ENERGY WALL!

We have a new addition to the bungalow, our energy data wall.
The wall is able to show us our daily energy usage, each week. We are able to identify reasons for different days being higher or lower in usage as well as being able to calculate a weekly average. This enables us to have an aim to lower our usage the following week.

In our polytunnel

Inside our polytunnel, we planted a pak choi, aubergines and cucumbers while watering the already sprouting onions, cabbages and tomatoes.

We also managed to use our own compost when planting the seedlings!

And so the crops rotate...

Lots of new planting this weekend. After digging up the soil and cleaning out the weeds. We organised and decided what was to be planted where, and then began the planting.

In the main beds outside, we planted red carrots, regular carrots, rocket, radish and potatoes.

Of course water was needed for watering the beds and seeds throughout the day, and this was made very easy by using our new outside water butt which water tank used to store and collect rainwater runoff, typically from rooftops and gutters.  

What the Cold DIDN'T Demolish!

After some great planting this weekend, we managed to harvest a lovely juicy leek and a bunch-full of beetroot.   

Bungalows Experiment.

On a late night, when enjoying a pineapple we decided to test out a theory. Its said that planting the head of a pineapple will grow you another pineapple.

We comfortably placed the pineapple into a moist, composted hole... unfortunately this takes up to 24 months, we shall keep you updated :)

Have a look at this website for some good tips to gardening!!

http://www.thedailygreen.com/green-homes/blogs/organic-gardening/gardening-tips-460109

More Planting!

Hello! We are going to be doing some gardening this weekend and would love some helping hands. Hoping that the snow stays away, we shall begin after 12pm so come and JOIN US! 

Fundraising Success!!

Great success with the fundraising event last night. With a total of £146.17 made from a friendly
raffle and an entrance fee. Getting closer to having out wind turbine up and running.

Thanks to everyone who came down and gave us your support. 

LOOK AT OUR WIND TURBINE!!

Yes, it's pretty useless sitting up there, which is why we decided to have a casual fundraising event to put this bad boy up! The blades on this turbine are made from old guttering and the motor is recycled from older electrical appliances.

To get this turbine fully running we need a six metre pole and an electrical converter, which will hopefully be able to power a few sockets in the bungalow. :) 

£1 Entry, Horwood Bar, Keele Uni 

8pm-2am   16th Feb '13

We would love your support and company. Come and enjoy some unmissable tunes and fine wine. 

Just In Time!

Just as winter has arrived, the Bungalow has a new addition - the finally finished POLYTUNNEL!!!

The polytunnel will now allow us to plant and grow a large variety of different crop, including exotic plants whether they are in season or not. It is a sturdy fixed polytunnel which means that it dug into the ground making able to sustain extreme weather conditions.

We shall soon be planting!!

Keeping our tomatoes toastie!!

FINALLY the polytunnel is going up! This is our semi-circulard elongated greenhouse, or hoophouse for short.
After a looong wait on Keele Estates, we have finally got some progress, just in time for winter too!

The polytunnel creates a higher temperature and humidity inside, this means we will be able to grow fruit and veg ALL year round. :)



It is much more economically friendly compared to a green house, it is also much bigger.

Fingers crossed in a weeks time, it will be all ready to goooo!

Gardening... gardening!!

The first frost was closely approaching, and we needed to get our winter crops into the ground as soon as possible!!

After a little scout of our garden, we needed to figure out the crop rotation of our beds. This is done to the build up of crop specific-pests and diseases, it keeps the soil extra fertile although we add our own compost, as it prevents nutrient deficiency and helps keep it balanced.
We had 3 categories; brassicas, roots and other.

With this in mind we took a trip to our local garden centre where we did a little shopping :) We managed to pick up the correct seeds for planting this time of year, AND some beautiful Tulip and Daffodil bulbs so that we can have a blossoming spring!!








The next day, we woke up to a clear sunny day and knew we would be getting our hands dirty. We planted a small variety of vegetable in our beds such as potatoes, onions, radish, broad beans and garlic.

 

And now we wait...

Changes and additions to the house :)

Over the holidays, the bungalow has had a fresh coat of paint in the inside and we have also added various posters on the walls to allow people to pick up a few ideas or just to start a thought going in their head, but least of all it brightens up our living room!

Simone has planted a few different herbs, basil, chives and thyme which are currently sitting on our living room window sill. A major plan for the house is to have a full herb garden on a raised bed at the front of the house, we aim to have this on its way by december.

With winter is on its way and with two Africans in the house, we knew that the house would need to be a lot warmer, because we didn't want to just turn up the heating, and to reduce our energy usage we constructed some radiator reflector panels.

These are simply thin sheets of foil placed behind our radiators. They will lessen the heat being lost to the walls and to the outside but also increase the effectiveness of our radiators by almost 30%!

The Bungalows Summer Holiday

In between the transition of the bungalow residents, the garden was flourishing throughout the summer. Lots of healthy potatoes were harvested and the beds were tidied up by a little weeding . The Bungalow got a fresh coat of paint and thorough clean up. 

We; Simone, Luke, Priya and myself Toral have recently moved into the bungalow with new ideas for the house as well as carrying on with all the projects from last year. 

Since we moved in, it has taken a few adjustments and lots of learning to get into the flow of living in the bungalow, but now, it has become an easy addition to our lives. 

We have been recording all sorts of data in the house, such as; waste, travel and energy usage. We shall continue to do this throughout the year.

Friends & Project Volunteers Thoughts, Comments and Testimonies

 

 
We couldn't have done this without much help from friends and volunteers willing to donate their time to a good cause. This is what some of them had to say about the project:

 

 

 

“Something has to be said for the social dynamic, and the positive working & relaxing environment that the existence of the bungalow has created. It is a positive and welcoming experience visiting the bungalow.”

Luke Bellamy

 

“The Bungalow project for me was the catalyst for almost everything else that happened for me this year; in academia, in charity and in our little society. It was a place for me to exchange ideas and meet new people, a place to relax and recuperate, and also a place to invigorate any positive motivations that you have. It helps makes the environment a subject that you perceive the environment holistically, as opposed to something that should be considered after the fact.”

Emmanuel Blondel

 

 

"I was incredibly Keele students had been so environmental interests that this; and that they were pressures of university and believe that the is teaching by example, as involved to become more own homes - it has certainly pleased to see that likeminded pro-active in their they created a place such as able to do so despite the modern living... I strongly Sustainable Student Bungalow it encourages everyone environmentally active in their inspired me!"

 

Grace Dempsey

 

“Carl invited my husband (a keen gardener) and I to the sustainability bungalow Keele campus to view the vegetable garden, and were very impressed! You could see that the students had worked hard planning their project, making the raised vegetable beds and growing plants to eat.

 

We had a wonderful time looking around, having a delicious fresh salad lunch and sharing gardening tips. We also talked about cavity wall insulation for the bungalow and taking advantage of grants that provide this for free at the moment!”

Linda Harrington

 

“From the methods and teachings of the sustainable student bungalow I have been able to incorporate sustainable methods into my own home to improve my way of living.”

 

Connor Herbert-Jackson

 

“The Sustainable Bungalow is a place where students can put in to practice what they have learnt about sustainability and the environment on and off the course. Ideas and concepts can be discussed in a friendly and social environment allowing me to develop my understanding. The project has inspired me to become more active and involved by encouraging me to grow my own food and participate in the building of a hedgehog house.”

 

Sophie Kilgallon

 

“A hub where like minded people of any discipline can take an active role in the Keele community.”

Alex Melson

 

“The Sustainable Student Bungalow is a place for intellectual communications and exchange of knowledge. In there, we discuss the past, present and future of human civilization and work hand-to-hand together to pursue justice and betterment of society.”

Hugh Tam

 

“It is a place to show that students can make a difference to this planet by what they have learnt and show the power. and once this project will be sucessful, it can also prove refence and evidence for other unis that students can be relied on. Moreover, free vegetables.”

 

Molly Xiong

 

 

 

 

A New Poly Tunnel and Keele's First Environmental Representative at the Bungalow!

It's been a fun month at the bungalow, so we thought we'd give another update, we've been...

.....putting together 'hot beds' to go in the poly tunnel we're building, for melons, chillies, tomatoes and various other hot house plants we're looking forward to enjoying in the summer....

....a little more digging...

...some pole positioning for the poly tunnel frame!

And a new friend George the pit bull inspects the work...

...enjoying Carl's success as Keele's new environmental representative.....

....and more publicity having our photo on the front cover of the first edition of Keele Times!!!    

So there it is a healthy bit of gardening, campaigning and media interest in the bungalow, all in all a great start to the year!!!

January Update

So, Christmas is over and we've made a great start to the year by finishing the home brew, completing a planting plan for the raised beds and acquiring a poly tunnel.  We've begun constructing the 'hot beds', hot because, that's right you guessed it-they're filled with hot manure, to keep those peppers, melons and other hot house plants full of life!!  

The Leeks surprisingly survived the winter frost!

After a few hours using our planting companion chart, we had a vegetable bed plan for the following few months!

So we thought we'd get to work on building the hot beds, giving James a chance to skilfully wield a circular saw!

And here we have the beginnings of what will, be our poly tunnel!!

More to follow.....

LiveGreen:Keele visit East Staffs Exemplar Property

If your a regular visitor to the house, you will be aware of our overuse of the word 'exemplar'. However, East Staffordshire council really have used the word wisely here. Today saw the official opening of the their brand new show house displaying almost every type of sustainable technology which can be used within the standard family home.

Entrance to the property

As Dr Robinson, Carl and I walked down the road lined with terrace housing, we realised that this really is a great example of house sustainability can be implemented into literally any area or house. On arrival, the mayor cut the appropriately green ribbon and declared the house open. 

 The project leader Peter Robinson (no relation to Dr. Zoe Robinson), a current Keele masters student and East Staffs Climate Change Officer, hosts a variety of new technologies such as insulating wallpaper, light reflective paint, solar PV and a rainwater harvesting system to name but a few.

Although this property is not being lived in currently, Carl and I were able to take away some key points on how to present a sustainable house to the public.

 

The Kitchen

We particularly liked the quotes written on the walls for example which stood out and act as a simple form of decoration. Hopefully in the coming months, our property on campus will develop into something which resembles this exemplar property, with the added bonus of recycling and energy data to match.

Congratulations to all those involved in the new exemplar property and we wish you all the best for the future.

For more information on their property, visit:

http://www.eaststaffsbc.gov.uk/services/pages/exemplarproperty.aspx

The exemplar garden- complete with a 'minibug mansion'

Author: James Adams

A few snaps of what we've been up to.....

After deciding getting to lectures in a wheel barrow was more energy efficient (and also more stylish) than on foot, Environment and Sustainability student Ben Wallbridge hopped into the wheelbarrow Luke had kindly bought from the local garden centre earlier on that morning and was mercilessly pushed/catapulted along by Carl....

While putting the wheel barrow to more useful means, we took  a few snaps of just how much fun you can have when building raised vegetable beds.....

Drilling old planks (used to build the Forth bridge, East Scotland) together to form the raised vegetable beds,

  

Plank circuit ready for the wheel barrows!

Nothing like shifting a few tons of soil after a lecture!

And all done!

Oh, and almost forgot to mention we've been growing some more runner beans.....

Hoping to plant them in the Spring!

A week of media frenzy!!

Our bungalow has really been in the spotlight this week - John Collins from bbc radio stoke coming along to interview the four of us, enthusiastically posing questions on the benefits of sustainable living and the project in general was great fun. Special interest was shown in the garden - putting together the raised beds for the vegetables, getting a compost bin going and looking at ways of getting students and the local community thinking about issues of sustainability. We hope to hear our news broadcast on bbc stoke and up for listening on bbc iplayer in the not too distant future.

Soil being delivered by Keele estates, thanks guys!

And here the raised vegetable beds almost done - 

And.......done -

And a few leeks and broccoli added for good measure!!

Following this, Keele's vice chancellor Nick Forsket also dropped by to have a look at our freshly planted leeks and runner beans and we were bowled over by such support shown by him and the university.

Along with all that Keele's student magazine Concourse has published a piece on the bungalow raising awareness of our project, so feel free to pick a copy or two from the students union!