ROEBURNSCAR GOING GREEN HOW WE HAVE LESSENED OUR IMPACT ON THE ENVIRONMENT MEASURE MANAGE MINIMISE our impactby Reducing energy, water consumption, waste management, supporting biodiversity
Introduction Roeburnscar was built after the Second World War using local wood as an example of a green, unseasoned building so it already had green credentials in it's evolution. Mr. Kaye was the owner of Backsbottom Farm and saw this as cheap affordable housing. Now, we wouldn't be able to get planning permission ! The house was previously sold with land from Hornby Castle Estate to Mr. Kaye. Eventually Rod's father bought the farm in 1958 and extended the small original wooden cabin into a family home which was lived in lately by Rod's mother. The renovations started in April 2011. Renewable energy We have installed a renewable heat source. Wood , unlike oil or gas, is a carbon neutral crop grown on the farm . Out went the oil fired Rayburn in 2011 which was very polluting and smelt like a car exhaust. In came a biomass wood gasifier - the EcoAngus - which uses a wheelbarrow of wood for each burn to heat the water held in the Finnish Akvatherm water tank holding 1000 litres. The burning process turns wood into gas which is burnt cleanly and efficiently (90% efficiency). The wood must have less than 20% humidity---damp wood creates tar and clog up the air vents. Carbon emissions are less than an ordinary wood stove. We use our own or locally sourced wood for the fuel so limiting the use of transport and creating employment for a neighbour to fire up the boiler daily. We have decided to have a manual rather than automatic wood fed system not only because it provides employment but because our logs can be burnt rather than buying in wood chips/pellets. Eight solar thermal panels have been installed on a bedroom roof adding an extra heat feed into the huge Aquatherm water tank which is highly insulated and only loses 1 degree of heat a day. This reduces wood consumption and maximises solar gain. Providing hot water and heating for visitors to the cottage and also being environmentally friendly is our aim. The pre-set heating timing controls are not accessible to guests as it is more energy efficient to turn up the radiators when more heat is needed, than to live in a space which is warmer than it needs to be. The thermostat in the hall can be also adjusted manually. Our energy supplier is Bulb, a company using renewable energy. Our telephone company is The Phone Co-op-an ethical phone company which also invests in green energy. For more information on energy savings: www.energysavingtrust.org.uk Energyefficientappliances reduce consumption of energy Wesourceenergyefficientappliances,lookingforA+andA++whereverpossible. Wekeeparecordofthe energy ratingsofourappliances. Wedisposeofoldmachinesresponsibly either by giving on freecycle or taking to the local recycling depot. We only dispose when absolutely necessary. We have provided the kitchen with a Remoska –a small oven made in the Czech republic which uses a fifth of the usual power. We have installed an induction hob which only heats up on contact with a pan and has no heat wastage. Weuselowenergylightbulbs and some LED bulbs. Anyrenovationsincludethelatestlowenergyelectricalfittingsasstandard. Ratherthaninstallingtumbledriersineachcottageweprovideclothesairers and clothes pulley in the flat porchandoutdoordryinglines.Visit England QualityAssurancestandardsrequiredustohaveatumbledrierforourguests'use,sothereisone in the laundry cabin shoulditberequired. Wood Stoves We havewoodburningstoves in the main house sitting room and flat. The new stove in the main sitting room is a “Countryman” and is designed to meet green credentials. It leaves very little ash waste. Monitoring Wemonitorthe heat gain of the wood gasifier and solar panels via meters in the boiler room and record the kilowatt energy usage at each burning. Renovation and insulation No animals or insects were harmed during the renovation----well, as much as we know about ! The resident colony of bats were not disturbed, a bumble bee nest in the hay was carefully avoided ,old parts of the building were carefully dismantled to lessen impact on wildlife including spiders! Wehaveinsulated the cottageloftspace, walls and floor tomeetorexceedcurrentbuildingstandards with a treated, fireproof paper product- Warmcell - giving a high standard of insulation. The wooden floors were taken up and hammocks of netting were filled with this insulation. The corners of all the rooms where ceiling and walls meet have been filled with sheep's wool ,braced with wooden frames and re-plastered. The outside cedar/douglas fir cladding was removed and Hunton Bitroc was put on before the cladding was replaced .In the flat porch it has been painted with a mural. Windows are doubleglazedunits. Owl bedroom has tertiary glazing as it has very little sun. Wechooselocalsuppliers,whereverpossible,andemploylocallybasedtradespeople. Rod designed the new bedroom Buzzard based on the Peter post wood beam structure which minimises the use of our own timber and maximises the insulation efficiency. Throughout the rebuild we were careful to minimise any cold bridges where condensation might occur. The floors in the sitting and dining rooms are the original beech floors from circa 1949.The outside cedar tongue and groove cladding is original except for the new bedroom Buzzard. All other floors are pine, other than the non-hazardous Smart Ply material for the wood chip floor ,which has no solvents, in the flat sitting/bed rooms. All waste from the building work was carefully separated and recycled at the local tip. Any new cedar roof shingles are from Garstang Timber. Thepaints used outside and inside are fromEcospaints (non- toxic for the enviroment) in Heysham. The newly reclaimed pine and beech floors were sanded and treated with Osmo oil—a plant based organic non- hazardous sealant from Germany and regular waxing, cleaning and polishing uses Osmo products bought in Lancaster. Wetrytobalancetherequirementsofthegradingschemewith our greenpolicyoflookingforlongtermsolutionsinanenvironmentallyresponsibleway : keepingthecottageslooking clean, inviting andwellmaintainedwithoutwastingresourcesbyreplacingthingsthatdon'treallyneedreplacing'justforthesakeofit'orsolelytoincreasethegrading. Thisinfluencesthefurnishingswebuy, as we are alwayslookingforpiecesthatwillfunctionwellandstilllook'right'foralongtime,ratherthanfollowingwhatisin'fashion'. We have tried to reuse anything that can be renovated and mended from Rod's family home, bought antiques from auctions, car boot sales and second hand shops and only bought new when absolutely necessary . We have endeavoured to retain the original 1950's fittings such as the ship lanterns bought from Fleetwood by Rod's parents. Renovation was completed in September 2012 but it is still an ongoing project for instance the doors are being replaced with beautiful hardwood from our own woods and new glazing will be installed . Specialistsuppliers: www.ecospaints.com The Farm The farm is managed specifically to encourage habitat biodiversity for birds, flowers, trees, fungi etc. providing food, shelter and safe passageway for animals and birds.There are apple (including old varieties) plum and damson orchards, swales to slow the water run off, laid hedges, ponds,reed beds,wild flower meadows, blanket bog with sphagnum moss and heather areas, all within the farm area. Minimising sheep numbers has encouraged regeneration of fell land with heather and sphagnum. The farm woodlands are on the Organic Higher Level Stewardship. The high diversity of species are listed on the wildlife section of the website. Wildlife and takingresponsibility for our environment Wehavebirdboxessitedinvariouswoodlandareas on the farm.Swallows regularly inhabit the stables and we are careful to make sure they are disturbed as little as possible. We have put up a bat box under the eaves of Buzzard bedroom and created ledges where the swallows could nest. We try to mow lawns as little as possible so frogs and bees can be undisturbed. We have large areas of habitat piles of brushwood , many wild areas with as little cultivation as possible to encourage a diversity of creatures from insects to animals and birds. We have a blog on our website with photos of the farm and sightings of wildlife. Recycling Weencouragerecyclingonsitewithcompost'wheelbarrow'bin, boxes for paperandcardboard,glass,plastics,tinandaluminiumcans,batteries,milkbottletops – the non recycled bins are collectedfromtheroadend,andtherestwetaketothe local recyclingfacilitieswhenplannedjourneystakeusthereanyway. Disposalofredundantitemsiscarefullyconsideredandwetakeadvantageofagreatlocalrecyclingfacility-Freecycle- an online local give away scheme. Cleaningmaterials Webuyallourenvironmentallyfriendlycleaningproductsinbulk-fromalocalEcoveragentandfrom Single Step and Growing with Grace, local shops that sell organic food.Weprovideecofriendlycleaningmaterials for the cottage . Please refrain from using harsh detergents as it damages our septic tank. We refill containers as much as possible to reduce our plastic waste. We use small eco2life containers which refill a bigger spray bottle. Cleaning products are used with minimum impact in mind for animals, humans and the environment. We use eco friendly paper products and eco fire lighters which have no paraffin in them. We offer a local organic box scheme from Growing with Grace for our guests. We don't use slug pellets because of danger to birds -instead ,copper strips have been put on the outside of the growing boxes. Transport Wehavesheds/stableswherecyclistscanstoretheirbikes and stables for horses if needed. Buses come regularly to Wray (about .4km away) with an easy connection to Lancaster train or bus station and infrequent trains come more locally to Wennington. We provide adviceonhowtomakethemostofit on our website. We may be able collectluggagefromthenearestbusstop and train station. The Forest of Bowland has an electric bike network .See www.forestofbowand.com for where to hire and charge bikes.Walking and local sites of interest Weencourageourgueststoenjoytheimmediatevicinity-providingmapsandwalkingguides- our farm is 200 acres of beautiful woodland, gorges, river valley, meadows and fells. It is a unique ancient woodland that has a range of flowers and fungi, birds and animals. We have a list of species on our website .Our blogs highlight local areas to visit and places to eat. Local Shops and produce Wehavealocalproducerscontactlist. In Wray thereisawellstockedsmallshopandPostOffice.Thisissuchavaluableassettoourcommunityandweencourageyoutosupportit. Thereisagoodselectionofalmosteverythingyoumightneedaswellasthedailypapers,winesandspirits.We can supplyourguests with our organically grown chutneys and jams. We have our home produced meat for sale on request. We encourage visitors to use the local tearoom and garden centre and village pub. We support local businesses by buying from them and want to support the community by providing employment and keep money circulating locally. We have a section on our website of local places to eat. We welcome our guests with a bottle of organic or fair-trade wine and biscuits or local produce. Tea bags/coffee are also organic fair-trade. Arts and Craft Some of our paintings and photography on the website are by local artists. The wooden doors, bedheads, slate, are locally sourced and often from or own timber and made by local skilled craftsperson. Futureprojects Rod is working with Ben Tyers , a Cambrige engineering graduate, to create a new form of experimental Hydro Scheme for the river Roeburn using Victor Schauberger's principles of water energy , giving energy back to water without destroying micro organisms. This will be based near to Roeburnscar. Rod experiments with permaculture principles on the farm and is an experienced permaculture teacher running courses from Middle Wood Centre. For more details see www.rodspermaculture.co.uk. TAKINGRESPONSIBILITY- CARE FOR PEOPLE AND PLANET- WHAT YOU CAN DO ENJOYYOURHOLIDAY We hopestayingherewillenhanceyourenjoymentofthe area andallithastooffer. SHOPPING Oneofthebiggestcontributionsvisitorscanmaketothe area communityandeconomyisbyshoppinglocally. Insteadofdoinga'bigshop' in a supermarket beforeyouarrive,whynotbuyenoughforyourfirstcoupleofnightsanddoyourmaingroceryshopping locally. RECYCLE Pleasetakeadvantageofourrecyclingfacilitiestoreducetheamountoflandfillproducedthroughyourstay. TURNLIGHTSOFF Beforeyousettledownfortheeveningpleasemakesureyouroutsidelightisswitchedoff. Whenleavingaroom,alwaysremembertoturnlightsoff. TURN HEATING DOWN If not needed turn heating down via thermostats and turn thermostat off on departure. WATER Usingaglassofwatertobrushyourteeth,ratherthanleavingthetaprunningcansaveanincredibleamountofwater! DISHWASHERS/WASHINGMACHINES Stack/filleconomicallyandonlyusewhenfullyloadedtomaximizeefficiency. Andifyourunthe clothes washingmachineat30degreesnot40degrees,youwillsaveahugeamountofenergy. FIRES and HEATING Whenyougooutmakesureyouhavenotleftunnecessaryheaterson. Don'tleavewindowsopenandheatersonwhenyouareout! Please never leave a fire unattended. ENJOYWALKS Enjoytheslowrelaxedpaceofwalkinglocally. Thereisplentytoexploreonthefarm . SHAREYOURSIGHTINGS We'dlovetohearfromyouaboutwhatyouhavespottedwhileyouhavebeenhere. FEEDBACK Wewelcomeyourfeedbacksopleaseletusknowifyoufeelwecoulddosomethingbetter re caring for the environment. Taking responsibility Caring for people and planet Think global act local