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look up "earthship" , many of them have walls made from bottles and/or jars. from what I have read and watched, you are basically making a "matrix of cement and the bottles are like little bricks." (I have just paraphrased this video @ approx 1.10) Thanks John. Unfortunately I a...

Yeah, I was thinking of using jam jars, as they are the right width, and there are always loads of them kicking around. I was also thinking of putting the top row in upright and growing plants out of them. Likewise, wall plants out of the ones in the side. I was hoping someone would be able to help ...

Hi, Has anyone attempted to build a bottle wall? We have a tiny front garden in our Victorian terrace. It has a over-large privet hedge at the moment, which is blocking light and taking up space from the herbs my girlfriend wants to grow there. I thought a low bottle wall would be just the thing. Pr...

50 - Wood stove 52 - minidisc player 53 - got rid of water butt Should really start a 101 irritating things about freecycle - ie large number of emails about an item, but no-one turns up to collect when you've waited in - and the speed with which stuff goes now. You literally have to reply within se...

Looks like wild chervil - cow parsley to me. You us it like parsley - or chervil! The spots won't show up till it's older if it's hemlock. The best way is to take a cross-section through the stem and see if it's U shaped - with a groove down the middle. If so, it may well be cow parsley. If it's rou...

Happy New Year Does anyone have experience of growing willow to use in their woodburner? Weve always had an open fire[s] and are thinking about installing stoves instead - seems VERY expensive so far! We already grow willow for craft and general uses on the smallholding but were wondering how it bu...

I would certainly echo getting a flat top so that you can keep a kettle on it and heat your beans. In my old house it was invaluable as we had power cuts at least once a week. I had a small stove as my only heating when the boiler was being replaced and it just about kept the cold off the upstairs ...

Thanks to everyone for the replies. Just come back to this thread, as we have decided to go the whole hog. We are getting a Clearview Pioneer 400 with flue liner and chimney insulation. We are getting the whole lot done for £1800, which I think is a bargain. Wood in our area is expensive though, £...

Thanks for the ideas... I'm not too fussed about organic... Sadly I don't have the time or skill to make my own clothes. I am happy to buy from high street stores as long as I know that the clothing has been fairly traded that I am buying. I don't really agree with you, Andy. High street stores are ...

This may not be strictly on topic, but have you noticed how hard it is to buy a pair of jeans that weren't made in a sweatshop? All the ethical online shops do loads of stuff for women, but ethical men can only go around in t-shirts and maybe a pair of Nepalese pajama bottoms... Does anyone have any...

A friend of mine tried them and said the light was funny and not bright enough... YMMV!

I use old pallets for kindling on the fire, and I also used them to build a lean-to on our garden shed to store wood. I did it by knocking the wood out gently with a hammer. This did end up breaking up a lot of planks though. It wasn't wasted, as I chopped up everything that was left and used it as ...

Grr, this whole issue is so complicated! And expensive... :pale: Well, there goes my plan of a cheap heat source... Wood around here is plentiful - we are right on the edge of square miles of chestnut coppice which is no longer being harvested. We got a half load for £80 which has done us the who...

Yeah, I can imagine. There seems to be a bit of a rip-off market around installing stoves. We've had quotes up to £3000. There seems to be a bit of a thing around chimney liners. Everyone will tell you you need your chimney lining, at cost of up to a couple of grand. However, my friend who is an ...

My OH and I got a small, old, broken woodburning stove from freecycle. Assuming we ever get it working, has anyone tried warm air heating their house? Essentially it involves heating one room with a stove, and putting vents in walls and ceilings to circulate the air. See http://www.stovesonline.co.u...