Rosie’s strawbale lodge. York, Western Australia,
Latitude 32 degrees South.

Commissioned in June 99, an unusual but delightful solar building, constructed of strawbales. This centuries old method of construction is undergoing a rennaissance in rural Australia and for good reason. They are simple and quick to erect, have an incredible insulation rating, and cleverly utilise an agricultural by product that most farmers are familiar with and have ready access to. The bale walls are smothered with a liberal coating of lime based cement which allows them to breath, (preventing moisture buildup) and rendering them fire retardant. Rosie’s power consumption is extremely low as she chose to use a gas refrigerator.

Power system

• 4 x Uni-Solar US-64 Advanced, thin film. triple junction photo-voltaic panels. (256 peak watts) Nett
  
  
• energy production (after system losses) is 1200 watt-hours in Summer, and 700 watt-hours in Winter.
  
  
• 1 x Plasmatronic PL-20 Regulator
  
  
• 6 x Hoppecke 2 volt, 500 amp-hour deep cycle battery cells. These are connected in series to deliver 6000 watt-hours of energy storage
  
  
• 1 x Latronics 412-BKZ-12 True sine wave inverter. 1300 watts continuous rating, 1550 watts for 0.5 hours, 3800 watts for 10 seconds. Converts the D.C energy generated from the solar panels and stored in the battery into 240 volt A.C power to run the water pressure pump, Rota-Loo toilet, lighting, washing machine, vacuum cleaner, food processor, t.v and stereo.

Notes;

A small power system but adequate for the task, and simple to add on extra solar panels
if required. Rosie uses her resources wisely and proves that energy self sufficiency can be achieved on a small budget with minimal compromises. Although the mains grid is only 100 metres away she has no intention of connecting to it. “I’d rather be free of it ! My little solar system is sunreal, and suits my life style just fine “.