Here in PA, we're ever so fortunate (sarcasm) to be headed into a new era deregulated electricity. Our utility provider (PPL Electric) has announced that they expect most residential electric bills such as ours to rise about 30%-32%! Somehow, this is supposed to be a help to our electricity cost. We've not figured that out … Continue reading Tips for reducing your electric bill by up to 30%
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Making your own Kombucha
What is Kombucha? Kombucha is a fermented tea drink thought to have originated in eastern Europe or the far-east. It's very popular in natural-health and medicine circles and for good reason! Why would we want to drink it? Kombucha is full or all sorts of nutrients and helpful nutrition. It contains the range of B … Continue reading Making your own Kombucha
Why water-saving shower heads are a good investment
Many people might not think to look at their showers as being a source of potential energy and cost savings. That's unfortunate, because there's money to be saved in the shower along with natural resources too. Consider the following scenario: Here's the simple math for a family of four each taking a 7 minute with … Continue reading Why water-saving shower heads are a good investment
Kefir: The dairy “swiss army knife”
One if the things we're interested in doing is maintaining a good variety of healthy foods, but in a way that is affordable and sustainable. At this time, due to where we live, we cannot get a cow or goats for milk. Despite this, we still want to be able to produce simple dairy products … Continue reading Kefir: The dairy “swiss army knife”
Finishing the Root Cellar
When we moved into our house years ago, we had no idea that we had a root cellar. From our point of view, we had a wet, nasty closet area off our foundation that needed to be cleaned up and made to stop leaking. Needless to say, as we came to understand the value of … Continue reading Finishing the Root Cellar
Falling off the roost
A few days ago, we experienced our first dose of the reality of caring for small animals. It all started when one of our hens started exhibiting some strange behavior. The kids came in the house exclaiming "I think Risa's dying!". She had fallen off the roost in the coop and hadn't landed well. She … Continue reading Falling off the roost
Eggs at Last!
Well, after nearly four months of waiting, our hens have begun to lay eggs! At the moment, 2 of 10 hens are laying eggs on a daily basis. We purchased them as 6-week old pullets and have been patiently waiting since then for the day when we could begin to collect eggs from the hen … Continue reading Eggs at Last!
First Impressions: Ooma
Yesterday, our Ooma Hub and Scout package arrived just three business days after purchasing (not bad for Amazon's free super-saver shipping). Opening the box was reminiscent of opening an Apple product. Those who own Mac's and other Apple products will know what I mean. Most manufacturers simply see packaging as as way to get products … Continue reading First Impressions: Ooma
Reduce Refrigeration Power Consumption up to 95%!
We're Saving About $135/yr As I've been researching ways to reduce power consumption, I've been measuring the annual power use of each appliance in my house (see my post on the Kill-A-Watt for details). When I measured my refrigerator, I found that it used 2.17 Kwh in just 13:22. That means that at our average … Continue reading Reduce Refrigeration Power Consumption up to 95%!
Why I love Junkmail!
Like most people, I used to spend much time cursing the senders of junk mail under my breath as I journey back from my mailbox. That is, until I realized the value of junk mail as a gardener. Junk mail is primarily paper. Paper is a carbon, and carbon my friend is a key ingredient … Continue reading Why I love Junkmail!
The Intrepid Homestead 