Handy craftsman

You recall last year that we had flyscreen doors made for our back kitchen and front patio doors.

The new screen doors at our Happy Door opening

They worked wonderfully well - once we had fitted a spring to the doors to keep them closed every time Scallywag went in or out.

The screen door in the kitchen

But - the best feature of my design was actually an inherent flaw - although the "appearance" of wide open doors was wonderful, having mesh all the way down to the floor was wrong.  You see, when Scallywag, our old dog, initially got panicky about being "locked" inside he took a paw to the mesh.  It couldn't handle the abuse and naturally ripped.

Ruddy gaping holes in the mesh served neither as a deterrent for flies - nor mice.   Grrrrrrrrrrr!

But, I wasn't about to go back to the original manufacturer - because he should've known this problem would arise and cautioned me against it.  Plus, his actual installation of the doors had to be modified fixed by RMan, as they started falling out.

So, I had spend 6 months searching for someone capable to modify the screen doors.  I finally found someone in February this year, was shown examples of his workmanship, and I then requested / offered him the work.  He accepted - being nagged also probably helped sway him ;)

George, being the craftsman that he is, had other bookings - one of which included building a house.

Then, when the house was finished, due to his landlord being greedy, he decided to purchase a piece of land on the western outskirts of town, in order to build himself a workshop so that he could ditch the landlord.  Clever man  :)

But, that put back my small repair job even further...

Sigh.  The wait was interminable.  And I feared that this summer would be a rodent and fly-infested one...

George, the craftsman, came through.  His new workshop is complete.  And what a piece of art!

The Wood Shop - just the cutest thing I have seen
in a long time.

I have not seen business premises like these before.  A wooden internal frame is clad in external IBR sheets.

Airy and bright - and tidy :)

 Inside the premises are light and airy - with plenty of storage / working space.

The concealed ventilation windows
are operated by cords from below

George thought of everything.  Being an IBR clad structure it is likely to get pretty hot in summer, so he has installed windows high up in the roof.  To open and close them he has installed a pulley system, with the operational cord within reach.

One of the storage units inside the
wookshop

He has even built storage for his smaller equipment - cutting discs, etc.

R&R area for the staff

He thought of his workers too - for those hot summer days there is a shady east facing patio where they can chill out during tea breaks / lunchtime.

I just love this sign - perfect advertising
for the tasks performed within

"The Wood Shop" as it is to be named, has the cutest signage too :)  If you need to find it - it is at the far western end of Swellendam (over the R60 to Ashton) on Voortrek Street - about 500mtrs from the intersection.

My screens are now at his new premises - waiting for him to attend to them.  He is also going to be making me sliding screens - for our windows :)  And, in order to do away with the tea tray under my draining rack, he is going to be making me a new kitchen counter - with angled drainage for the dish rack.  The old recycled kitchen counter - that will become very necessary shelving for RMan in the garage.

It certainly is wonderful to see someone who is so committed to his trade / craft that he can make himself as self-sufficient as this.  He has purchased the empty plot next door to his workshop - and has big plans for that area too... :)

Danger over

Our little two plate Univa caravan stove, with grill and small oven, which we took out of the caravan and placed in the farmhouse kitchen, has taken a fair amount of punishment in the last 2 years.

The burner grid was being eroded by the extreme heat.  In some places it was almost burnt through.  And I couldn't find spares anywhere online.  I mean, the caravan is from the early '80's - and is Univa still in existence?  I couldn't find them...

A close up of the wear and tear on the pot grid

But, we depend on that little stove all year round - to heat the water for our morning tea / coffee and to make our toast.  The oven we've never used - apparently is chews LP gas like water going down a plug hole.

And, as we had measured, and built the kitchen cupboard / counter when the house was being built (the cupboards have brick side walls) we couldn't exactly knock down the walls in order to accomodate a new larger stove.  Most of the new gas stoves have electric ovens - who needs one of those in their lives?  No thank you.  LOL

And tossing out a perfectly usable little stove is very rarely an option as far as I am concerned.  A little bit of TLC is all it will take and the stove will be as good as new.

Thoroughly buckled and twisted - the grid was
dangerous and pots sloped towards the sides...

I asked a couple of local businesses if they would be prepared to make me a new burner / pot grid, but their price was completely over the top!

Then RMan suggested why not ask RSon - he is in the stainless steel business now, and if anyone could make it he could.

On one of his visits, he took the measurements.

Just like a new stove top :)

And last weekend, when he came to install the solar panels for us, he brought the new burner grid with him.

Perfectly level and just like new

No more pots sliding sideways off the cooking area.  No more fried eggs lurching almost out of the frying pan.

Everything is level again.

It's the simple things in life that can bring such joy :)

Once again - thanks RSon :)

Our journey...

Following on my post Make a difference yesterday, and for those who haven't visited my web page, I thought I should share our side of the journey thus far...

Some time in 2007 RMan decided that he'd had enough of the retirement / insurance companies making their huge profits, at his expense, and then paying out peanuts when payment was due.  Their projected income when he took out his policies in the early 1980's, for his retirement in 2018, fell far short of the cost of living increases which we've experienced in the intervening years.  I reckon that is their trick - ensnare individuals to take out a policy which seems to offer incredible incomes on their retirement, with no mention of CoL increases - which reduce that retirement income to a barely liveable amount.  RMan decided that he would withdraw what he was allowed (which under South African law equates to 2/3's of the current value - the other 1/3 has to be re-invested) and with that 2/3's he would purchase a property - our plot :-) 

History has shown that property is the best long term investment - and is not dependent on the R/$ or R/£ or R/¥ exchange rate, like gold, stock market share, etc.

If one purchases a property wisely, maintains it and improves on it, then your investment cannot help but grow.  And, in the case of a recession, such as we've just experienced / are still experiencing, yes, properties will drop slightly in value, but when that recession is done and dusted, property values will leap up again - without the risk involved in gold, shares, etc.

So purchasing a plot for investment purposes was our original intention.

But, then the bug hit - RMan wanted to go to the plot over the weekends in order to escape from city life.  That entailed having to have somewhere to stay - it was pointless increasing the bank balances of the local B+B's as that completely defeated the aim of withdrawing money from his policies!  So we decided to build a small house.  As we could afford it.

But - and that is a big "but" - I saw this as the perfect opportunity of doing it right - of treading more gently on this planet through leaving as small a footprint as possible.  Of making a fresh start in our lives...

And thus my hunt began ... and it started with the question which was the most practical and eco-friendly way to build?  We initially thought of building a sand bag house, but due to the bag on offer at that stage, and due to the wind, which constantly blows, and was blowing away more sand than we could get into our bags, we ditched that idea.

The shower room, constructed with sandbags,
which disintergrated with the wind

My second option was a cob house, as we had stayed in one in Barrydale, and it was amazing - cool in the heat of day, and warm when it was cold outside.  And the atmosphere that pervaded the interior - calm, peaceful and serene.  I loved it - in fact we both did!  However, a cob house takes manpower, and in that we were in short supply.  RMan doesn't like strawbale houses - he is concerned about vermin gaining access to the straw and having a party - for generations to come...

Unfortunately, it therefore had to be a brick build - my proviso was that if I couldn't have a sandbag / cob or strawbale house, then we had to build with local materials.  (And at the time I stamped my foot to emphasise my proviso :-) )

Serendipitously, in our closest town, Swellendam, there were locals who produced clay bricks.  So clay brick it was!  Our brick had a total transport footprint of 25kms.  Our labour we obtained even closer - using the locals from a small village 12 km away.

Thus we were providing employment and income to the locals.  Perfect.  We were giving back as we were taking.

Slowly, slowly choices were made.  We would be off grid in our new home.  I completely covet a wind turbine, and I'm sure that one day we will have one when we are able to afford it.  After all it is a perfect power generator for our windy plot :-)  I am so enamoured with wind turbines that my eyes glaze over every time I see one on the TV :-)

We have installed double glazing (not the norm in South Africa) windows and I found a company which recycles all the car bumpers / computer casings / plastic milk bottles etc. into resin roof tiles.  I also discovered Freecycle, and that membership has provided us with our kitchen counter and burglar bars for all our external doors.

Our cooking and warmth is provided by a wood harvested from alien trees, and cut by Working for Water, and which we burn in our Dover stove, which was also purchased within 45kms of our plot, and our clay floor tiles are again manufactured in Swellendam.  I have to tell you that the warmth (both visually and underfoot)and beauty of natural clay floor tiles is incomparable to what is on offer / what one can purchase at your local hardware store.  Mass production certainly short changes man.

Then I investigated eco-finishes.  I found a manufacturer of low VOC varnish, undercoats and paints in Cape Town, and we transport what we need, when we need it, with us when we go to the plot.  The render we applied to our walls contained a large amount of lime - lime cures by a slow process of carbonation, reacting with atmospheric carbon dioxide over a period of weeks ( www.buildingconservation.com/articles/cement/cement.htm )  Therefore some of the carbon dioxide we have produced whilst we have been building is now being absorbed by the lime render - again a case of taking and giving.  I love it :-)

I have discovered that 12 volts of power is plentiful for our needs and one can still have home comforts such as music (provided by the car radio I bought for RMan) and lighting (12 volt CFL's and LED lights).  There is even a 12 volt TV available which I have my eye on - I have to watch any episode of Grand Designs I can, and RMan needs to watch the Boks beat the Wallabies and the All Blacks. 

Our only problem area is a fridge - and I have sourced a solar powered 12 volt freezer.  I intend to use the freezer to freeze 5lt bottles of water which I will rotate and which will keep a cooler box at the right temperature so that it can be used as a fridge.  No doubt RMan's beers will have to have a stint in the freezer before they can be kept in the "fridge" - wouldn't do if he had to drink warm beers on a hot summers day - or anytime...

The last two items are like the wind turbine - all finances permitting...

And our hot water is provided by the sun in summer, and a gas instant hot geyser in winter.  Plus the grey water from our kitchen and bathroom is being directed to a simple reed bed.

Raised veggie bed in the making...

But the periods between being here in Cape Town and being on the farm are great and I was getting frustrated that my eagerness and new found ingenuity was getting stifled.  There was so much I wanted to do - for instance I was aching to plant vegetables on the farm, so that I wouldn't have to schlep them up with us each time.  But the raised veggie bed needs completing, irrigation taken to it and a shadecloth cover installed over it to keep out the local hares and fallow deer.  So that has to wait.

But, one night, as I was falling asleep, I suddenly had a light bulb moment - a lateral thought.  What was to stop me from doing what I want to do in our "fresh start", right here in Cape Town.  After all, I didn't have to wait for the right moment - the right moment was right now!

Hand knitted dishcloth


So, once again, my investigative powers took over.  There are some seriously wonderful blogs out there, such as  Gillie, Mr H, Mia, milkwoodkirsten, onestraw, Rhonda,and sprig's blogs to mention but a few.  With their assistance I have learnt how to make no knead artisan bread(perfect for my arm), soap, eco-friendly insecticides and household cleaners, essential oils, lip balm, a food dryer, a chicken house, a hot box, a wicking bed, an eco-friendly food dehydrator and knit my own dishcloths out of 100% pure, unwaxed, unbleached cotton, a simple shade cloth tunnel for my vegetable patch, and preserve all sorts of foods, amongst many other things.

And I have started a vegetable patch, or should that be patches, which have all the appearances of providing us with our needs in a couple of months, and which, because I now have the confidence and from which I have already had some reward, I will continue to sow in and reap from.


Shade cloth veggie tunnel




But, the most surprising discovery I have made is that I have enjoyed re-educating myself.  It is the most brilliant on-going journey I have ever embarked upon and one that I highly recommend!

It really is true - one is never too old to learn - all you need, and have to be, is willing.

What we need is to make a concerted effort to inspire and motivate the menfolk in our lives, so that they are willing and eager to join us on our journey ...  trust me though, the eco-friendly journey is a lifelong one - and one whose boundaries are constantly moving as you and I jointly discover, and share, ways to simplify our lives, and the way we live them, and lighten the load we are placing on our planet, without turning back the clock 100 years.

How are you fairing with the man / men / children in your life?  What has been the easiest eco-change to make - and which ones are they resisting most?

Kitchen progress

It is amazing how basic a kitchen one can actually work in.
 This last weekend we managed to get up to the farm for 4 days.  We schlepped along the security gates and kitchen counters that I got through Freecycle in Cape Town.  Naturally, being female I wanted the kitchen counters in before my other half got to grips with installing the security gates, so with a bit of reasoning and a fresh cup of coffee (for himself) we got down to it on Saturday afternoon after we had unpacked the car - actually my other half got down to it although he did taken some female assistance from me - and design advice.  I reckon that my kitchen area is now 90% finished. All that is left to furnish it with is a 12volt solar freezer and a Dover stove.  And paint the walls....

To walk you round the photo's below - firstly there is a photo of the one kitchen counter prior to being installed. 

The 2nd and 3rd photo's show the view of the kitchen and dining area - and lo, and behold! my old solar cooker fits perfectly where the Dover stove has to go.  Thank goodness I talked RMan out of the underfloor heating he wanted to install prior to the floor tiles being laid - they would be totally unnecessary!  The house is so warm and toasty inside - is it beause of the double glazed windows or because of the lime plaster making the walls more damp proof...?  We haven't got a clue.  And don't care.  Just love it!  In fact it is so warm inside (22oC - even when outside is 6oC) that we are in no rush to buy the Dover stove for the warmth it will provide.

My groceries are stored in basket drawers below the central builders workbench (on wheels), and my plates under the counter on the right hand side of the old caravan gas cooker – we still need to put in another shelf below the one holding the plates for casserole dishes and suchlike, and two shelves on the nook on the left hand side of the gas cooker, to house my pots and baking trays.

But apart from that there is nothing left to do in the kitchen.

The beauty of this kitchen is that it has cost all of ZAR5500.00 – the main expense being the kitchen sink (R2000.00 and the central island on wheels (R1200.00, wheels +/- R400.00 and baskets R1080.00). As I mentioned in a previous post the kitchen counters I got from Freecycle in Cape Town – my husband amazed me with his previously unknown woodworking skills. He dismantled the lot and then mixed and matched the straight and curved bits until he got them to fit perfectly!  The basic solar oven is sitting on the shelf which is reserved for my future Dover (wood burning) stove. Even the two shelves above the oven / basin area were made by RMan from left over laminated wood which we’re using for our upstairs landing - the chain supports were my idea and they work well!

As a newlywed I believed that I had to have the latest gadgets in order to produce the meals and baking that was required of me. Now I know that the simlper one keeps one’s life, the easier it all is. Admittedly I won’t be baking many cakes, so I don’t need my Kenwood Chef anymore, and my slow cooker has been replaced with my Hot Box and Solar Oven. And filter coffee machines – I don’t drink coffee anymore (don’t need, nor want the caffeine - prefer my rooibos or honeybush tea) and, thankfully, my husband prefers instant coffee on a day-to-day basis, retaining the filter coffee consumption for those special outings - be they a weekend lunch sitting in a restaurants' garden in the sunshine or a candlelit dinner with yours truly :-)

Then, first thing Sunday morning it was the time to install the security gates - they were almost made to fit, and with just a small amount of shimming on either side they work perfectly.  Not easy to hang doors / gates - one definitely needs two pairs of hands - one to do the work and the other to act as supports - guess where I came in :-)  And we were very grateful for the generator and power tools.

Finally, on Monday, with the grateful arrival, and assistance, of a young male relative of our neighbour's we were able to install the support posts for our grape vines and we made a start on the raised veggie patch construction.  The first veggie patch will be 4 mtrs long X 1 mtr wide - just perfect for our initial needs - and with plenty of space to expand when necessary.

 

All in all, a very constructive weekend and one in which we managed to complete enough tasks to make us very chuffed with ourselves - there's nothing nicer than that feeling of accomplishment - it lifts one's spirits and gives one added impetus to complete  the remaining ones. 

Each task completed is one less on the list...

Biding time

Our grandson came to visit us for the Easter holidays - how lekker (nice is the normal translation, but obviously you all know that I mean much more than nice :-) ) that was.  Very special!  All he wanted to do was swim - but late March / early April in Cape Town is not really swimming weather - and the water has already cooled down quite substantially, although he did get in twice - very briefly - the water was 21oC.  Much to cold for me!

BUT, whilst he was here I took delivery of my Stack-A-Tub - the name says it all.  I have placed it on our back patio - the only place which gets sun in winter, and, co-incidentally, it is right outside our grandsons' bedroom window - so when he's here he can peep out of his window to see how "his" vegetables are growing.  We planted baby spinach and a (centre) garlic clove in the top section and peas in the middle section - aiming for them to grow down the tubs as opposed to needing support.  Trial and error - if they don't do that well hanging down then I'll give them support to climb up.  My other half loves peas in the pod, which I can't find anywhere in Cape Town, so, providing we get enough from the nine plants, I know who I'll call if I need some shelled for dinner.  In lower section I planted some basil, but I think I'm going to replace them with lettuces - basil will grow perfectly in a stand alone pot.  The beauty of the stack a tub is that as all three tiers are detachable, it's obviously mobile, so when we go to the farm I can take it with us.  I'm thinking of using it as a herb garden on the farm - close to the kitchen door.

I have also ordered some very special lemon tree cuttings from overseas.  But I'm not going to say anymore until I have some fruit photo's to share with you - sorry, that'll take two or three years.  But I'm very excited and can't wait for them to arrive.  If they arrive alive, and I manage to root them successfully, then I will be ordering more.  I can't see why I shouldn't be successful as I have managed to root two pomegranate cuttings in the past four weeks.

We are still unable to get away to the farm - perhaps later this month...  We  need to install the newly painted security gates, and, of course, my freecycle kitchen counters.  But we have a neighbour who is also building his house there and he tells us that our plants / trees are all doing well with our irrigation system, and we've had a bit of rain, so we don't have to worry about them.

Would be nice to get away to the peace and serenity again though...

Recycling and Freecycling

As I mentioned earlier in this blog I am a member of Freecycle in Cape Town.

Last week there was a posting offering two pine kitchen counter tops, two round steel kitchen sinks and three security gates.  And Katharine, the lady offering the goods, lived in my part of town!!  Happy days!  I contacted her and arranged to go and view the items - immediately!

They were perfect.  The pine kitchen counter tops are brilliant - about 4cms thick, with only a slight burn mark which will sand out easily - they will need a little bit of cutting / adjusting but when I walked into her kicthen they just leapt out at me - they are absolutely perfect farmhouse kitchen counters - and are in very good nick.  They had obviously been very well looked after as I couldn't find a speck of water damage.

And the kitchen sinks - obviously I don't need one of those (my Belfast sink is perfect) - so I thought I'd use them as planters - plugging up the drainage hole with small pebbles and growing garlic and lettuces in them - talk about square foot gardening :-)

Even the security gates are perfect - the single one will go outside our future bedroom door, which isn't the strongest, and the double ones will go outside our kitchen door - covered in shadecloth or wooden branches they will be perfect for, firstly, keeping anyone / anything (e.g. snakes) out and secondly they will be a tremendous help in muting the wind which always rushes inside if the door is open.  The security gates are slightly rusty, but that will sand off easily and then a lick of paint - no one will know the difference.

And they will give us peace of mind that when we are not there, the most vulnerable part of the house - the back - will have some form of protection.

This project is certainly giving me back my patience in this rushed, hurly-burly world - "slowly, slowly" is our key phrase ...   But we know it will all be worth it in the long run.

And the excitment and anticipation grows with every step forward, no matter how small it is.

Clay floor tiles, kitchen counter and lime render

During the time that we were unable to get to the farm we kept ourselves busy with preparation at our house in Cape Town. I purchase two bedside tables from a roadside vendor - these tables are made with off-cuts of wood and woven grass basket drawers. I also ordered 6 slightly bigger extra drawers, to use in my kitchen island for storing foodstuffs etc. These I sanded and varnished (with Swartland Maxicare) at our home in Cape Town - a very good idea as on the farm there is always a breeze of some sort blowing building sand about - not ideal for wet varnish!



Due too business commitments RMan went to the farm on his own for 11 days in early October. We needed to get the flooring in and sealed, to give it time to dry before the family visit in December.


On the internet I found Overberg Tile and Clay - a company in Swellendam who made clay floor tiles and who were able to install them as well.

 

Given that the actual factory is based in Swellendam, and we didn't have to add to their eco footprint by schlepping heavy clay tiles 256 kms all the way from Cape Town, I bowed to RMan's preference for clay floor tiles in place of the oxide screed on the floor.

The installed and sealed 'seconds' tiles on this page look more amazing than the pictures show! The only difference between the normal and 'seconds' tiles are that the 'seconds' can be a little uneven, and / or have a small crack - we love them - we feel it adds real farmhouse character to the room.

RMan used the opportunity to get the plasterer's back to compelte the plastering of the external walls and do the finishing round the windows and doorways. True to form it rained! That caused the plaster to fall off the walls during the night, which meant they had to be re-done the following day. It's amazing, though, what plastering the building has done - it is starting to look more and more like a house and less like a building site.

RMan got a reality check - when he lifted a piece of the gunplas (black plastic) which was covering the plaster sand he met his first Cape Cobra face to face. He said that he's never leap so far so quickly - clearing what he explained as 3 mtrs in one leap! Unfortunately the plasterers decided to throw sand at it which caused it to rise up and show it's hood. They were not happy about it, and RMan, being in a state of shock, didn't realise until too late that a couple of the plasterers had picked up planks which were lying around and with which they proceeded to kill the cobra. Sad and totally unnecessary - there is place for everything on this planet and a bit of patience would've allowed the cobra to go on it's way. Nevermind interrupting the food chain - cobra's eat mice and rats - and personally I'd rather have cobra's on the plot than rats and mice, of which there must be plenty in the area, as many of the surrounding fields are sown with grain.

He also got the digger/loader back - we know have 180 holes ready for the pomegranate trees which we will be purchasing in January 2010. The trenches we dug for the mains water, grey water and septic tank pipes have now been closed and the reed bed has had a berm placed on the uphill side to prevent rain water from flooding and overflowing the reed bed before it's had time to filter the grey water.

Unfortunately, there was not enough time to seal the floor tiles on RMan's previous visit, so we both went up to the farm at the end of November to get that finished and to ensure that the house is as complete as posssible before we go up with our kids / grandchild later in December. I never realised how much stuff we had accumulated in the caravan - no wonder it felt cramped and claustrophobic. Transferring it all and sorting it out in the house took me all of three hours and at least a dozen trips from the caravan to the house.

We fitted castors to the kitchen counter / island and I proceeded to fill every inch of it. When I consider the cost (the unit cost R1200.00 at Builders Warehouse, the six baskets R600.00 and the castors R240.00) a total of R2040.00 - a company which specialises in kitchen cuboards would charge a heck of lot more than that for a 1.5mtr long kitchen island. It is also 1.05mtrs high - 15cms more than the normal kitchen counter - it feels so much more comfortable to prepare food on.

Ronnie was an absolute star and moved the caravan stove to the house too - easy-peasy thing for a man to do!!

He also knocked me up some temporary kitchen counters / draining board round the butlers sink / stove - the butlers sink is absolutely brilliant! In order not to waste water when doing the daily washing up I use a bucket which fits into the sink - naturally, when the demand arises I will utilize the entire sink.

So, finally on the 1 December 2009, a year and a half after purchasing our plot, we "moved in" - yes, we still have to paint the walls, put the vermiculite ceiling boards in and sort out more kitchen shelving, but the basics are there. And we had our first home cooked meal even if it was only spaghetti bolognaise - we didn't cook in the caravan because of food smells, grease, etc. And what a pleasure to be able to go to the bathroom in the middle of the night without having to peer all round for night adders as one walks to the "bathroom"!! Those simple luxuries that one takes for granted assume on a whole new meaning. I can tell you all that the resin roof tiles in the double volume room together with the double glazed windows work brilliantly! Hot as hell outside and very comfortable inside. The addition of lime to the render (8 parts sand, 1 bags cement and 2 bag lime) has created walls which could withstand a hurricane easily - it took RMan three hours to knock a 20cm hole through the west facing wall for the dover stove chimney - he couldn't believe the strength of the walls. Even the howling sou'easter is bearable when one is within a sheltered structure - especially one that doesn't sway in the wind as the caravan did! Admittedly the sisalation which was fitted (again in a howling sou'eater) is not as secure as it should be in a couple of places, but when we fit the vermiculite ceiling boards, we will be able to do any minor adjustments that are necessary.

Perhaps next year we will be equipped enough to spend Christmas on the farm with the whole family. I can't wait to see their reaction - so much for "elderly" parents - I reckon we've done a sterling job thus far. And we're not that old any way :-) In fact - our lives have just begun, but don't tell our kids that.