Ayres Rocks

Apologies for a lack of updates, we’ve temporarily moved and I’m restricted to a mobile internet solution that I reckon dial-up would beat hands down. Plenty of photos will follow, once I can get  decent upload speed.

Bianco for cement and hardware for verandah – $174.93
Adelaide Rural Salvage for jarah/kauri for the windows and doors – $190
Bunnings for polycarb sheet and hardware for the verandah – $763.12
Evans and Clarke auctions for marine handy panels, RRP $4800 – $1652.40
Evans and Clarke auctions for jarah floorboards, RRP $2550 – $756.40
United Fasteners for verandah fixing hardware – $140.55

Total project spend is now at $322,727.21
House only is now $108,774.71
Cost per square metre is now $377.69

This update sees us crashing through the $100k mark for the house build.

Bianco for white and grey cements – $242.07
Bunnings for Taubmans Endure for verandah colour coats – $154
Footersville for trusses and roofing timbers – $8061.70
Woodside landscape supplies for sand and metal – $587.20
Mitre 10 for hook hinges for windows – $153.40
Landmark Mt Pleasant for grey cement – $137.70

Total project spend is now at $319,049.81
House only is now $105,097.31
Cost per square metre is now $364.92

With the silly season comes a lot of inevitable downtime as we take time out to appreciate family and friends and celebrate the season. In between Xmas, New Year, birth of a nephew, and 3 birthdays over the past 2 weeks I’ve managed to get 2 colour coats on the verandah timbers, process about half of the wood for the window frames and continue collecting odds and ends for the house.

Roofing trusses have been delayed until the 25th of January, we’ll be looking to have the house at lockup around mid February.

Picked up some very nice ceramic disc tapware and mixers at the auctions this week.

Evans & Clarke auctions for all kitchen, laundry, bathroom and shower tapware and spouts, RRP $2250 – $810.01

Total project spend is now at $309,337.65
House only is now $95,385.15
Cost per square metre is now $331.20

Evans & Clarke auctions for a drop in bath, RRP $699 – $126.23
Evans & Clarke auctions for R3.5 insulation, 300 sqm total, RRP $1890 – $929.48
eBay and various sellers for MC4 connectors, solar cable and MC4 connector crimping kit – $311.25
Bianco for odds and sods – $86.35
Footersville, deposit on roof trusses – $962.64

Total project spend is now at $308,501.73
House only is now $94,549.23
Cost per square metre is now $328.30

I’ve spent the past week negotiating on pricing for the off grid power system. I’ve picked up 2.5kW of 24V solar panels from Low Energy Developments in Melbourne for a very nice price.

Coleman Air based in the USA are sending out all of the electrical control gear to run the panels as well as allow input of wind turbines. Components with the capability of this gear are not available in Australia as the renewables sector has been unfairly skewed to solar, where the ridiculous incentives and rebates were offered.

One example of the capability of the Coleman Air equipment is their charge controller. It will take any mix of power input (of the same DC voltage) to a total of 10kW, charge the batteries to optimum capacity then dump the excess power generated to just about anything I like. Try and find a controller here that comes even close to the capacity alone and you’ll be pulling hair in no time. Since his gear is so damn cheap I’ve ordered everything but the copper wire to get the system running.

Once we have sourced the wind turbines I anticipate we’ll have a 4.5kW system leaving plenty of reserve should we need more panels or turbines in the future to meet power requirements. Ideally I would like to have enough capability so we are not needing to use a genset to charge the batteries.

Since all the pricing of this gear was more than acceptable I have also grabbed 2kW of panels and all the control gear for the aquaponics shed as well.

I still need to source wind turbines, batteries and an inverter for the house system plus purchase the steel to make the mounting racks for the solar panels and the copper to wire it all together. I’m anticipating this to run another $14k which will give us a functioning system for less than connecting power to the house.

And as a bonus to all that there will be no more f#*%ing power bills.

By the way, do you enjoy paying through the nose for your power? Blame the neighbours with the 5kW grid feed systems getting 60 cents a kW for feed in. Then blame the government who forces power companies to buy that power being fed in as part of their renewables targets. Can you see where the unreasonable power price increases have come from?

Ironically since those incentives have collapsed solar panels are now reasonably priced.

So, on to the figures:
Low Energy Developments for the panels, freight and insurance – $2375 (house only)
Coleman Air for charge controller, rectifiers, ammeter/voltmeter, switches, breakers and blocking diodes – $1781.53 (house only)
Bunnings for primer/sealer/bonder – $271
United Fasteners for fixings for the windows – $167.27

Total project spend is now at $306,085.78
House only is now $92,133.28
Cost per square metre is now $319.91

We’ve had our biggest single purchase since the slab was laid – Bianco for timber and associated hardware for the verandah – $3451.72

Total project spend is now at  $301,490.98
House only is now $87,538.48
Cost per square metre is now $303.95

Bianco for white cement – $690.81
Senturion Steel for galvanised steel for framing fixing to threaded rods – $228.80
Adelaide Rural and Salvage for recycled jarah and kauri for windows and doors – $976

Total project spend is now at $298,040.26
House only is now $84,087.76
Cost per square metre is now $291.97

Old faithful the mixer finally gave up the ghost with more of the cast iron parts wearing away. It’s been replaced with a Bianco 3.5 cubic foot capacity mixer which I have not included in the costs as that was purchased by our business for infrastructure work on the farm.

I got caught out by the Easter break with Bianco being closed on the Saturday so I had to get my white cement from Bolzons and boy it was expensive – $10.95 a bag against the $8.50 I usually pay. Entirely my fault for not paying attention to the dates and not being organised enough.

Bianco for white cement – $382.31
Bolzon’s Garden Centre for white cement – $109.50

Total project spend is now at $296,144.65
House only is now $82,192.15
Cost per square metre is now $285.39

I am no longer purchasing cement by the pallet as the per bag rate is identical and it’s less of a logistical nightmare to move 15 bags at a time in the ute than an entire pallet of 80 across the ute and trailer.

Bianco for white cement – $295.21
Garden Grove for sand – $1185

Total project spend is now at $295,484.32
House only is now $81,531.82
Cost per square metre is now $283.10

60 tubes of polyurethane and LVL lintels as specified by the engineers from Bianco for $1245
Building Products Online for the Weepas and extensions $72

Total project spend is now at $294 004.11
House only is now $80,051.61
Cost per square metre is now $277.96