Small Footprints - Eco Community

Chook Pen Design - Chicken Coop/Hutch - Chook House - Casa de Pollo - Call it what you will!

Ian — Fri, 14 Nov 2008 10:30:00 GMT

Actually some people call it the chicken palace - I call it IKEA because it can be flat-packed I haven't been blogging for a while and now you know why! I have been spending every spare minute creating a chook pen so we can get a cycle of life going on our little 1/3 acre block. We wanted to get chooks for the multitude of benefits they provide.

Create potent nitrogen fertiliser that can be added to your compost bin to help make great compost
Provide protein in the form of eggs that are great for vegetarians and meat-eaters alike
Provide some entertainment and enjoyment for the kids (and adults)

But before you can get chooks, you need to make sure they have somewhere suitable to live. My priorities were:

A chicken pen that can be fully enclosed at night to keep the chooks safe from birds of prey, foxes and snakes
An easy access point for collecting eggs and cleaning out the coop
A coop that is off the ground to enable the chickens to come down and scratch the earth before being let out.
A design that can be totally pulled apart so it can be moved into place.

I did a bit of research on the net of course and came up with this design for a chook house. I have made a few things before - mainly furniture - although I have no formal training or real world experience - so this is certainly in the realm of backyard chippies!

THE BUILD

The frame is made of hardwood. Although not cca treated (Copper-Chromium-Arsenate) as that can be fatal to chooks. I decided to make a slanted front to make the door stay open when it is swung out. The first steps were to make the framing and put in some bracing. This is made of 50mm x 25mm hardwood.

I then layed out each piece of frame on the ground and overlayed and cut out what is supposed to be aviary wire (12.4mm square I think), but works brilliantly as a more rigid and neater version of chicken wire. I hammered it onto the inside of the frame using galvanised u-nails (lot of em!)

I screwed and glued the frame to its bracing using batten screws (hex head - silver in the image above) and liquid nails. I didn't however connect the four walls together as I wanted to be able to take the chook pen apart to move it whenever I wanted including the first installation. I then used pine prefab boards that locked together for the walls of the coop. I measured then up and screwed them into place from the side. Do this before hammering on the wire to the side sections so you can get leverage to use a drill.

Here you can also see the roof framing. I was going to make an A-Frame roof but the wife made a suggestion to keep it simple and this was the excellent result. Perfect for a couple of sheet of corrogated iron.

My workshop - well actually it is our car port and I need to back the cars out to to any work! Oh for a nice big workshop shed...

Here you can see the door open. It sits on two hinges. There is a latch that automatically locks when you shut it. Although the chickens keep scratching rocks and dirt into the framing and they get trapped when you try to shut the door sometimes meaning you have to flick them out. There is a centre section of the coop in here where the coop floor and front wall drop out when you take off the four sides. You can see wheels on there if I every want to tilt it and move it like a chicken tractor once it is in place.

I built a ladder for the chooks to get in and out of the coop and down to dirt floor. They actually enjoy using it I am happy to tell. Here I am testing how it clips onto the chicken coop.

OK - now you are going to see how it comes apart and goes together. This was done at night as we picked up the chooks on the way to a birthday party and didn't get home till late (yes the chooks went into a friend's coop while the party was on). This is a side wall. You can see that the wood was been stained and sealed to make it look much better and make it weatherproof. I actually used a product called weatherproof and it is working well despite massive downpours.

Here are the other sections. You can see the front wall and floor of the coop in the centre. They are the only parts that are connected. They will lift up and slot into place when the side are bolted together using removable furniture screws shown above.

Here is the roof - ready to put on - it is by far the heaviest part. 2 sheets of corrogated iron make up most of the weight along with a large piece of hardwood timber used for the front (because I ran out of the prefab pine)

THE RESULT

Here it is complete in a test build before we moved it to the garden. Side walls are on and centre part and roof are both held in with two furniture screws.

Here you can see the rear of the chicken pen. I provides easy access to get to the coop to collect eggs, poo for your compost and to add clean bedding for the chooks. You can see that I mounted the pen on some ag-drain rocks of around 1cm diameter. This provides drainage and keeps the wood off the soil. I later added some more larger rocks on the inside of the pen to stop the chooks undermining these foundations.

You can also see the guttering system I made out of pvc pipe - which drains down into a hanging water container with overflow. When it rains the chooks get fresh water and the excess drains away over some rocks. Make sure that you put some sort of netting over the top gutter inlet to stop material clogging it and mice getting in.

When you open this door you will find...

Eggs of course - a couple of them at that. I have since added a perch for the chooks too and I think one likes to sleep on the perch and one on the nesting box. Even though the perch is made for two.

I hope you liked the tour. Sorry but I don't have plans as such as I kind of made it up as I went along. Feel free to make something similar if you feel like giving a chook a home. A charity collector that came to my home when I was making it actually asked if I could make him one. WIth the amount of time it took me - every weekend for a couple of months.. somehow I think this will be a one off for me...

The basic size is 1400mm square with the coop being 700mm deep x 1400mm wide and the height of the coop 700mm- about 900mm due to the sloping roof.

Cost of materials I think is around $350 (Australian dollars).

~ 35metres of 25mmx50mm hardwood - $2.20/metre = $77

~25metres of pine prefab board - ~$3/metre = $75

~50 batten screws 50mm+ long - = ~ $35

2 sheets of 1800mm x 900mm corrogated iron roofing @ ~$32/each = $64

~12.4mm aviary wire - 1400 high - ~6-7 metres @ $7 per metre = ~$50

Assorted screws (furniture, roofing, timber etc.) & pvc piping, flexihose for guttering = $50

= $351

If your used pine in place of hardwood it would be cheaper but wouldn't last as long.

Below you can see how the chook pen is now. They have a run of about 6 metres x 1.5 metres to scratch in and I built another gate mounted on star pickets that self-closes. The chook house is in the distance. Leave your comments - I would be interested to hear from you and what you use as a chook house.

Organic Gardening - Improving Soil Fertility with Beneficial Bacteria and Fungi

Ian — Wed, 12 Nov 2008 02:20:00 GMT

Just a short note to start - here is a cool frog who peeked his head into what I was doing in the garden. He's hanging off the branch of a tree fern. Looks like a baby tree frog. Frogs are a good sign that something is right in your garden. They are amongst the most sensitive creatures to non-organic substances - herbicides and pesticides.

I decided to try a BFA certified (Biological Farmers of Australia) product this week that apparently promotes nitrogen fixation, increased phosphorous availability and helps to create humus soil in your garden. It is a product that contains bacteria and fungi that are beneficial to your garden. Believe it or not, but 90% of soil is bacteria and fungus. It is a little like your gut. There are good and bad bacteria there too. More of the good stuff keep the bad stuff at bay. By brewing a couple of teaspoons of this product in a compost brewer, it creates billions of these good bacteria and fungi that can then be poured on your garden or fruit/nut trees to give them a helping hand. Being a totally organic product, it is in fact killed by herbicides and pesticides.

I have made compost teas in the past in which I have brewed compost for a couple of days to good effect. This product uses a similar process and I had all the gear so I thought I would try it out.

Here is what I used for this brew. A simple plastic bin, an aquarium aerator with flexible air stone tubing, an aquarium heater, some rock minerals containing essential minerals, a seaweed solution - always great for the vegie patch, some of the product - Nutri-Life 4/20 from Nutri-Tech, and some molasses. Ok here we go...

Make a loop out of the air tubing. This is an alternative to an air 'stone' and is flexible tubing with tiny holes - perfect for a job like this. I have a two outlet aerator here that pushes out twice as much air. Coil the tubing inside the base of the container so that it will create bubbles all the way round. Insert the aquarium heater.

Fill up with water and set the aerator and heater running. I set the heater at about 25 degree celcius. It can be set higher or lower depending upon whether you are looking for a brew with more bacteria or more fungus. Add a couple of tablespoons of rock minerals.

Add some seaweed solution diluted to what is states on your package. Some are pre-diluted and some are concentrate so look carefully. Then add the molasses. This is the food for the bacteria and fungus. They basically use that and the oxygen to reproduce. I added about a cup full here (250ml). That seemed to be enough although truthfully I was just guessing. The packaging for the Nutri-Life 4-20 stated that I should use their branded specific food but it is not organic certified, so I thought I would try using something that does a similar job and is organic.

I put in a heaped teaspoon and a half. I have a 250ml pack which is apparently enough for a few hectares and my plot is a few metres! Here is the brew in action.

Bingo! The packet said 1 day later, but I cooked it up for two because it wasn't frothing up much. It was actually frothing a lot more the night before but I wasn't about to spread it on the garden in the dark! The water had a lot of white particles floating in it - a good sign that the brew had allowed the bacteria and fungus to reproduce. The lower I got into the barrel the more particles there were.

I mixed the brew at a ratio of about 1/4 brew to 3/4 water and watered it onto the garden and fruit trees. I will post the results and any improvement in soil quality or plant health that I observe. The soil here is quite clay and it is slowly improving as I add compost/manures/lime etc. Remember - when performing all tasks with bacteria and fungi - wear a mask because they love to reproduce in warm, dark areas - just like your lungs!

ECO Nappy... A modern cloth alternative

KittyKat — Fri, 03 Oct 2008 13:43:00 GMT

As a first time mum, it didn't take me long to notice the massive amounts of used disposable nappies heading for landfill each week from our place. And while disposables are an amazingly useful (and absorbent) invention when it comes to changing a wriggly baby's bum, especially when out and about, substituting for reusable cloth poo-catchers for at least part of the time, seemed to me to be an ecologically sound alternative.

And so I braved the notorious white terry towelling squares, pins and pilchers, and what can I say..... with all their bulk, bagginess and leaking, there had to be a better way! After all, this is the 21st Century...

After hours of internet research my mind boggled with the various options for latest in modern cloth nappies, nappy 'systems', PUL covers, bamboo inserts, fitted cotton nappies, all-in-ones, pre-folds etc etc. So i'm going to leave the nappy low down to the experts (click here for a comprehensive review) and in the meantime show you a modern cloth alternative that I am so far pleased with.

Here is my PUL (polyurethane laminate) nappy cover by Baby BeeHinds. I bought it for AU$11.50 from Darlings Downunder internet store. These stretchy covers are made from a 'breathable' waterproof Polyurethane Laminate sandwiched between 2 layers of polyester knit fabric. A 21st Century upgrade from the old 'el cheapo' plastic pants of generations past. PUL is a popular choice for a cover as it allows moisture from within the nappy to evaporate, helping to keep bub cooler and drier.

I have found it to be soft and stretchy, and it forms a snug fit around baby's legs. They are a smidge bulkier than disposables but fit comfortably under modern baby clothes and still allow full movement without leaking. In terms of wear and tear this product seems quite durable with quality velcro tabs and is suitable for machine washing (just remember to fasten the 'laundry tabs' to prevent snagging in the wash).

For the nappy I bought a dozen unbleached cotton prefold nappies from Darlings Downunder for AU$3 each (they posted them to me). They are cotton fabric squares divided into 3 equal portion's. The middle portion has an extra layer sewn in for absorbency. You can fold them in the traditional manner or simply fold them into thirds and use as a 'pad' inside a nappy cover (which is what I do). I have found this method to be so much easier than folding and pins.

You have to change baby one or two more times per day as the cotton pads are not as absorbent as the disposable nappies, but they are chemical free, reusable and don't cost the Earth!

I use two PUL covers at a time, alternating during the day and letting one air out while using the other. They air out really well and do not smell at all. I also chuck in a biodegradable nappy liner (when I remember) to make for easy disposable of solid food poo's, but even if you do forget, fling the poo into the loo, then the pooey nappies go into a nappy bucket with water & bi-carb soda until ready for washing. I hang them out on the line to dry and get bleached by the sun (removes any marks). The cotton pre-folds actually become softer after each wash which is great.

I use my cloth nappies when I am home with bub, and save disposables for outings. There is an increasing number of biodegradable disposable nappies entering the market which are worth keeping an eye out for. I recently read an ECO nappy review in the September Issue of G Magazine and some brands to look out for include Nature Babycare (Woolies), Babylove Ecobots (www.neco.com.au), Moltex (www.ecodirect.com.au), and Bamboo Nature by Nordic (www.nordicnappies.com.au).

Here is another one of my cloth nappies - Zappy Nappy made locally in Australia. Beautiful and soft this fitted nappy is great for nights as it is quite absorbent and you can add extra pads. It comes with a PUL cover also. This is a 'one size fits all' nappy and super adjustable. My covers come in various sizes but I have made do so far with just 2 small's and then 2 mediums. Baby Bel is 9kilo's now and the medium still fits well, and I plan to re-use my nappies and covers for the next baby or babies! It pays to keep this in mind when choosing colours and patterns - unisex is probably preferable if you intend to share between siblings of opposite sex.

I found these in the cleaning aisle at the supermarket - biodegradable cleaning wipes - Ive found that they can double as nappy liners or 'make your own' baby wipes. Just cut them up to the desired size and away you go.

To make your own baby wipes try making up a solution of chamomile tea and olive or sweet almond oil, soak the wipes, drain off the excess then store in a lunch box style container ready for use (you could also add a few drops of Lavender or tea-tree oil). A solution of bath wash and moisturing cream also works well, or you could try using a roll of recycled paper towel dipped in the solution. Ive found that even just plain old H20 in a spray bottle and a face washer works fine (or any soft fabric remnants), then throw the washer into the nappy bucket with the nappies. Even the biodegradable wipes can be washed and reused (I usually throw the pooey ones!).

And so there you have it - one mothers guide to a cloth nappy alternative. So get creative - reduce waste - every little bit helps!

Make a large, cheap compost bin very cheaply - from wooden pallets

Ian — Sat, 20 Sep 2008 07:52:00 GMT

Well it's been a long time between posts but I have been very busy - both at work and around the house. Most of my time has been spent creating a chook-house for our new chickens - more on that in my next post. I thought I would make a quick post as to how I made a 2-bay compost bin for next to nix.

Start with these wooden pallets. I was lucky enough to get them for free from a business that I do some work for. They were going to take them to the tip anyway - so I saved them on tip fees! I was out driving on Saturday and actually saw a big stack in the car park of a business on a main road. It might pay off to go in and ask if any are available. Often time they are simply not needed once the goods are unloaded.

These ones are different sizes but that worked well for me as I placed the bins on a slight slope. As you can see, I placed them in the basic configuration of how the bins would look. In the end, I used the sides with the most slats to the inside to provide more stability. I used the palette with the most slats on both sides in the middle so it could withstand pressure from compost on both sides.

Here we hammered on some weed matting which is available from hardware, gardening stores and even crazy clarks. We used u-nails to hold it on . Not sure on the longevity of this but will report back. This weed matting will of course stop the soil going between the slats of the pallets.

Here you can see me standing up the pallets. We placed them adjoining a face to give them some more support. In front you can see the compost pile we already had. It has always been a mess with everything from the garden just piling up there. What you can't see in the photo is the larger sections of tree limbs and branches I took to the dump as I don't have a mulcher.

Hey presto. Its a 2 bay compost bin. As you can see the pallets are attached to one another. We did this by pre-drilling and attaching with hex head exterior timber screws. There are 3 star pickets that you can see beside each wall. These hold the sides in place. I drove a few short screws through the timber and into them to hold them. The smaller pallet was used on the higher ground and they all joined up at the top, leaving some small gaps at the back. A few rocks were placed under the walls in parts to fill these gaps as the ground was uneven.

All that compost mix you saw in the second photo is now in the bin and ready for a much faster breakdown process. What was spread over 4 metres is now only 1 metre cubed. The pipe you can see in the pic is just some plumbing pvc. 90mm I think. It allows air to reach the centre of the compost allowing it to break down faster. A little trick I learnt online. The mix will be getting a turn in a few weeks and some garden waste and vegie scraps to eat. As the compost breaks down at the bottom I think I will move the humus rich ready compost to the other bin. Otherwise I might try two bins at once. We will see in future updates.

The amount of cool bugs that live in that mix is just amazing. I saw plenty of witchety grubs and even an iridescent green millipede.

Checklist:

5 pallets
12 hex head screws (50mm-100mm depending on the thickness of the timber in the palettes)
3 star pickets 1.4-2m (2-3 more if you don't put it against a fence and want to support the rear wall)
6 self-tapping timber screws (to attach to star pickets)
120 u-nails (approx.) to attach weed matting
16 metres of weed matting doubled over (ours came in a 20 metres pack for $12)

So there you have it - took about 4 hours in total although we had a few false starts working it all out. An awesome large compost bin almost for free. Hope you have luck making one too as having a good supply of compost is essential to improving your soil and growing food for your family! Until next time.. remember...

Keep Smiling!

Simple Living

KittyKat — Sat, 30 Aug 2008 09:05:00 GMT

It is now many months post-launch of Small Footprints and I finally made it a priority to sit down and write my first ever blog post!

And so I begin with a bit about me. My life as a mountain kat, (aka KittyKat), is abundant and full....... I am greeted each morning by a loving husband and a smiling baby (yes, that's us!) and there is absolutely no better way to start my days! I am relishing every moment of early motherhood and I am truly in awe of our sparkly little creation. Go Bella!!

I am aspiring towards a simple life, the idea being to slow down the pace, make life choices based on sustainable values, take a step back from the rat race and basically to rethink our modern existence from a holistic perspective. Is there an alternative, better way to do things? The answer is always, 'of course there is!'. My dream is to create a space and time on this Earth that is special, one that my budding family and I can call our own, and at the same time, take responsibility for our own ecological footprint.

My husband and I created Small Footprints as a place for us to share our thoughts, experiences and ideologies with like minded souls in an attempt to subvert the dominant paradigm and to learn, grow and improve our lives. We want to make a difference and we want our kids to inherit a cleaner, brighter future than we did. We want them to be aware of more than just the pursuit of money at any cost... that a healthy environment does matter.... that the Earth is our living, breathing, home.

Our eco journey starts at home. We chose to buy in a hinterland village on the East Coast, Queensland, surrounded by rural area's and expansive state forest, but close enough to the nearby coastal cities and business centres to be convenient for work, shopping, family and friends. We live in a north facing pole home made from wood and glass situated on a quarter acre sloping suburban block. Some of the more obvious systems we have inplace to bring our living in line with sustainable values include two water tanks (totaling about 65,000 litres) that supply all of our water needs, a 1 kilowat grid connect solar system (see Small Footprints ECO-blog for more info), a Rinnai continous flow gas hot water system (only heats water as you use it), an on-site self draining septic system, a self-intalled grey water diverter, vegetable & herb garden, fruit tree's, compost & chickens, and recently we upgraded our Toyota hatchback to a 2006 Honda Civic Hybrid Sedan.

In terms of appliances we rely on naturally occurring breezes and a couple of ceiling fans for cooling in summer rather than air-conditioning, we use a 4 star water saving front loader washing machine, a water saving shower head, power saving light bulbs and lcd monitors & tv (these use less power than the old crt monitors). We have an internal wood heater for heating our home in the cooler months (we support Landcare Australia and there efforts in continuing to produce sustainable forests).

In light of peak oil and global warming these carbon reducing systems are all essential components of our grand ECO plan, but as the homemaker of the family I will be 'blogging' about the smaller pieces of the puzzle that, in my mind, will altogether result in a change towards a simple life....... the day to day choices we are presented with as consumers regarding food, baby needs, cleaning & beauty products, clothing, homewares and investments...... as well as sharing ideas and experiences with nutrition, wholefoods, natural therapy, spirituality, enjoying nature, community, environmentalism (the new religion?), parenting and the human psyche..... and practical ideas for around the home on saving money, gardening, cooking, op-shopping, recycling, reducing waste, avoiding the throw-away culture, music, craft and..... well, it's an unplanned journey and so I guess whatever topics & events spark interest along the way!

Doing what we can

Paulina — Mon, 28 Jul 2008 22:42:00 GMT

It can seem in the busy, busy life of the Noughties, that environmentalism is just another sticking pin in the race-track of our daily schedules, tripping us up as we race around the A4 page of a timetable; expressing dismayed, disapproving looks over the shoulders of loved ones as we give them new, shiny and entirely non-biodegradable birthday gifts that we had to buy in a mad rush; or poking its exasperated head out from behind the photocopier/printer when we accidentally, irretrievably send a 150-page document to print. But let's not be negative. "Environmentalism", whether you see it as a trendy new fad, an annoying phase that will pass, or (more positively) a new, more conscious way of living that has far more advantages than disadvantages; or (if you're not a hedonist) an essential, logical step towards our long-term survival, is here to stay. Non-conscious living (fortunately, or unfortunately, depending on your position) must become a thing of the past. Becoming aware of the consequences of our actions is now essential, something that our largely secular society has lost the ability to do. Conscious living will not be a dramatic change or new concept to those billions around the world adhering to the major monotheistic faiths of Buddhism, Christianity or Islam (or even the relatively minor, smaller ones), but to do a good thing by one's neighbour, and/or participate in attempts to preserve/replenish the environment does not necessarily require conversion and/or salvation. Here are some more pedestrian, smaller and achievable 'sticking pins' that can be achieved around the household:

Composting: If you aren't already, put all your fruit and vegetable scraps in a composting bin (for apartments and households; or a composting heap for bigger places) and stick the resulting soil on your pot-plants/gardens (even public ones). Can reduce your waste output to council bins by up to 25%, not to mention give you great plants.

Organic gardening: Research shows that industrial fruit and vegetable farming accounts for up to 25 percent of carbon emissions in the atmosphere. Growing your own, while not new, can take this carbon out of the atmosphere, especially if grown organically. In an era of rising inflation, it could also save you precious pennies!. If you rent a CBD apartment that is windowless and balcony-less, community gardens can be great to join - or start. If you live in house in surburban residential zones, converting as much of your land to productive as opposed to ornamental gardens (unless indigenous/native) can be useful. While this takes time (my husband and I are still deciding what will grow where, given the orientation and therefore sun exposure of differing parts of the front and back yards), and especially as most suburban soil plots require years of rejuvenation, organic fertilisation and strengthening (see ABC gardener Jerry Coleby-Williams website www.bellis.info for the best example on how to do this), finding your local community/farmer's markets can keep you stocked with locally grown, fresh and even organic fruit and vegetables.

Dairy and meat: Reduce/substitute your meat and milk intake. Cows take more water, grain and non-renewable resources to maintain than any other livestock on earth, and then produce huge amounts of environmentally unfriendly methane gas from their derrieres. Try kangaroo (salty), crocodile (great steak flavour and texture) or rabbit meats; and try soy, rice or goat's milk. You can even make a 'cream' for cakes from soy, canola oil, eggs and sugar whipped together. Non-cow cheeses and yoghurts have a long way to come as yet, but if you can reduce your overall intake then the odd cheddar block or Ski yoghurt won't be such an issue!.

Walk/Cycle/Public Transport: We've all heard about this. The biggest excuse I hear amongst friends about not taking the car is inconvenience, when boiled down. And a lack of autonomy. Catching public transport, or carpooling, does require adherence to somebody else's timetable, and along with walking/cycling can require a bit more preparation. But, if you haven't bought a hybrid car, and you do have to travel regularly, these are the best options to reducing carbon emissions from transport. Even better, move to a place that is well-serviced by buses, trams and trains - our Nissan Maxima, whilst not hybrid (we're waiting for emerging technology to become more efficient, if not cheaper) would probably only travel up to 10km a week because of our proximity to public transport and walkways to the usual required amenities of shops and schools (plus pushing a 6 month old baby in a pram, as well as carrying several heavy bags of groceries, can be a bit tricky over the 2km return journey).

Don't buy plastic: We've all heard about the stranglehold of plastic bags/bottles/flotsam immortalising themselves in our landfills and oceans and killing our wildlife. There's a plastic patch larger than the size of Texas floating in the Pacific Ocean off the coast of California. Take our addiction to buying bottled water - if every single one of the bottles we've drunk from and then thrown away were to come back to haunt us, they would fill several houses. Shopping bags - we all know not to use them. But are the synthetic "green bags" you can purchase for use instead any better?? Being made of a tough synthetic fabric, course not!!... Plastic is not just confined to packaging (lunch boxes, cling wrap, lolly packets etc), juice and water bottles, shopping bags, credit cards or toys. It is EVERYWHERE. Cars, building materials, house accessories (kitchens, bathrooms, lights, toilets), planes, furniture, clothing. Take your harmless jumper bought from most retailers to stave off the winter chill - most likely made from 100% acrylic = plastic. Or your pantyhose made from nylon - plastic again. Or your pants/skirt made from a rayon/polyester blend - that's right, plastic all over. Mattresses? Unless you buy futons, most mattresses are polyester foam, plastic springs and cotton/polyester covering - they will live almost forever in the dump when you next decide to get a new bed and toss the old one out. Even when you buy materials made from all natural materials, such as cotton, silk, linen, wool, hemp, wood or steel; you have to be careful that they have been organically grown (cotton and wool) and that no human rights abuses have occured in its production (cotton, silk). Or that it has emitted thousands of tonnes in carbon emissions just to reach your local shops (check for made in Australia, not made in China/Egypt/India/UK/USA). Then of course you want to make sure that in its processing with dyes, dye mordants (fixers) and flame retardents that the residual chemicals aren't going to harm the environment - or you, of course!. And remember, that's just with the natural materials. Research is only just starting to show that the chemicals used to make most domestically used plastics leach into the human body. There's a lady in the US who is trying to live without plastic and is blogging about it - check out lifelessplastic.blogspot.com

Buy local: Let's take coffee and tea in Brisbane. My husband, son and I just spent a weekend in Clunes and 'discovered' Byron Bay Coffee - Rosebank, Zentveld's, Ewingsdale, Eltham Valley. Locally and mostly organically grown, with a great flavour, and only just 'down the way'. Who needs all those international brands with dodgy human rights records on their coffee plantations, especially as the heavily dose the trees in artifical fertilisers and pesticides? And I've drunk Madura Tea, from Murwillumbah (near Byron) for 12 years - Australian made and owned, though they do also supplement their tea with imported leaves sometimes, unfortunately. But they seem the best local option on the market.

Be waste wise: Ultimately, this involves asking yourself as you reach out to buy something - do I really need it? It's only in the last 100 years that we have stopped trying to find, make, grow or otherwise do without the things that we spend a large proportion of our time purchasing, consuming, sorting and storing before throwing away. Re-using and recycling have attempted to counter our consumption addiction but at the end of the day, these also cost energy/produce waste. Better to consume far less, and THEN re-use and recycle.

This summary is a very brief overview of one person's suburban attempt to make life simpler, as well as preserve the earth. But as you can see, they can involve some large lifestyle, if not ideological changes only at first. But living consciously, if preferable to wholesale religious conversion, is living simply as well.

Does my bum still look big if I can’t see you, and you can’t see me?

Paulina — Mon, 28 Jul 2008 22:38:00 GMT

Imagination seems a lost art in our age of information technology, so let’s take a few minutes to indulge ourselves. Imagine if the whole world was blind. Just for a second.

Imagine by closing your eyes, lifting your face, and taking a deep breath. What can you see? Nothing at all. After a while, what can you hear? All of a sudden, lots of things. The hummm of the computer, the birds, the quiet whirr of the fridge, the ticking clock, distant traffic/people. What can you smell? The coffee you’re drinking, the slightly bitter odour of garlic from dinner the night before, the grass outside. Your thoughts become so prominent they might echo. The longer you keep your eyes closed, a fear, or mild anxiety may unfold, as, without eyesight, the world is new again.

Now imagine if all of us – friends, family, strangers – they couldn’t see either. There’s a knock at the door – you get up – eyes still unseeing – and feel your way down the stairs to the front door (if such buildings were ever built in a blind world), feeling the smooth surface of the banister for the first time, the length of footfall between stairs, and open the door, fumbling. You hear your friend “Hello!.” and you judge who they are and how far away they are by their voice, perhaps you feel a slight draught from their breath, or from erratic arm movements, as they try to find the open door. You extend your arm until both your hands meet by accident. You embrace in greeting, each of you finding out what the other is wearing from the feel of the clothes. Your friend comments on the weather because they’ve felt the course woven wool of your jumper and expresses agreement on the cold. You, feeling the thin t-shirt on your friend, remark that they must be immune, but neither of you can see whether the jumper or t-shirt is old or new, black or white, clean or dirty, etc etc.

It’s now not hard to imagine the small talk, the conversations, the judgments that are foregone in an unseeing world. There’s no talk about a bed hair, a good/bad hair do, or any hair at all, because you can’t see your own, or another’s hair. There are obviously no mirrors to check or groom oneself in front of. Clothes become purely information signals about the weather (sunny? drizzly?) or where you’ve been (outside in the snow, inside next to the fire, lying on grass), based on their feel, texture and smell. There’s no talk on whether it’s Prada, Addidas or Billabong because nobody can tell from looking, nobody can see the mismatch of colours and nobody can see the brand label sticking out from the collar, giving away its authentic/imitation status. It’s the same with makeup, jewellery, shoes, cars, pets, takeaway coffee cups, or anything else you might visit upon a friend. Nobody can see, and while we’re imagining that the whole world is blind, let’s assume living is community based anyway, so you all live within walking distance of each other, any clothes are handmade locally, and gym memberships are non-existent. Fitness is gained from hunting and gathering for food, and weight is a purely sensory affair. Are your family members/friends cuddly or bony? Are they heavy to carry, or light on embrace? Do they need a lot of material to keep warm, because of their large structure, or smaller cuts of the same cloth? Certainly there are no thoughts about a person’s thinness or fatness, beauty or ugliness, or whether they’re sexy or unsexy, corporate or sporty, athletic or slovenly. Anorexia or obesity may only occur as secondary symptoms of another illness, and even then you would have to ask/pinch another to know they were even suffering from it. There are no thoughts on whether anybody’s subscribing to a culture/sub-culture, whether they belong to a group (the airforce; King’s Beach surfers as opposed to Bondi Beach lifesavers; or the local knitting group) because there’s no point wearing the ‘uniforms’ that denote these things if people can’t see.

There’d be no Westfield shopping malls for people to shop for clothes, jewellery, accessories; no Bunnings to accessorise house and garden. Indeed, in a world where people weren’t able to see, there perhaps wouldn’t be notions of property and possession; money, commodities, financial markets; let alone house, garden, roads, towns, cities, and all the associated paraphernalia. Oil would be a pesky substance one may never encounter – there’d be no cars in a blind world, therefore no need for petrol, gasoline, petrochemicals and thus plastics – besides which, could the chemical science required to develop synthetic materials, or any science for that matter, really occur in an unseeing world?

There’d be no wars based on race, creed or religion; as apart from the fact that a person would be unable to be identified (and perhaps racially discriminated) by their looks, it would be very difficult to start a war with an enemy you could only tangibly sense with your ears, nose, hands and tastebuds. State sovereignty would be rather pointless in a world without maps and therefore borders; and due to the lack of intercontinental travel, the world really would seem flat, and confined to the area safest from the elements/predators. There’d be no race to the moon, espionage networks, Cold War, nuclear arms race, transnational corporations, visual (if any) technology, stars, sun, moon, day, night.

Before we get too carried away with an idea of a blind utopia/dystopia, however, it should be stated that, the human condition being what it is, and evolution having been what it has been, biologists would probably argue that we would have learnt to physically overcome our lack of eyesight anyway and control, possess and exploit our physical environment, rather than adapt to it (as we have done); and sociologists would probably argue that, having done this, we would still seek to form groups, attract one another in non-visual ways, conquer, dominate, find other forms of discrimination to inflict and wars to fight. The High-Pitched Shriekers against the Gravelly-Toned Mumblers, perhaps.

The ego, it seems, affects all the senses. At least we have a choice - we can close our eyes, if not our minds, easily enough – if only to big bums…

(This blog, written ages ago and awaiting its very non-blind author’s editing, is dedicated to Kylie Johnson nee Corlett, a friend who has always turned a blind eye to peoples faults, flaws, and immaterial appearances, and who loves with open arms and heart and eyes closed in joy. Happy 31^st birthday KC. Xo)

True Sustainability - Part I

Paulina — Wed, 16 Jul 2008 01:35:00 GMT

True sustainability

Part i. Introduction - Sustaining the earth

“sustain… v.t. bear weight of or support, esp. for a long period; endure, stand; undergo or suffer (defeat, injury, loss, etc.);…uphold; substantiate or corroborate; keep up (effort etc).” The Little Oxford Dictionary of Current English, 1986, Oxford University Press.

It has been proven that the current global warming and climate change crisis is as a result of our excess consumption as a human race, which has produced excessive amounts of carbon dioxide and other warming gases in the atmosphere – excess consumption of petrol and petroleum or plastic products, of virgin rainforests, of meat and dairy foods, and the requisite energy and water such consumption costs. In addition, the waste from this consumption is also adding to the climate change crisis – as our landfills and sewers bloat and grow, they too release gases and pollutants that require more energy to contain and treat – but more often than not they are released into the atmosphere or environment.

All of this has resulted in a call for more “sustainable living”, or, living in a way that ensures the Earth’s long-term survival, and therefore our and our children’s health, well-being and quality of life.

The time of enduring change, of supporting the Earth’s natural processes, of adapting to our environments as opposed to trying to control them has come.

As has often been written (if not practiced) before, truly sustainable living involves more than just reactive measures to external prompts. It involves more than limiting showers to 4 minutes because the local or state governments have set water restriction guidelines due to an inconvenient drought; it involves more than reducing electricity usage (especially air conditioners!.) because it may seem de rigueur for the time being; it involves more than cycling to work, or catching public transport because the price of petrol is unpalatable (as an aside, just in case you hadn’t caught on, it also means more than voting for whichever political party is going to guarantee low petrol prices).

Living sustainably involves proactively seeking to reduce your individual consumption and resultant non-degradable waste to the point where you can fulfil all your personal and household requirements without it (literally) “costing the earth”. It means foreseeing the consequences of one’s actions, however minor, and seeking to reduce the impact on other people, or the environment at large.

In order for sustainable living to become a reality, the differences between “want” and “need” in individual consumption; and between “re-usable/recyclable/degradable/non-degradable waste” in individual waste management need to be asked and addressed at a deeply personal level.

The historical and current lack of sustainable practices in our lives, and the fact that it affects every dimension of our daily lives, explains the difficulty in reducing global warming and stopping climate change – sustainability may involve (deeply) uncomfortable self-assessment, and even more uncomfortable adjustment to new ways of thinking and acting.

However, it is becoming increasingly obvious that such change, however painful, is necessary in order for our (not to mention future generations) survival.

To come in this series:

ii. Material addiction and the consumption transaction

iii. The culture of waste

iv. Ethos and accountability

v. Pro-activity & conclusion

Organic Gardening - Winter Update - Peruvian Ground Apple

Ian — Mon, 14 Jul 2008 04:28:00 GMT

It is well into winter now and the garden is starting to come along. I'm growing: lettuce, kale, brocolli, cabbage (red and drum), radishes, turnips, rhubarb, spinach and a few other things in these beds.

As you can see from the pics, organic gardening involves a lot of work when dealing with pests. You can't just spray and kill everything like large scale production does. Therefore there is always going to be some leaves munched on overnight.

This is after and before photos. Above is about 5 weeks after below. Doesn't get sun all day unfortunately. You can see the watering system I put in if you look closely. It runs from the house underground using black irrigation hose to the boxes and then I have small spray nozzles on spikes that eminate from the centre pipe that water each part of the garden. It's all connected to a digital timer tap that give them 10 minutes every morning. Saves me heaps of hassle - especially when I need to get to work early in the morning!

I always seek out the caterpillars and squash them when I see them. The ones that eat the red cabbage seem to turn a purplish tinge like the leaves.

I built these raised garden beds using old railway sleepers from a sugar cane train. Took a lot of work - especially cementing in the posts, but the result was good and works really well for access to the plants. Also stops weeds from spreading into the beds and allows you to focus on building quality soil without it leeching out to the rest of the garden.

Being really old hardwood railway sleepers (60+ years) they don't have an CCA treatment in them. This can be a problem with hardwood available today - much of it is CCA treated - Chromated Copper Arsenate - chromium, copper and arsenic. You can usually tell by the green tinge in the wood. Studies have shown that CCA can leech into your vegetables - kind of makes the whole organic thing seem like a waste of time if you are eating arsenic..! If you really have to use CCA treated then it is recommended that you use plastic sheeting to shield the edges of the beds from the containing wood. Of course I recommend that you avoid it altogether.

The centre box of the three has pumpkin vine which is developing heaps of female minuture pumpkins, but doesn't seem to get seeded from the male flowers - out of season for pumpkins I think. Might reclaim it for some more plantings soon. I also have some ginger and galangal growing here.

I decided to dig up my Yacon - Peruvian Ground Apple. The tops had almost died back which is apparently the right time to harvest. This South American plant isn't widely grown or known, although another local home gardener showed me her crop recently which suprised me.

Here you can see the two types of roots you get when digging this plant up. It is quite a prolific producer. On the left you can see the edible tubers. The tubers taste sweet like an apple and can be eaten raw in salad if you wish - although I think it has a slight gingery aftertaste. Apparently the sugars contained within yacon are ones that taste sweet but contain oligofructans which cannot be easily used by the body - so may be good for diabetics etc.

On the right is the rhizome which can be broken up and replanted to create more tubers. I am going to let this dry out a bit, give some of this to friends and plant some back in the soil in early spring for another prolific crop.

This massive garden worm was living around the yacon. Maybe he had been eating the sugar because he is the biggest specimen I have found of his type.

Here you can see the complete crop obtained from just one plant. An enormous amount of rhizome too.

I'm going to test out some organic BFA approved fungus and bacteria compost tea in the next update. Sound strange? Stay tuned for the testing and results.

A CSIRO Peak in the Future - Petrol $8.20 per Litre? - Electricity costs to Quadruple?

Ian — Thu, 10 Jul 2008 13:00:00 GMT

Get ready for higher oil prices.

A new study by CSIRO (Australia's Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organisation) titled "Modelling of the future of transport fuels in Australia" has found that in any scenario, the cost of petrol is to rise, and it will do so markedly from 2010. The study considered that a petrol price of between $2.60 and $8 per litre would be required in order to constrain petrol consumption to the rate of production and availability.

As petrol production capacity reduces and demand increases, so does the price. Importantly though, this study only considers the increasing demand from Australia and not from the rest of the world, which would suggest to me that this price could be even higher?

In the study several scenarios are outlined that consider 3 key measures:

1) The emissions trading target adopted - both the Australian government's position of a reduction to 60% of year 2000 levels by 2050 (2000-60) and a more ambitious target of 95% of year 2000 levels by 2050 (2000-95) were modelled. The CSIRO chose two targets as it feels that the 60% target "..stills entails significant risk to the environment" and that the 95% target "...would significantly reduce the risk of irreversible climatic impacts associated with exceeding average global warming of above 2 degrees Celsius"
2) The speed of decline in oil supply - two scenarios were considered, one where we have a slow decline and another with a rapid decline due to a peak of supply
3) The speed of technological response - two scenarios were considered - one where we quickly adopt the technology required as an alternative to fossil fuels and one where we are slow to make the transition.

Under the best case scenario model where oil supplies decline slowly and we have a fast technological response to the shortages through the adoption of alternative energy, the price will peak at $2.60 per litre. Under the worst case scenario where oil supplies decline most rapidly and we do not adopt alternative technology the price peaks at $8.20 per litre. According to the study, the price bubble does not deflate until 2020 when it considers that bio fuels and synthetic fuels from coal and gas will be widely available. Below is a graph from the report - Page 46.

How will our vehicles be powered in the future?

When considering the government's current emissions target of 60% of year 2000 levels, the study found that by 2050, plug-in hybrid and pure electric that obtain their electricity from the grid will account for around 33% of vehicles on the road. Mild hybrids that generate their electricity on board will account for another 50% and traditional combustion engines will account for only 16% of vehicles. It is interesting to note that the CSIRO considers that the uptake of pure electric vehicles will be at a faster rate than hybrid vehicles within a year or two. Although it considers pure electric to be solely in the realm of light vehicles (<1200kg) and not in direct competition with hybrids. They obviously feel that the electric car will be adopted widely by consumers as the small family vehicle of choice. I differ in opinion though, as I do feel that advances technology in electric motors and batteries will allow us to also power heavier vehicles using electric motors in the foreseeable future.

The trend toward electrically powered vehicles in figure 6 takes into account the oil price shown in red in Figure 1 below. It shows that the oil price will peak at around $100 per barrel around 2009 and then decline to between $60 and $80 per barrel. When you consider that oil is currently just under $140 a barrel it is clear that there will be some difference to the model used. In fact, even the worst case scenario modelled, the oil price does not creep above $100 a barrel until 2030!

Of course higher petrol prices at the pump will be the most obvious effect of the price per barrel we are seeing at the moment, but it may also cause an accelerated uptake of hybrid and electric vehicles as more choice and quantity of vehicles become available in this sector. What car company is not going to want to be ahead of this trend?

So where is all this electricity coming from?

With this massive trend toward electric vehicles, there is going to be a corresponding demand for more electricity. Of course, what is the point of converting away from combustion engines to vehicles powered by high emission electricity production such as the burning of coal? In order to meet even the 60% emissions target set by the government, there will have to not only be a overhaul of the transport sector, but also one of the electricity generation sector. In the graph shown below you can see that by 2050, even if oil remains in the target band of $60-$80 per barrel, the electricity sector will be transformed from fossil fuel fuel dependent to one that primarily utilises renewable energy.

What does this mean for the cost of electricity?

The study found that in any scenario, the projected wholesale costs of energy will increase significantly from 2006. The wholesale cost increases always translate to a increase in the retail sector and we are already seeing this trend with, for example, the Queensland rate increasing 5.4% this year. This part of the study shows one area where a more aggressive emissions target of 95% will have a large effect. The study concludes that the 95% target could translate into a wholesale price of up to $120/MWh where a 60% target would peak at around $90/Mwh. If these increases translate directly to retail prices, it could mean that electricity costs could either triple or quadruple in the near future. Of course, consumers could take their energy future into their own hands and install wind or solar power generators at their home. This may involve a large initial outlay, however, as the cost of electricity from the grid increases, the installation of such a system will quickly become more cost effective.

Conclusion

This study goes into far more detail including the examination of the effects of the bio fuels industry. I suggest you read the full PDF of the study here for more information.

The most striking finding of this study for me is that under any scenario, the cost of transport and electricity is set to increase enough to have a significant effect on our lives. The thorough scientific investigation involved here and the conservative estimates as to the future costs of fuel make it apparent that our lifetimes will see paradigm shift. Whether we move now and make that shift have the smallest possible impact and with the best result for the future of our planet is a matter for all of us.

The opposition government in Australia refuses to support the current government's 60% of 2000 levels target by 2050 - a target that the CSIRO sees as "challenging" to adopt but still environmentally risky for our future. I believe the oppositions' position on the issue is going to polarise voters and cause the Labor government to reduce its stance in order to retain voter popularity. We are already seeing this with the issue of whether petrol will be part of the emissions trading scheme.

With these policies of "live well now" and "leave it up to future generations to deal with", there is no way we would ever reach the 95% of 2000 levels by 2050 that the CSIRO sees as required for the earth to avoid irreversible damage. Believe it or not - being sustainable does cost money and we're all going to pay in one way or another - think about it as a future fund for your kids kids...

The Hidden Climate Change/Greenhouse Gas Impact of LCD, PLASMA TVs and Notebooks - Nitrogen trifluoride

Ian — Fri, 04 Jul 2008 02:23:00 GMT

A new research paper by a respected climate change scientist points to the fact that a specialised synthetic chemical used in the manufacturing of flat-screen tvs and notebooks could be a large contributer to greenhouse gas emmissions. Professor Michael Prather of the University of California states in his paper that the gas - Nitrogen trifluoride , is 17,000 times more destructive as a greenhouse gas than carbon dioxide.

In his Geophysical Research Letters Vol 35, Dr Prather writes that Nitrogen trifluoride "CO₂, NF₃ has a potential greenhouse impact larger than that of the industrialized nations' emissions of PFCs (perflourocarbons) or SF₆(sulfur hexaflouride), or even that of the world's largest coal-fired power plants."

Nitrogen trifluoride is not included in the 6 gases voered by the Kyoto Protocol because it was not in wide use back in 1997 when the protocol was agreed to. With new factories being built across the world to meet global demand as developed nations increasingly adopt flat screen technology, the monitoring of Nitrogen trifluoride will become more relevant when tackling climate change.

Originally developed as a rocket fuel and later used in chemical lasers for the "Star Wars" missile defence system, production of the gas has only moved to large scale production beyond these niche markets in the last decade. 4000 tonnes is predicted to be made in 2008 - the greenhouse gas equivalent of 67million tonnes of CO2.

Apparently reports from the chemical industry report that only 2% of the gas is released into the atmosphere although recent studies show that this figure could be higher.

There must be an alternative to using the gas because Toshiba has already stated that it is going to avoid using the gas. I agree with Prof Prather that the next round of climate change negotiations needs to include this, and other newly adopted chemicals that have an affect on climate change, on the list of reportable chemicals.

I also think it would be great for companies such as Toshiba who are taking the lead to start labelling their TVs as "Nitrogen trifluoride Free" just as the "CFC Free" labelling is so prevalent now. This would bring other manufacturers into line and give consumers the ability to select a TV that has been produced without using this chemical which has only recently been brought to the attention of the general public.

The Annual Electricity Costs of Running Computers and Games Consoles

Ian — Tue, 03 Jun 2008 14:26:00 GMT

A new study by the consumer group choice has found that running a computer or games console in your home can be more expensive to run than other major whitegood appliances. They compared a number of computer products and games consoles to determine the costs of running such systems for a year in Australia. Interestingly the Playstation 3 came out as the most expensive to run with a total cost of $248.28 per year (@ 15c/kwh) if it was left on and idle.

Many homes these days have computers, printers, scanners, wireless network devices, speakers, monitors, game consoles and even home networks. All of these devices are pushing up energy bills and unfortunately, this is not something that can be easily quantified until the actual bill arrives in the mail. Many people think that because these devices are small they don't use much power but many small devices chew up kilowatts - some are just more obvious like a toaster or a heater.

Computers - How to Save

Comparing the common IT related items found in households today, they found that a Desktop Pc would cost $130.23 (868.18kwh) annually if left on. A iMac would cost considerably less at $80.05 (533.68kwh) and a Laptop (MacBook Pro) understandably comes in much cheaper at only $28.63 (190.84kwh). The reasoning here then is that replacing your desktop with a laptop will save you around $100 a year if you leave the device on - quite a saving. Many people on solar power have already discovered this fact and almost invariably if you go to someone's house with off-the-grid solar, they will have a notebook, not a desktop.

How to "Monitor" your Power Use

Other interesting facts found in the article are that replacing your old crt (cathode-ray tube) monitor with an lcd monitor would save you around $50 a year. The findings were that for a crt monitor it would cost $95.75 (638.34kwh) and an lcd only $43.13 (287.56kwh) if they were left on for the year. This is one area where technological advances are producing energy saving devices. Interestingly though a new 42" plasma tv would draw a large amount of power if left on for the year with a cost of $232.10 (1547.37kwh) - they do not list the power usage for an LCD (I would suggest it would be cheaper to run), but they do show that a CRT TV (not sure of the size) is actually cheaper than the plasma.

Not all Games Console are the Same!

Over in the console department, the main consoles in order from cheapest to most expensive to run per year are: Nintendo Wii which would cost only $23.26 if left on for the year, It then jumps up markedly to the Microsoft Xbox 360 at $184.32 per year and then to the Sony Playstation 3 at $248.28 per year. Now most games console users are loyal to certain brands and simple things like cost to run don't even come into it. If however you are off-the-grid solar or simply need to tighten the purse strings due to cost of living, it might give a great case for going for the Nintendo Wii. At less than 1/10 of the electricity cost of the Playstation 3 it presents as an obvious choice for energy savers.

Where to from here?

I don't think I have ever seen an energy rating sticker on a computer or console and this star rating for energy efficiency that is used in Australia doesn't even seem to apply to these devices. Maybe it is time for some sort of labelling to occur on these devices to allow consumers to make energy efficient choices as they can now with whitegoods and other household appliances. This study though will allow you to make a more informed choice if energy efficiency is something that is important to you.

The choice study referenced in this article can be found here: http://www.choice.com.au/viewArticle.aspx?id=106346&catId=100245&tid=100008&p=1&title=Computers'+energy+costs

Solar Power in Suburbia - An Australian Perspective on a Global Solution

Ian — Fri, 23 May 2008 04:47:00 GMT

Empowering Yourself

We finally took the plunge and took advantage of the many rebates on offer to have a grid connect solar system installed at our home. Too much of the media at the time was concentrating on industry wide solutions to the energy crisis in the face of global warming. Under the Liberal Government of the day, thought was moving towards Nuclear power with official studies even recommending sites close to us in Bribie Island and world famous Noosa. Quite frankly - the concept of a nuclear power plant within 50km of my home made me scared for my kids future. A radiation leak is something you can't see coming. It will just affect you. Why wreck a beautiful natural and protected area with a massive nuclear power plant? The push by the governmetn to make nuclear seem like the only option for our future power needs made me think that waiting for the government to make the right decision for us was just not going to work and that if I wanted a secure energy future I would have to take matters into my own hands...

The deciding factors

Grid Connect or off the grid?

Until the last decade or so, the only people installing solar power in their homes were those that either had no electricity service to their home, or the cost of connecting it up due to distance to the power poles was prohibitive. These off-the-grid systems are totally self-sufficient. They have a bank of batteries that are and charged and provide electricity throughout the day and night. Often generators are utilised to provide top up power when the sun has not provided enough energy for the usage required.

Nowadays it is more common to see the Grid Connect system of Solar install where a home is already connected to an electricity grid. This system does not utilise batteries. Solar panels are installed on your roof and through an inverter which converts it from 24-48v DC to 240 AC, provides electricity to power your home. The connection to the grid remains, allowing a two way flow of electricity. If you make excess power to your needs, the electricity flows back into the grid and is utilised by your neighbours. If you need more power than you are making it simply draws the required current back from the grid - eg. at night when no power is made. The system is totally transparent in that you notice no difference where the power is coming from as sophisticated technology in the invertor sychronises the internal system with the grid. There is only one major disadvantage to the grid connect system in that when there is a blackout on the grid, your system will also shut down as the power company does not want power leaking back into the system while they are attempting repairs.

There is one other type of system which is grid connect with battery backup. This would allow you to continue running during a blackout, but requires the use of another inverter and a battery bank. The cost of setup is several thousand dollars. It may be more efficient to have a small generator for use during blackouts (depending on how often you get blackouts though I suppose!)

Being already connected to the electicity grid, we decided to investigate whether a grid connect solar system would be viable for us to install.

Our roof was already at the correct angle of about 30 degrees and facing north which is perfect. This allow the installers to bolt the panels straight onto rails and onto our roof. If you have a flat roof, angled brackets will be used to create the correct angle to face the sun. If you don't have a north facing roof (southern hemisphere), you can actually get stand-alone systems that mount on a pole in your garden which not as aesthically pleasing but may provide better power generation. These stand-alone system can also utilise a sun tracker that uses various systems to follow the sun during its transition of the day. This optimises power generation. I looked into whether roof mounted systems can utilise a sun tracker but have found no information at all on a possible solution.

COST

At around $14,000, a modest 1kilowatt solar power system is beyond the reach of ordinary Australians. With the grants currently on offer though, it brings the price down to the equivalent of a large screen LCD or plasma TV.

The Australian Federal Government provides a solar rebate of $8 per watt up to a maximum of $8000. This means that a 1kw system is attracts the maximum rebate at the mimimum install cost and provides the best value. After this rebate alone, the fully installed system will come down to around $6000.

A recent development in this grant is the Rudd government's application of a $100,000 household income means test to the grant. This will mean that many Australian families would no longer be eligible for the grant and will scrap their intentions to install. I think the Rudd government is misguided in its use of this means test. I think giving all Australian's incentive to invest in our energy future including those on higher incomes is certainly the best model. Many ordinary working couples now earn over the threshold and will almost definitely not install a system now.

If you are reading this blog and you a solar panel owner or potential owner... Come and discuss your experiences with other owners in the Australian Solar Panel Owners Group forums of this website.

Another aspect to cost savings is the Renewable Energy Certificates or RECS that are given with the install of the system. These RECS are certificates created by the federal government to meet the Mandatory Renewable Energy Target to combat climate change. The RECS are worth a paper value and are traded by agents. Often the installer of your system will offer to purchase the RECS off you at a certain rate and even take it off the total price of install.

After the $8000 rebate and the purchase of our RECS, our fully installed $14,000 solar system cost us only $3700.

HIDDEN COSTS AND BENEFITS

Our home resides on the side of a hill with a steep roof that sits many metres off the ground. After initially inspecting the premises, the installer insisted on having a scissor lift to ferry the panels etc to the roof and give them an anchor point for ropes. This was something we had to cough up for - most hire places supply them at around $250-400 a day. We got it for the weekend for the same price and did some house painting to offset the cost.

The solar provider was initially going to install 6 x 167w panels (1002w), but they ran out of them, so we ended up with 7x 163w panels (1134w) for the same cost. They didn't get any argument on that one!

RETURNS

Once installed a grid connect system requires virtually no maintenance. If you want to maintain the highest possible output of your panels you can clean them every 6 months or so as they do get some dust and bird poo on them - generally though the rain does a good job. Therefore, you are left to sit back and watch your energy bills get reduced.

The reality of how much power and therefore money saved you get out of a 1kw system depends on a few factors. After our system was installed it rained for 3 months... solid... not kidding... The panels were outputting very low wattage per day and therefore we didn't offset much power - in fact it was only around $35 for around 2.5 months. In our last 3 month bill period we have had many more sunny days. This resulted in around $90 in electricity being saved or just over 1/3 of our bill which ended up being $140 total.

Another factor is what price your energy retailer will pay for the power you are feeding back into the grid. Make no mistake - the power you are making is green power - the energy company can resell this power at a higher rate to other customers. Why then shouldn't you be getting a higher amount off your bill. Some retailers are realising this an our current supplier buys power off us from cent 1 at a higher rate than we pay for power. That means that you don't have to be a net producer of power to get the higher buyback rate - every watt you make comes off your bill at a higher rate. Check with your power company for details and find one that works for you in your state.

The billing works by having two meters - the original one measures your power usage from the grid and the other measures how much power you have made. When they come to read the meters they take down two figures. The power you make is then taken away from the power you use to create a total. With a higher than standard rate feed-in tariff, like we enjoy, the power you make is calculated at the different rate and then taken away from the total giving you even higher cost benefits.

Always check your bills though. When we switched retailers, they managed to add the power from both our electricity meters together! Instead of getting a refund for the power we made, we were charged to make it! I sorted that one out in a hurry.

In countries such as Germany the government has set a much higher rate for this "feed in tariff" making the installation of solar power systems an investment in the future. I saw one documentary where a pig farmer had moved to creating a large solar array in one of his fields because it was providing better returns! South Australia provides such a scheme at the moment, but it is only for net producers, so you would need to install over a 2.5kw system to gain the benefits.

The cost of electricity keeps rising. As long as the tariff paid for the green power we make rises with it, the offsetting effects should continue. At a cost of $3,700 it will still take us around 10 years to recoup the money we outlaid on the system. But this is an investment.. in the future. There are of course some other benefits.

Increase the value of your home

Surveys such as one conducted by realestate.com.au suggest that 73% of buyers believe that having one of more energy efficient features in a home will make it more saleable. Think about it - you are in the market for a home and there are two homes you like - one home comes with an automatic 1/3 rebate on its power bill forever and another doesn't - which one looks more attractive?

Offset your carbon usage

Of course these days people are much more aware that they are creating a carbon footprint on the earth. Everything you do these days creates emmisions. Not many thinks offset it - you can plant more trees, change your lifestyle, but this is one way to not only make a difference, but actually see what that difference is. The new digital inverters have built in co2 offset reading for the power you are making. Australian's produce over 17 tonnes of co2 per person compared with OECD average of 11 tonnes. You can see here that in 6 months we have offset 486kg of co2 - a small amount but as start nonetheless.

Thinking more about your power usage

Having lived on only water tanks for several years, we knew what it felt like to live under a forced water restricition scheme. Every week we could peer into our tank and see how much water was left. Judging by the rainfall of the season we could adjust our water usage to suit our availability of water. Having a huge water network with massive dams makes it very hard for people to quantify how much they are using every week - having a localised system puts you in control of your own destiny with only you to blame if it runs out.

Put this into the context of electricity, a solar system with output readings for how much power you are making makes you much more aware of your electricity use. Things like turning off lights when you are using them, replacing bulbs with compact flourescent or led bulbs, having power boards that can be turned off with your feet or something like the power genie where turning off one product turns off many others - to reduce stop standby power usage. Standby power usage accounts for up to 12% of your total power bill! There are many ways to reduce your usage. Having a solar system just makes you think more about how you can reduce your bill.

Conclusion

Get out there and investigate how a solar system would work with your home. For the cost of an LCD TV you can get a device that not only provides you with monthly returns, but also offsets your carbon usage and put you in charge of your own energy future. There are two ways for government to invest in renewable energy - either through massive infrastrafructure project funding or through the application of rebates to individuals to create the same effect. I think the future for Australia involves a synergy of the two. Both the large scale investment in big energy projects and through partnering with individual families to shoulder part of the cost burdens of moving to renewable energy. This will empower Australians to take a stake in their future rather than just waiting to see what the government does for them.

How was your experience getting a solar system installed? Are you currently in the process.. Come and discuss your experiences with other owners in the Australian Solar Panel Owners Group forums of this website.