Getting off the oil hook

PeterZ_2

I couldn't agree more with Chris Huhnes comments about the Uk needing to get off the 'oil hook':

Huhne, who has been a prime mover behind the plan for higher targets, hit back angrily, telling the Guardian: "The short-termist view of sticking to 20% doesn't cut the mustard. Moving to 30% would give our businesses a head-start in new green industries and get us off the oil hook quicker, insulating us from oil price spikes."

http://www.guardian.co.uk/environment/2011/feb/14/chris-huhne-eu-emissions-targets

The price of oil is certainly spiking again and threatens our already fragile economy. On a personal level I can look forward to rising heating fuel costs, rising petrol costs and no doubt a big rise in food costs as well.

So what can be done to help? I already have a car that does 50mpg, the house is insulated, maybe the next step is to grow my own food.

Does anyone grow their own? Does it actually save much once you have taken into account the time needed, cost of materials and tools?

avantra

Good question,

Growing your own can be fun and healthy, from the monetary angle you will not save much in the short term as the UK really have one main growing season. If you are looking at all year round veg production you need to invest a bit.

Heated greenhouse and a big freezer to freeze your crop so you can use it around the year will be the main expenses.

Otherwise it's time manure and seeds which also have some cost attached.

I grow veg only in summer and freeze as much as I can in my small freezer. When I finish the veg I buy mostly in Lidl and Aldi as prices are good and the veg usually of good quality.

Also ask yourself how much do you like veg? if you eat them only once or twice a week I wouldn't bother growing them yourself.

tbourner

You can get solar panels for hot water if you have a south facing roof, and you could get one for electricity as well. Maybe a small wind turbine if you can get permission.

If you have a diesel, maybe think about making bio-diesel - although this is levelling out on cost now and is already MUCH higher than it used to be, so you only save about 20% on regular fuel (I think). It's also not for everyone as you have to have a processor in your shed, and preferably some knowledge of chemistry and plumbing!!

You could get some water butts fed from your guttering on your roof. This could be plumbed into the toilet for flushing and some other parts of the home. you could also use it for hose-work (gardening, washing car etc.). Not saving on fuel really but a big saving of water cost if you get a meter.

If you have a large garden there are loads of things to grow and keep. You could have chickens for eggs as well.

PeterZ_2

Thanks for the advice.

Unfortunately my garden is very small, so for growing veg I'm limited to getting an allotment, unfortunately the waiting list is long and I would have to drive to the allotment which for me takes away some of the benefit. I enjoy gardening very much, its just that at the moment I dont have the space.

I would love a wind turbine, but with my small garden its never going to be an option, plus its too much money even if I had the space. Wind power is a far better solution for the UK than solar, but you need some land for it, a small one in a back yard is a waste of time.

My car is petrol so Biodiesel is not an option. I also have concerns that the increase in biofuels will increase food prices.

I already have a water butt, I might look into using some of the water for flushing the loo.

Thanks for the suggestions, any more ideas would be welcomed.

Jon_Tiffany

Agree 100% with the need to get off the oil hook. Current events in Libyia are a good example of the effect it has on us, with the full damage yet to be fully felt.

In my area there is a 4 year waiting list for allotments, the council keep promising to create some more but it never seems to happen. With food prices rising above inflation demand for allotments is going to increase even more.

Dustykitten

With growing your own I think it is wise to consider:

What you eat the most of
Which of these are the most expensive to buy
Which taste the best home grown.

Beans are expensive but cheap to grow at home
lettuce you can grow enough in a large pot of cut and come stuff unless you eat loads
Home grown tomatoes taste good
Strawberries/raspberries fit all 3 of the above criteria for us.

Pots by the sack are cheap so I'd don't bother with those. Corn I'm never very successful with or carrots.

I'm guessing you've switched from regular to energy saving bulbs. Does your library loan out meters to access your electricity usage? It is very interesting for the first week or so to see what you are using when.

Poosmate

Hi Peter, this same (more or less) topic was covered in a thread on the Greenfingered Board. The thread was called "If Push Comes To Shove....." I'll try to find it and add a link. Here we are:

https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/discussion/2963282

For those people who haven't got room in their own garden to grow their own food you could try:

http://www.landshare.net/index/

Where people with gardens they don't use allow people who want to grow food to use them and are given some of the produce in return. I joined this site and have one of my neighbours doing my garden for me now! Yay! Free food and a free gardener! I do help of course, although neither of us has done much yet so we're not really up and running yet!

On the "Push Come To Shove" thread there is a link to some guy in London (I believe) who has a small back yard but still manages to grow plenty of his own grub and reckons he saves around £700 per year. I think his blog is called something like "Vertical Growing" - sorry don't have a link to that one.

I like the idea of going on a water meter and setting up a rainwater harvesting system.

As they say, every little helps and if everybody did their little bit, I'm sure the world would be a better place.

Poo

CLAPTON

PeterZ wrote: »

I couldn't agree more with Chris Huhnes comments about the Uk needing to get off the 'oil hook':

Huhne, who has been a prime mover behind the plan for higher targets, hit back angrily, telling the Guardian: "The short-termist view of sticking to 20% doesn't cut the mustard. Moving to 30% would give our businesses a head-start in new green industries and get us off the oil hook quicker, insulating us from oil price spikes."

http://www.guardian.co.uk/environment/2011/feb/14/chris-huhne-eu-emissions-targets

The price of oil is certainly spiking again and threatens our already fragile economy. On a personal level I can look forward to rising heating fuel costs, rising petrol costs and no doubt a big rise in food costs as well.

So what can be done to help? I already have a car that does 50mpg, the house is insulated, maybe the next step is to grow my own food.

Does anyone grow their own? Does it actually save much once you have taken into account the time needed, cost of materials and tools?

Chris Huhne

is that the one with six houses?

the one that used to travel to the European Parliament on a regular basis?

the one that loves skiing and travel?

flies all over the world on 'environmental business (Cancun etc)

he won't be affected by rise in price of fuel or food.

when just one of thes people actually starts to live the low carbon foorprint lifestyle then maybe some progress may be made.

fyr

Yes in same vein as that Big Green fibber Al Gore:(

stoozey

well I'm sold on ditching oil. Purely because it costs a bloody fortune nothing else!

Will be ordering a Nissan Leaf next year and doing full electric. Solar on the roof, max insulation, low energy lights etc.

The subsudies for the Leaf are quite amazing, especially if your a company car driver. Zero benefit in kind! Zero private mileage costs. That right there will save many people thousands a year before taking into account you wont be buying fuel again at 70+ quid a fill up. The issue at the moment is the lack of public charging points, the 3-phase points charge to full in 20 mins just need a lot more of them. I can see car parks being fitted out with them as they are easy income. Cost of elec to fill up less than £1 bet they charge a fiver though!

COOLTRIKERCHICK

stoozey wrote: »

well I'm sold on ditching oil. Purely because it costs a bloody fortune nothing else!

Will be ordering a Nissan Leaf next year and doing full electric. Solar on the roof, max insulation, low energy lights etc.

The subsudies for the Leaf are quite amazing, especially if your a company car driver. Zero benefit in kind! Zero private mileage costs. That right there will save many people thousands a year before taking into account you wont be buying fuel again at 70+ quid a fill up. The issue at the moment is the lack of public charging points, the 3-phase points charge to full in 20 mins just need a lot more of them. I can see car parks being fitted out with them as they are easy income. Cost of elec to fill up less than £1 bet they charge a fiver though![/QUO

now this is where i am confused????

how can they been green cars....???? they run on electric, but how do you think the electric is produced?

also the money you have spent on this car, surely it is more benificial for the enviroment to make use of what secondhand cars are allready out there, rather than buying a new one, which will have a huge carbon footprint by just being made....

I totally agree with this thread, about how me are soooooooooo used to oil, and we dont realise how dependant we are on it,

I dont think it will be long before someone will start using horse and cart again....there used to be a girl who used to go round the area selling fruit and veg from an horse and cart.....but sadly people didnt support her