A small test disk of 'crab hole mound' and sodium silicate DIY refractory that has 'puffed' during firing. Despite the puffing, it is very hard and strong.

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Sodium silicate refractory firing A range of cheap DIY refractories can be made with sodium silicate as a bonding agent. These can be made with various mineral, metal oxides and even fine soil when mixed with a little sodium silicate (alkaline water glass). The current post describes the careful butRead More →

A crude pipe made from post-hole soil and sodium silicate. The pipe has been air dried and the ends have been ground flat on aluminium oxide 'sandpaper'. The pipe is very hard and is ready for curing and then firing.

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Refractory mixing An easy in-bag mixing method for sodium silicate refractory mixes is described. It allows the mix to have a stiff consistency with low water content. The resulting ‘plasticine’ texture makes handling and molding easy. In my previous post about dense DIY refractories from sodium silicate, I have intentionallyRead More →

Solar PV array (up top). Eevacuated tube heat collectors for hot water service (below). Top of solar kettle (low down to the right of centrer.

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This post describes the performance of a large grid connected domestic solar power system. Introduction My solar power system comprises 24 Sunsaver PV panels with a capacity of 4.2 kw and a Sunny Mini Central inverter. The panels face North and are fixed at 60 degrees of horizontal and areRead More →

Solar evacuated tube heat collectors for a solar hot water service.

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The running of an off-grid solar hot water service, in a cool climate, with only occasional electric heating is described. Introduction I have supplemented my large 4.6kw PV solar system with a solar/mains powered hot water service to reduce my use of mains power for water heating. “The backroom BoffinsRead More →

A spreading Oak tree that I planted when I started at my workplace. Much has changed over the years, but a good tree is a constant thing.

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This post is a story about the acorns, that I collected from Carnegie Primary School (my childhood school), and their distribution to grow giant oak trees. Introduction In my post on using Plane Tree leaf mulch for vegetable gardens, I have referred to the giant deciduous trees that grow onRead More →

A giant London Plane Tree. It is one of a number of beautiful European trees that according local stories were planted at the instigation of Victoria's famous Baron von Muller.

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This post is about using Plane Tree leaf mulch to make vegetable gardening easier and less weedy. Introduction As children, we often encountered the fluffy stuff from the crushed fruit of Melbourne’s ubiquitous London Plane Trees. We quickly learned its properties and called it ‘itchy wool’. We did not tryRead More →

DIY solar kettle emptying and filling

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A DIY solar kettle for free boiling water This post is about a cheap but effective DIY solar kettle that can make plentiful boiling water for hot beverages using just the power of the sun. Note: This post is n two parts. The first is my established simple direct heatingRead More →

Solar PV array (up top). Eevacuated tube heat collectors for hot water service (below). Top of solar kettle (low down to the right of centrer.

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Green stuff is about my various home environmental projects that may interest fellow greenies.Read More →

This big flame is created from damp bush sticks by augmenting the combustion with a jet of air from a tiny USB blower fan.

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This article describes a 125g USB fire blower that can burn damp wood sticks for outdoor cooking and other purposes. The blower is described elsewhere on my website as part of other projects. However, I felt the USB fire blower deserved it own dedicated post.Read More →