The Greening of Gavin

Back on Solar – Inverter Replaced

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As at 3pm on Saturday 16th July and $3400 poorer, we are now back on Solar!  Let me tell you about it.

The electrician turned up about 10am to swap over the inverter and a few other bits and bobs.  The old Fronius IG30 was to be taken off the wall and replaced with a Fronius Galvo 3.0.  Also due to changes in AS/NZ electrical standards the isolation switches had to be replaced.

I did get a couple of quotes which were all within a $100 or so, so I chose to go with the original quote as I was comfortable and knew the installer.

Fronius IG30

Old and very dead Fronius IG30

 

Inside the Fronius IG30

Inside the Fronius IG30

The DC isolation switches were replaced for each of the two 8 panel strands.

DC Isolation Switches

DC Isolation Switches

As well as the one located next to the Inverter.

DC Isolation Switch

DC Isolation Switch

Then it was a simple job of taking the old inverter off the wall and replace it with the new one.

Inverter replaced - Fronius Galvo 3.0

New Fronius Galvo 3.0 with WIFI!

Now as we all know nothing like this runs smoothly.  They soon found that the cabling from the isolation switches on the roof was not compliant with regulations, so it was replaced.  So was the wiring from the breaker box in the carport to the Inverter.

So after about 5 hours of work, it was finally up and running.

Fronius Galvo installed on Carport wall

Fronius Galvo installed on Carport wall

It was a bit overcast so I didn’t expect much output from the system.  However I was pleasantly surprised when the system showed it was generating over 1kW.

Fronius Galvo Display

Fronius Galvo Display

As part of the installation, just about everything had to be relabeled (new regulations, of course).

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A bit silly really when anyone with common sense could actually look up and see the panels and the thumping big inverter about 1 metre from this switchboard.

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This one made more sense I suppose.  Not that there wasn’t already a red sign on the outside of the main meter box.  You can’t have too many signs apparently.

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And then when I opened the box door, there were more signs.  Can’t be too safe.

Anyway, it’s all working brilliantly now and as I hinted at before, it has WIFI!  Well to be exact, it accesses our home WiFi so that it can send monitoring data to a central place so I can monitor it via any web browser.  A pretty cool feature.  Here is the Windows 10 app I have on my desktop.

Solar Web app Windows 10

Solar Web app Windows 10

It also comes with an app that I can monitor via my smart phone.  At least I know now when its working when I’m at work.

As it starts clocking up the kilowatt-hours I can post snapshots here on the blog which is more than I can say about the old one.  We estimate that during its lifetime, it helped to generate about 3 Megawatt hours of electricity over the 9 years it was in operation.  Unfortunately that is as accurate as it gets because before I realised it was on the blink, the display died first and I couldn’t take a reading.

So at least the system is back up and running.  It will take a while for the replacement inverter to pay itself back, but as long as it keeps working there are at least another decade or three of electricity left in those panels!

Save Money with Solar Power system

Save Money with Solar

And the big question is, of course, do I regret my decision all those years ago to purchase the PV system?  Not for a second!

It has been one of the best investments of our sustainable living journey.  It has reduced our GHG emissions and helped us conserve energy without drawing much from the grid.

I would do it all over again, even though back in 2007 it cost four times the amount a comparative 2.8 kW system does today.  I’m just glad that so many followed in my footsteps and put their very own clean power station on top of their roofs.

Clean, renewable energy from the biggest nuclear reaction in our solar system.  The Sun.

Blessed Are The Curd Nerds

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Not wanting to blow my own trumpet, but I’ve started a bit of a cheese cult over on one of my YouTube channels.

You know the one.  The channel that has all the cheese making videos aka Cheeseman.tv!

Of late, I’ve been putting into practice the suggestions given during a few Google Hangouts with other YouTube creators and I have been creating and uploading at least one cheese making video a week.

This regular video creation has had some amazing results.  Subscribers, or should I say Curd Nerds have increased dramatically.

Thousands of people are making the cheeses that I feature in the videos.  Most have great results and share their experiences with everyone freely.  It’s a cheese revolution to claim back our cheese taste buds!  Blessed are the Curd Nerds.

On a serious note, it’s a great growing community that I enjoy serving.  Curd nerds are such a generous bunch of people.

So being one of those generous curd nerds, here are a few of the video tutorials and a couple of taste tests that I’ve produced over the last month that you may want to try yourself.

Jarlsberg

This Norwegian style cheese is still ripening, but will be ready at the end of next week.  It is swelling and forming eyes here in my office.


Monterey Jack

I’ve been meaning to make a video of this cheese for such a long time.  It was one of the very first cheeses that I made way back when.  It tastes amazing (well it did the first time) and should be ready to eat in a month or so.


Bel Paese

A traditional Italian cheese meaning Beautiful Country, I found Bel Paese to be quite a surprisingly creamy, yet firm cheese that delighted my palate. It’s now a house favourite.


Now for the taste tests.

Edam Taste Test

I found this cheese to be exceptional.  It formed small eyes without any assistance from myself and tasted absolutely delicious as a good Edam should.  Watch out for the two extra cheese tasters that appear after the end credits of the video.  You should get a laugh.


Gouda Taste Test

Another exceptional Dutch style cheese that was full flavoured and hasn’t lasted too long (we ate most of it).


So to avoid a cholesterol overload, I take at least quarter of each wheel to work and share it with my colleagues.  None of them have keeled over yet and all compliment me on my cheese.  I think they are waiting in anticipation for the next cheese I bring to work 🙂

In other cheese news, I’ve updated the print edition of Keep Calm and Make Cheese – The Beginners Guide to Cheese Making at Home.  I didn’t want the reader to miss out on all the free videos I have on offer.  As the eBook versions have hyperlinks, I added in QR Codes within each recipe for the paper version so the reader can scan and watch via their mobile phone or tablet.

Cream Cheese Video Tutorial QR Code

Cream Cheese Video Tutorial QR Code

A nice touch I think, and believe it only enhances the potential curd nerds cheese making experience!

Lots of great cheese action here at home.  I have a couple of videos in production now including a new Camembert recipe and an attempt at Fourme d’Ambert, a French cow’s milk Blue Cheese.  Both are ripening in the cheese fridge and will be released soon.

Enjoy the videos, and if anyone is interested in learning to make cheese, I would be more than welcome to have you join me on a Beginners Cheesemaking Course soon.

Until then, this is Cheese Man Gav signing off!

Fancy Soap Bars

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About three weeks ago, Kim and I taught on of our Advanced Soap Making workshops.  During each workshop we make two 1 kg batches of soap in front of the students.

This is to show them different techniques that they may want to practice and make during the class.

In this class we made two quite exceptional bars; Dragon’s Blood Scrub and a Forbidden Fantasy Scrub.  Both bars contained poppy seeds as a natural exfoliant.

Poppy seeds are much better to use than microbeads as an exfoliant (the latter enters the ecosystem and doesn’t break down) and are mild on the skin.  That and the fact that they breakdown and rot after a few weeks in water.

I love a good scrub in the shower and using these bars are quite invigorating!

Dragons Blood Scrub Bar

Dragon’s Blood Scrub Bar

The scent of this bar is quite unusual.  So many of our students go crazy over it, but it just makes me sneeze!  Yes I had to tell it like it is.

Forbidden Fantasy Scrub Bar

Forbidden Fantasy Scrub Bar

I think they turned out rather well.  During the class, I perform all the chemistry, and Kim does all the layering and swirls.  She is very creative like that.

Anyway, as the post title suggests, fancy soap bars are what we do.  I love guiding the students during class when they make their own soapy creations.  Some of the patterns and colours are just amazing.

Here’s a video I made when unboxing and cutting up the Forbidden Fantasy Scrub.


 
We are also experimenting with natural clays as well and hope to offer another class that is all about making soap with 100% natural ingredients.  As it’s under development we’re not sure when it will be available.

So, what do you think of our soap?  Have you made any fancy soap bars of late?  What process do you use?  Melt and Pour, Cold Process, or Hot Process?  Which one do you prefer and why?