on boot and you may need to adjust the kernel config on some systems. Specifically:
+```diff
+--- a/alpine/kernel/kernel_config
++++ b/alpine/kernel/kernel_config
+@@ -415,8 +415,8 @@ CONFIG_DMI=y
+ # CONFIG_CALGARY_IOMMU is not set
+ CONFIG_SWIOTLB=y
+ CONFIG_IOMMU_HELPER=y
+-CONFIG_MAXSMP=y
+-CONFIG_NR_CPUS=8192
++CONFIG_MAXSMP=n
++CONFIG_NR_CPUS=8
+ # CONFIG_SCHED_SMT is not set
+ CONFIG_SCHED_MC=y
+ # CONFIG_PREEMPT_NONE is not set
+```