Small things matter

[Bugtownboy]

Joe, have you considered passive cooking, using a straw box (or modern equivalent). Things like a stew or casserole could be started on top of the stove, then put into the ‘straw box’ to continue slow cooking.

The only advantage that I could see for you, would be freeing up some of the stove top for another pot/kettle.

The ‘traditional’ straw/hay box would be a bit cumbersome, but there are modern alternatives and opportunities for retired engineers with itchy fingers to build one.

We use it occasionally - ok, doesn’t save much, but all of the incremental changes, as you say, keep adding to your RE utilisation.

[Joeboy]

Joe, have you considered passive cooking, using a straw box (or modern equivalent). Things like a stew or casserole could be started on top of the stove, then put into the ‘straw box’ to continue slow cooking.

The only advantage that I could see for you, would be freeing up some of the stove top for another pot/kettle.

The ‘traditional’ straw/hay box would be a bit cumbersome, but there are modern alternatives and opportunities for retired engineers with itchy fingers to build one.

We use it occasionally - ok, doesn’t save much, but all of the incremental changes, as you say, keep adding to your RE utilisation.

That's a good idea, might just look into that. For sure its now in the back of brain on rumination mode, co-incidentally we are doing a sausage casserole today and I am about to peel the homegrown spuds and yes there shall be doughballs!

8 deg and raining here 16.8 deg downstairs and 16.5 deg upstairs. Today is log count day, I.E how many 250mm long logs do we use from morning to night to heat the whole house, cook dinner, endless tea AND my hot water bottle at the end of the day.

We are now pulling from the grid on a daily basis, I charge for 2 hours in the afternoon and 3 in the early hours with EV plugged in. Not keeping a count on that as it is what it is and all works to offset it have been carried out. Feels pretty good to be at this point.

[Joeboy]

[Joeboy]

Whole meal cooked on the stove and Big Room is sitting at 20.5 deg. Total log count 10, weight of wood 5.5kgs 50/50 split soft/hard wood.

[Joeboy]

Total for day 12 logs, 6.6kgs total weight.

Heated whole house (zero GCH).
Boiled an egg.
Made a sausage casserole with dumplings, cooked potatoes, peas and carrots.
Made 10 cups of tea/coffee.
Washed dishes.
Filled a hot water bottle.

That's quite a decent amount of gas & electricity not used. The few kWh's we gained in solar PV went into the batteries and took care of the background load. I like that, working the WS & PV together transforms logs into electricity.

[Joeboy]

1st outing & preheating the Turkish clamshell non stick frying pan cooking bacon for the macaroni cheese.



Exciting times!

[Joeboy]

Today's cooking has been a pot of chilli con and a soup pot full of a bacon, lentil & barley broth.

This evening I have processed the homegrown cayenne for the year. Final drying out on wood stove post blitz.

[Joeboy]

The Turkish clamshell pan continues to excel. Currently blackening garlic for tomorrow's lamb curry. The rest of the curry is complete earlier and standing by for the garlic then a further couple of hours to bubble on the WS.




Dont know about you guys but I enjoy batch cooking, the lamb curry is a triple batch. Two of which will be frozen 2 days from now for max flavour impact.

We are hitting our stride now in year two of WS ownership. I hope to get to the external heater and radiator soon as a test for moving WS heat out of the current space. Been home for a week and 95%+ of cooking and space heating has been carried out on the WS. SWMBO is going to ask her Mum to make me a huge shapeless jumper a la Tom Good, there is no higher accolade!

[Bugtownboy]

But do you have the insulated Croc’s to wear with the jumper, Joe

[Joeboy]

But do you have the insulated Croc’s to wear with the jumper, Joe

Yes!