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Author Topic: Hello to all from Wales  (Read 10841 times)

rustyme

  • Guest
Hello to all from Wales
« on: December 21, 2007, 07:16:40 pm »
Hello everyone,
                   my name is Russ and I work nearly 6 acres in Wales. I have had the land for 5 years now,and up till now have had just my 3 horses on it . I do grow my own veg there , and very soon now will be getting my first pigs and poultry.I have kept both before and would have had them here sooner but foot+mouth hit just as I was about ready to get some pigs, and bird flu did the same when I was ready to get some chickens. Just my luck !!! Still keep on going and try try again as they say . I have one hive with bees now and another 4 ready to receive as and when I can either split what I have or get fresh ones in. Although I have no electric on the land ,I live 2 miles away, I am going to set up a water wheel in the river that is on the land to power things such as sawmill , water pump , wood/metal lathe , and other such goodies. I also have an old lister cs 6/1 SOM, so I will get enough power from that to run all my electric stuff that I want. I have grown small amounts of grain,(10-30 odd sq yds) just to see how to grow it . My intention is to grow enough wheat to thatch the timber frame house I am building . I had very few problems with any of the grains, I grew Wheat, Oats ,Rye and barley . I also have grown a small amount of linseed, hemp (the legal stuff),and alfafa, to see about providing fibre,oil and feed for animals. the oil I will use to cook with and to help run the lister, tractor,and 4x4. I shall also be growing willow for fuel and making baskets and such along with hazel and some ash. I have got a few apple trees now , and intend to get some more this year. I am in the process of setting up a very small foundry so that I can recycle aluminium and maybe cast iron later on .
   Well that is a brief list of what I am at most of the time, I hope to learn more as time goes on . I had enough of the old rat race so I went back to the 1600's...lol.. But , I still do like the electric light . I lived for nearly 3 years without and that was enough . I had better shut up now before I bore the pants off of you all , and do some reading to see what you are all doing ......

cheers for now Russ...... 
   

Hilarysmum

  • Joined Oct 2007
Re: Hello to all from Wales
« Reply #1 on: December 22, 2007, 07:47:11 am »
That all sounds truly fantastic, but very very hard work.  Its great to meet you.  HM

rustyme

  • Guest
Re: Hello to all from Wales
« Reply #2 on: December 22, 2007, 08:15:42 am »
Hello HM,
           thanks for the welcome......yes it does all sound hard work when you read it all in one go . Like anything though it is all a matter of doing little bits here and there really . So apart from the everyday life bit of feeding the dogs and horses oh and then ME !!! it isn't really that hard . It is just now and then , like at the moment one of my dogs is very ill , things can get a bit ontop of you quickly . That would be the same whatever type of life you lead though ...So all in all it isn't very hard , just different ......to the norm anyway. The real hard bit is doing things on very little money ,it means that you can't just get someone to do a big job with a machine ,and have it done in a few hours. It goes into a long winded job done by yourself over a few days ,or longer!!   I do ,in many ways , live a medieval lifestyle, apart from things like Ye Olde computer or dvd player !!!! oh yes and that lovely light bulb. It is only when you go without very basics like that ,the light bulb, that life gets really hard. Another thing I would really hate to be without is my breadmaker.   Whatever of modern lifes other 'essentials' I can do without, the bulb and breadmaker I will always try to keep going along with the pc. The pc really does allow you to back off from the busy world and yet still keep up with modern life. One of those strange things really , a very modern thing that allows me to live in the 1600's...lol, well sort of anyway. 
  Oh well ...back to 1600 .......
 
cheers for now  Russ

Rosemary

  • Joined Oct 2007
  • Barry, Angus, Scotland
    • The Accidental Smallholder
Re: Hello to all from Wales
« Reply #3 on: December 22, 2007, 09:38:14 am »
Hi, Russ

Welcome to the forums now Dan's sorted out whatever glitch was around. I am - well, I don't really know what I am - full of admiration, awed... I just couldn't do what you're doing. I think you're spot on about managing with little money - which is why I'm still working!

It just sounds awesome.

I'm glad you've joined and I'm looking forward to hearing lots more about what you're doing.

Rosemary

rustyme

  • Guest
Re: Hello to all from Wales
« Reply #4 on: December 22, 2007, 10:01:07 am »
Hello Rosemary,
                  thanks for the welcome. Life on very little money is very very hard , but like everything else in life , you get used to it . If you (and I don't mean YOU personally) are the type of person that needs every little new gadget or thingumyjig, and are very wasteful , then you won't get by very easy . I do still have little bits and bobs of modern life , like the pc and a digital camera,but things like clothes get worn till they can be almost seen through and just fall apart . This year will be hard work I think as I will be building the timber frame house. It will be made from Ash ,not Oak , as that is what I have plenty of on the land. They  need to be thinned out a bit ,so why not use the trunks to make my house. I have enough Hazel and Willow for the wattle and there is plenty of clay here too for the daub . If I can grow enough wheat for the thatch , then the only stuff I need to get will be glass for windows,and that will be from old double glazing !!! I have loads of lead from old wheel weights off of cars and old car batteries, so I will melt that down and make leaded light windows. That way I can use even small bits of glass.
 Things like window catches and even door hinges etc. I will be making in the little forge , and the metal for that comes form old cars , no doubt you are seeing where I am coming from ? it is all free....either grown on the land or got off of freecycle for nowt...I got 4 beehives off freecycle. So life on little money is possible ....just a bit different to the norm again.....
 
cheers
 
Russ
« Last Edit: January 06, 2008, 04:52:52 pm by rustyme »

Rosemary

  • Joined Oct 2007
  • Barry, Angus, Scotland
    • The Accidental Smallholder
Re: Hello to all from Wales
« Reply #5 on: December 22, 2007, 10:44:22 pm »
I suppose it's a time / money conundrum. I got an email from a woman in Cornwall who had bought 5 acres of land; she couldn't afford to give up work, because she had to pay for the land and now she had it, she didn't have time to work on it as she wanted to. Catch 22.

I have to say, I'm not much bothered about clothes or gadgets either. I wouldn't know where to starts building a house though - I think you're brave / smart / mad (delete as appropriate ;-)). I hope you'll keep us posted on the building process - that would be brilliant.

Lovely dogs, by the way.

rustyme

  • Guest
Re: Hello to all from Wales
« Reply #6 on: December 23, 2007, 12:34:05 am »
Brave / smart / mad , well I think it must be the latter of the three ;D.  Apart from that though , I am just content with less really .....The picture below shows roughly how the house will look.

 It looks like lots of work and very difficult to do , but it isn't really that hard . All very simple joints and then the infill is just sticks and mud . Not really rocket science as they say ...lol. If it was I wouldn't be able to do it. I have made a couple of sheds with the same principle so a house is just bigger . It isn't going to be a huge place though .The hardest part will be the chimney , and that will be made from stone from the fields and the river,I have done stonework here and there for years so even that isn't scarey just time consuming ,and I will have to actually buy ,BUY, some hydraulic lime for the mortar. Now that really goes against the grain. But there again I may just make a small smoke bay instead ..much easier and free. I already have a good woodburner so just need a rayburn for the kitchen ,and even they can be got for free round here. I also have a couple of old butler sinks so just need an old cast iron bath , the loo will be a composting loo . That will be sorted out (made) when the house is done. Lots to keep me busy , just a matter of fitting it in between bad weather spells, and we get plenty of those here ... ;D ;D


cheers
 
Russ

pigsatlesrues

  • Joined Oct 2008
  • Normandy, France
Re: Hello to all from Wales
« Reply #7 on: December 30, 2007, 08:55:07 pm »
OMG! My thoughts - awsome, fabulous, brave and all the above. I am full of admiration for you - 'Russ the brave' I think! How have all the ideas etc come to you? There has obviously been a lot of research, but where from? Have you come from a country background of city background? I think it takes a very brave and dedicated person to literally strip yourself back to the rudimentaries of living and be so dediated and committed to a way of life.

I can't wait for the updates on your progress and your build - keep posting!

Kate
Bonjour et avoir un bon jour !

carl

  • Joined Oct 2007
Re: Hello to all from Wales
« Reply #8 on: January 03, 2008, 01:09:41 pm »
hello russ,
i will be another eager follower of how you do. especially on the non food projects. the foundry idea fascinates me as i have spent a lifetime in the metal bashing industry of sheffield. i wish you luck and admire your pioneering spirit.
carl

jan

  • Joined Oct 2007
Re: Hello to all from Wales
« Reply #9 on: January 03, 2008, 04:05:00 pm »
Hi again Russ, where abouts in Wales are you?  I have to agree with Kate 'Russ the brave'.  I would love to see how you get on, you must keep us updated with your modern day digi camera!! hehe...I have to say I couldnt do it I like to have my gas oven on hand and easy switch on electric, so you are being very good.  Look forward to hearing how things are going. Janx

rustyme

  • Guest
Re: Hello to all from Wales
« Reply #10 on: January 03, 2008, 04:41:54 pm »
Hello Kate ,Carl and all,
 
            I grew up on the outskirts of London  , but being right next to Northolt Airport, there were plenty of fields and a few farms. So grew up in a fairly green environment. I used to watch Out of Town with the lovely old Jack Hargreaves, and he used to show all things that were disappearing in and around the country ,old crafts etc. That was my grounding some 40 years ago now. Since then I did the usual town life things , but I always wanted something different. My late parents moved the family to Wales 30 years ago now , and that was the start of what I am doing now really. I kept all sorts of stuff ,but life led me down a different road for a while again and it wasn't till after I had a huge car smash in 1983 (dec 23rd actually) in which I broke just about every bone that could be broke (skull,cheek bones,jaw, neck,collar bones sternum ,ribs ,Spine ,arms, legs, hips, and a few more besides !!!) I had huge problems not just with my body but also with my head . That all made me look at life in a different way , I had to as I couldn't do lots of things I did before. Well life moves on and nowdays I can do most things I want just not all at once and different to how I would have done them years ago. The global warming thing also plays a big part in what I do . I try not to impact on the world anymore than need be. That is where the recycling bit comes in and using renewable sources ie willow, hemp , linseed etc. As it happens using stuff you grow yourself and stuff that you can get for free ie scrap cars and aluminium etc. means you don't need to have lots of money to go and buy what ever it is you want ie., if I want a willow basket I use some willow I have grown on my land ...free basket and another craft learned, well two really ...growing and harvesting willow and basket making. The foundry came about because I wanted to make a seed drill , I have a set of plans for Jethro Tulls original drill , but I always got stuck on the metalwork side of things. So looked on the net and found a site about casting scrap aluminium .using a couple of coffee cans and a hair dryer with some bbq charcoal . Did that and then found a great site about how to make a lathe and other metal working machines from scrap ali.....I also had the stuff to set up a forge for general metalwork so that has opened all sorts of other doors. I don't have to find the money to pay other people to do it for me. It is the world of  Jack of All Trades,master of None, but it matters not a jot really. I just poodle along these days doing what I want when I want ,if I hit another thing I can't do then I just learn how to do it, and away I go again .When I got my land , the track needed lots of holes filling , even the 4x4 had troubles going over it ! Well , I had no money ,as normal, but plenty of gravel and stones from the river and tons of stones from the fields, so I just put stones etc in a couple of buckets and just kept on tipping them on the track and getting more till the track was done. Just a few each day , it soon adds up .  This sort of life is very different from the norm , these days , but I have what I need , mostly anyway, and what I can't afford I do without . Dog feeding time ....will bore you silly again soon ....cheers Russ

rustyme

  • Guest
Re: Hello to all from Wales
« Reply #11 on: January 03, 2008, 04:50:16 pm »
Hello Jan,
            yes I like some modern things ....lol. I too use a gas cooker ,wouldn't mind setting up a methane producer system to supply gas for that !!!, manure into methane into heat/cooking etc...then the left over used waste goes on the veggie plot to grow the food .... I love my pc ...and things like the digi camera....and as mentioned before , my breadmaker.....but I really love older things ... I hate plastic......must feed the dogs now.... cheers  Russ...

Pebbles

  • Joined Oct 2007
  • Central Scotland
    • Ardunan Farm
    • Facebook
Re: Hello to all from Wales
« Reply #12 on: January 06, 2008, 04:47:40 pm »
Hi Rustyme

Wow. I am amazed by what you can, and do, achieve. Someone should be following you around filming you and opening peoples eyes to  what is really possible. I would love to be brave enough to do what you do.

Welcome and many congratulations on your achievements.

Pebbles

rustyme

  • Guest
Re: Hello to all from Wales
« Reply #13 on: January 16, 2008, 07:36:12 pm »
hello Pebbles,
                 what I do isn't for everyone , some may like to live the way I do but not many . I live on very little money and therefore can't have lots of things that some would consider to be normal. I know I can just pack up what I do and live a normal life if I want to , but I doubt I ever will do . I just cut back as much as I can and do things as they used to be done. Living my sort of life is only hard in the sense that I have to remember, to keep things simple . It is very easy to forget for a bit and get caught up in the buy this, to do that, with this gizmo , when doing it by hand is sometimes easier . Digging is the one thing I hate ...I have a bad back and it is so easy to zap it , and that slows everything down then. As I say digging is a pain ....I have had a rotavator ,but that was even more of a pain. The way round it ?  just do small amounts when I can . It gets done, and I can do other things in between, like setting up my forge ,foundry , woodwork shop, and the like . I suppose, the one thing to keep in mind, when you do things the way I do them ,is, they don't get done on the spot right now.....they take time . Little jobs get done ok, but the big ones, I just do as and when I need to, or want to, if they aren't important ones.  It is funny when you think of it , one of the most modern of things ,the PC, is what has allowed me to all the things I want to . I found out how to make a foundry to melt scrap aluminium on the net . I can now supply the fuel to melt free scrap to make different bits and bobs I couldn't afford to buy . I really think that what I do is going to become much more of a normal way of life soon . People will have to change as fuel goes on up and up , and that makes everything else go up and up . Electricity and gas going up by huge amounts now, these things will hit others much harder than they will me . I can now grow enough willow to keep me warm and cook with , I hope to set up very soon , a waterwheel for power. Grow all my own veg , hopefully supply all my own meat . So very little will effect me , just the way I like it ...lol The next big thing I want to do is make my own leather from  cow hide . I have done it on a small scale with bunnies , but a cow hide is huge . I have worked in a skin and hide merchants, salting and stacking hundreds of hides and skins a day. A horrible job , but I only want to do one now and then . The dogs want a walk now .....cheers Russ

 

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