Archives for July 2013

Our New Outdoor Kitchen – Reuse Extraordinaire!

July 20, 2013 @ 14:02 By Gavin Webber 12 Comments

To complement our outdoor clay oven area, we decided to use some of the space near it into an outdoor kitchen.

We had a builder friend build the actual cabinet and seating out of pine and an eco pine cladding. As you can see, the cabinet doors have not been fitted yet, but he is fitting them this weekend. This job is a little beyond my DIY skills.

We have a second hand stainless steel sink to be fitted, and a two burner stove top that will be installed at the other end of the bench, which in the future will be able to be converted to biogas.

Out of shot to the right of the picture is the Clay Oven, which completes this kitchen.

Anyway, another interior designer friend gave Kim two boxes of Caesarstone samples, which were tile-shaped, so we decided to tile the bench using this material that was otherwise destined for landfill if we did not save it.

It came up pretty well, we think. After a quick grout, it looks fantastic. Even our builder friend said it was a great example of reuse.

Now for the seating. Kim wanted the pipes from the laundry covered up, but I had one condition. That it be done in such a way that I could connect a grey water hose externally. She said that the hose had to be hidden as well. Okay then.

Can’t see it now. We painted the box seat with outdoor woodland grey that we had leftover from another job.

I found a rather large hose, which was a spare from the swimming pool, and we connected up a drain diverter. The diverter is a simple knob that diverts the flow of grey water from the drain to the hose. The hose is long enough to reach most trees in the front fruit orchard which is a great bonus.

There is the hose and the diverter in the box. Very easy to fit.

And with the little door closed, you would never know it was there. Who said that being green had be unaesthetic?

So that is where we are up to. Once the doors are fitted the large cabinet, we will give them a lick of paint. We have a plumber coming in the next few weeks to connect the sink and the gas top.

I will be glad when it is all finished. Just in time for the spring weather. Looking forward to a cooked breakfast of fresh eggs collected no more than four meters away and prepared outside. This kitchen will also be a great area to prepare food for Clay Oven parties.

It feel great to have given a second life to lots of items in this build. Have you reused anything major lately?

The Great Kilowatt Challenge Project – Call to Arms

July 17, 2013 @ 21:10 By Gavin Webber 11 Comments

So what have I been feverishly working on over the last few days? I will give you one guess.

Okay, no guesses.

I have been working on my next big project, which is to help you and anyone who wants to participate, in lowering their own energy bills! But I said I was publishing an eBook, right?

Well, this is not the eBook you are looking for, dear readers. I have decided that The Great Kilowatt Challenge will not work as an eBook. The format is too restrictive. It needs to be flexible.

The outcome of the TGK challenge needs to real and tangible. You guys and girls need to be able to show something for the cash you fork out. Something super. You need to have achieved a successful outcome. You need to be able to reduce your power bill via small actions. Actions that are measurable. Actions that are repeatable. Actions that save you money $$$, and lowers greenhouse gas emissions if your utility provides you with fossil fuel generated electricity.

Reading an eBook will not cut the mustard as far as I am concerned. Why? Well not everyone learns that way.

Let me explain. How many times have you read a book and had all intentions of implementing it, but never got around to it? I think that participating in a course, and providing feedback to me and other course members will help the students take that step towards action in their own home.

So, I have been mulling this over in my head, looking for alternatives. I then started researching what was actually possible to deliver using digital methods only. And it had to be automated so that I am not laying awake a night wondering if I was supposed to send something to a student.

Have a look what I have come up with. Yes, it is my very first mind map. Click to enlarge as it is a little small. In case you are wondering, I used XMind 2012 to make the mind map. It is easy to use.

As you have probably noticed, this will be my very first eCourse. I firmly believe that it can be done. I have seen a few other courses similar to this that are purely delivered online, which are mostly workbooks and some PowerPoint slides, but I can do better than that. I want to provide rich media content that helps with all types of learning. We all learn differently.

I hope to be able to produce video, audio, data worksheets, content workbooks, and instructions, all digitally. I may have to pay for some hosting, but would bundle that into the cost of the course over time.

You are probably wondering what the price point will be. Well, I have seen a similar 4 week (20 hours) course for $500, which I thought was extortionate, so I will be aiming much, much lower. Somewhere between $25-$50, maybe a little more, all depending on the hosting fees. No guarantees, but that cost is around the point I am looking at to make it affordable.

This project is going to take some time, so I am working on the plan now, adding to the mind map each day until I know it is nearly right. Then it will be full steam ahead.

So, if you want to be a part of this project by getting updates of its progress, please leave your email address in the form below. As your privacy is important to me, so I promise not to use it for any other purpose other than project updates. You will also get early notification of the eCourse availability well before it is released via any other medium should you wish to enrol.

Closer to the completion date, I will be asking for beta testers who will be able to do parts of the course for free, so that I can solicit valuable feedback. So if you also want to be one beta testers, sign up as well. I will send an email via the list looking for limited volunteers.

So there you go, friends. A bit of hard work ahead of me during the development phase, but I believe that it will be good value and a great outcome for those who decide to enrol.

As always feedback is always welcome via comment. Fire away!