Dog Containment Fence Repair
How to repair a break in a dog containment system’s boundary wire.
The Ideal Homestead Trailer
(This is a repost of a previously-published article, rescued after my web host screwed up my site.) A trailer is an invaluable addition to a homestead. It turns the family car into a ute (pickup truck if you live outside Australia!), without the expense of buying and maintaining an additional vehicle. This is a list … [Read more…]
Record Temperatures And Bushfires Everywhere
The highest average national temperature ever recorded for Australia!
Sustainable House Day – Sept 9
Here’s a great opportunity to have a tour of one of the Illawarra’s most sustainable homes – the Rowes’ residence in Shellharbour.
Cheap Wildlife/Game Cameras At Aldi
If you’ve got a farm or homestead, an inquisitive nature, or even just a problem with a neighbour’s pet, a game camera could be what you need. Aldi has them for sale very cheaply at the moment.
My Favourite Sustainability and Homesteading Podcasts
Here’s a list of the podcasts I regularly listen to. I’d love it if you could suggest others you think I might like!
Mitsubishi i-MiEV Electric Car Thoughts
My thoughts on Australia’s first mass-produced all-electric car. Is this the start of something big?
Shellharbour Solar Expo A Huge Success
I spent most of Sunday helping to staff the Jamberoo FutureCare table at the Shellharbour Solar Expo, at Shellharbour Workers’ Club (who actually have 22 kW of solar panels installed themselves – see photo). The expo was organised by Jamberoo FutureCare, in conjunction with Shellharbour and Kiama Councils. There were a number of solar power … [Read more…]
CFLs and Mercury
Australia, and many other countries around the world, are legislating to phase out the sale of incandescent light bulbs. It is estimated that this initiative will reduce Australia’s annual greenhouse gas emissions by 800,000 tonnes of CO2-e; not bad, but it’s still only 0.14% of our total emissions. That said, any saving is progress. I’ve … [Read more…]
Cleaning Up Broken CFLs
Not long ago I dropped and broke a compact fluorescent lightbulb (CFL) in the garage. D’oh! I had a vague recollection that there’s a procedure you should follow to safely clean up broken CFLs, due to the small amount of mercury inside them. So, geek that I am, I jumped on the computer to look … [Read more…]