A Shed Downunder.

[1/2 Cup]

That Red Gum will make for a great top.

HOTFR8, Red gum is such a lovelly timber, and comes up nice when its finished. Its hard to work with my only hope is that i can do it justice given the primative methods i am using to slice it into planks.

Page 8 #114 of this thread shows how the red gum finished up on the antique bench seat and if i can get it 1/2 as nice i will be happy.

 

[HOTFR8]

If you get it as nice as that you will be doing very well. It is a timber with character all of its own as there is no timber like it.

 

[Arps]

Nice looking projects!

 

[BuickFarmer]

Ahhhh, been putting off reading this thread 'til I had time to give it the time and attention it deserves. 3 cups of coffee later....WOW, I'm in!!! as in SUBSCRIBED. Really enjoyed the read, especially the table builds. I think my favorites are the lil cast iron table and the turn of the century turnstyle. When are we gonna hear the rest of the story on that?

 

[1/2 Cup]

Nice looking projects!

Many thanks Arps, I get a real sense of achievement and enjoyment out of what I do in the Shed Downunder, always looking for new challenges and like to to be independant (as much as practicable ) in term of tools and equipment.

 

[1/2 Cup]

Ahhhh, been putting off reading this thread 'til I had time to give it the time and attention it deserves. 3 cups of coffee later....WOW, I'm in!!! as in SUBSCRIBED. Really enjoyed the read, especially the table builds. I think my favorites are the lil cast iron table and the turn of the century turnstyle. When are we gonna hear the rest of the story on that?

Many thanks for your kind words Sir, you would need 3 cups of coffee to get through the entire thead, i get lost at times myself.
What you see is what you get, thats me in a nut shell around here and loving every minute of it as i get closer to retirement.
I find that every thing around here and what i do on a day to day basis, there is a story to be told and although i may not be the best at articulating that i sincerly hope you get my drift.

The cast iron table has ended up on the front veranda and looks great, i will leave it just the way it is. I need to do a little more research as to its origins it was made here in Melbourne and to date have drawn a blank in my quest to find out more info. The only thing I know that is was used for making wooden cases on.

My appologies in regard to the turnstyle story, I just realised that most would not be aware that Ackland St. St.Kilda in Melbourne is rather notable as a Red light area with many bars, clubs and massage parlours in and around that precinct. ( page 8 # 158 and #159) I hope that joins the dots.

Many thanks again

 

[1/2 Cup]

It should be just a tad cooler here this weekend so after taking care of the basics around the yard I should get some QST ( Quality Shed Time )and make a little more head way on the Fabrication Bench and Retro Industrial Table.

My to do list ( weather dependant )

. Send Mrs 1/2 Cup to Melbourne to pick up my latest EBAY score an nice Industrial Green Enamel Light shade, I am pleased she enjoys the long drives as this truly value adds to my QST.

. Continue with cutting the Red Gum timber planks out of the bridge beams.

. The draw slides arrived during the week so they can be aligned and installed on the Fabrication Bench then I will be able to finally measure the draws up so I can continue on with their builds.

. Apply another acid wash to the Retro Industrial Table..

. I have been able to borrow a magnetic drill and 2 " mill plug cutter, I am intending add some decorative touches with series of holes around the top support beams on the Retro Industrial Table.. we will see how that turns out it should look good

As always - pics to follow later in the weekend.

 

[Lippyp]

My Uncle is a plane lover and has his licences, this is his latest conquest

Hunting Jet Provost yes? Used to be the RAF's basic jet trainer.

 

[1/2 Cup]

Hunting Jet Provost yes? Used to be the RAF's basic jet trainer.

Yes, you are correct its a BAC Strikemaster which is he next generation of the of the Hunting Jet Provost trainer. The New Zealand Airforce used them and there are a number of them in private ownership still flying in both New Zealand and Australia.

 

[Lippyp]

I forgot they made them as the Strikemaster, I think we sold a lot of them to places like Oman too as I remember making an airfix model of one when I was a kid in Omani markings.

There was a guy near our last house that had one in his back garden, I can just imagine his wifes face when his drunken sunday night ebay purchase was delivered. In fact if you go to google earth and load in these coordinates you can see it.

53°43'11.55"N 2°14'45.53"W

 

[flybefree]

Steve,

Just read your entire thread...great work all around! I am left with three images to ponder:

1. EMPTY beer fridge
2. Model A
3. P-51 Mustang Baby!

Whew! Subscribed.

v/r

Shaun

 

[1/2 Cup]

I forgot they made them as the Strikemaster, I think we sold a lot of them to places like Oman too as I remember making an airfix model of one when I was a kid in Omani markings.

There was a guy near our last house that had one in his back garden, I can just imagine his wifes face when his drunken sunday night ebay purchase was delivered. In fact if you go to google earth and load in these coordinates you can see it.

53°43'11.55"N 2°14'45.53"W

That's awesome Phil, It gets my vote for sure, thanks for sharing

There is a guy that lives just out of Heathcote, Victoria on the Mia Mia rd. he has a collection of aircraft shells. We drove past there two weeks ago and I could pick out the distinctive shapes of some DeHavilland and Macchi aircraft.
From memory he has advertised aircraft on EBAY at times.
I could not pick it up on GOOGLE.

I have to admit to being an Airfix modeller in my younger days too.

 

[1/2 Cup]

Steve,

Just read your entire thread...great work all around! I am left with three images to ponder:

1. EMPTY beer fridge
2. Model A
3. P-51 Mustang Baby!

Whew! Subscribed.

v/r

Shaun

Many thanks for the for the compliments Shaun, much appreciated.

And to respond accordingly;

1. The empty beer fridge has been well and truly stocked

2. I will endeavour tho put together some images and post in the not to distant future. I have to confess to neglecting the restoration some what over the last few years for a number of reasons ( not trying to put up excuses) like long hours at work, family, other interests, projects and just life in general for us these days.

To that end I have been actively looking for a 1930 Ford Coupe, some thing that is a good driver, looks presentable and is reasonably priced. This way I can participate in club events and shows here and now. Mrs 1/2 Cup is in agreement with this strategy as well, with all things taken into consideration.

I have looked at probably 15 vehicles thus far and none have really fitted all the criteria in one way or another, not being picky but it has to be right for me.

3. P51 Mustang Baby - Tantalising thought, and don't worry I have tyre kicked

Many thanks again

 

[1/2 Cup]

The weekend turned out some lovely weather here which was in stark contrast to last weeks heat wave of 5 days at or above 100 F.
Basic housekeeping out of the way, Lawns, Edges, Hedges and watering it was time for some more QST.

Mrs 1/2 Cup did the four hour round trip to pick up an Industrial Green Enamel Light shade that I scored on EBAY, her trip took a little longer than expected as she took in a little retail therapy as only she can.

View media item 37140
As it turned out I did not get all that I had planned to do in between visitors, phone calls and one thing and another. Any way I had borrowed a magnetic drill and cutters to add some character to the Retro Industrial Table.
Marked out and set up this is the results. 30 odd 2" holes later.

View media item 37139
With another acid wash, and once again I will let nature take its course for a couple of weeks if it rains.

View media item 37138
A close up of the results from the acid wash process.

View media item 37137
This where your best layed out plans go astray, you think about things to much. I thought to myself I wonder just what the Fabrication Bench would look like given the hole treatment as per what I did with the table, I had the drill and cutter, why not.

View media item 37142
Another 20 2" holes later, this is how it turned out.

View media item 37144
I also marked out and drilled another 30 odd 1/2" holes in the top so I can use hold down bench clamps in.
The magnetic drill is a nice piece of equipment to use, take your time to accurately mark things out and its a piece of cake.
The 2" cutter is around $250.00 AU to purchase.

Needless to say I did not touch the timber work.

 

[BuickFarmer]

Mrs 1/2 Cup did the four hour round trip to pick up an Industrial Green Enamel Light shade that I scored on EBAY, her trip took a little longer than expected as she took in a little retail therapy as only she can.





With another acid wash, and once again I will let nature take its course for a couple of weeks if it rains.

View media item 37138
A close up of the results from the acid wash process.


This where you best layed out plans go astray, you think about things to much. I thought to myself I wounder just what the Fabrication Bench would look like give the hole treatment as I did with the table, as I had the drill and cutter, why not.

[
Another 20 2" holes later, this is how it turned out.



I also marked out and drilled another 30 odd 1/2" holes in the top so I can use hold down bench clamps in.
The magnetic drill is a nice piece of equipment to use, take your time to accurately mark things out and its a piece of cake.
The 2" cutter is around $250.00 AU to purchase.

Needless to say I did not touch the timber work.

1/2 holes? got a picture of those or

can you detail the acid wash process?

nice enamel light but what with the wifey's "retail therapy".. I bet it was expensive

 

[1/2 Cup]

1/2 holes? got a picture of those or

can you detail the acid wash process?

nice enamel light but what with the wifey's "retail therapy".. I bet it was expensive

Apologies BuickFarmer for not including a shot of the top.

I intend to purchase a pair of these locally made clamps so the spacing of the holes was based around that thinking which should provide a great deal of flexibility for positioning and clamping my work pieces.

http://www.dawntools.com.au/products.php?cat_id=11&sub_id=266

Dawn make some very nice quality products as you can see.

View media item 37149
The acid wash is simply done by randomly sanding areas with a clean and strip disc then brushing on a brick cleaner which is neat Hydrochloric acid, leaving it to etch into the metal and galvanised coating this eventually flash rusts into what you see in the images.
Strangely enough it has when you first apply the acid it will actually cleans the metal back to a bright and shiny surface. In time I will pressure wash it all down, wipe over then clear coat the entire frame.

I am pretty happy with the light, it has a lovely patina to it and just where it will end up, I have not put too much thought into that as yet.

Mrs 1/2 Cup, I have to say is pretty good when it comes to shopping and for the most part anyway I do not have any issues in that regard.

 

[1/2 Cup]

The to do list this week end;

As some of you guys may be aware we are celebrating Australia Day this weekend and get a public holiday on Monday. There is heaps of events happening around locally to mark the occasion. It will also give me the opportunity to get a little done around the Shed Downunder.

Mrs 1/2 Cup is away for the day at a show with EVIE our Australian Silky Terrier ( page 7 post # 132 ) so I have a free run in the shed.

. Basics first. lawns, garden, walk Shelby the Garage Guardian. ( page 2 post # 40 )
. Finish the stuff I did not get done last weekend.
. The Retro Industrial Table continue on with the Red Gum timber top.
. The Fabrication Bench install the draw slides then i can finally measure up to make a start on the draw fabrication.
. I have also got to do some prep work for the Solar Installation we are fitting on the roof of the Shed Downunder. this Wednesday. We are intending to install 6 KW in total with micro inverters.
Pics and details to follow as the job progresses.
. And as we Aussies say " i will throw a snag on the barby " at some point to celebrate Australia Day this weekend.

 

[1/2 Cup]

A quick update from the weekends activities;

I didn't quite get every thing done as I had planned as I took things a little easy by my standards for a change, however I did manage to get the draw slides fitted to the Fabrication table

View media item 37410
I probably underestimated just how long it would take to measure, set out and fit 6 pairs of slides.


I also completed some work in preparation for the Solar installation on the Shed Downunder which starts Wednesday.

View media item 37412
I removed several ceiling panels to give access to the roof space and made provision for cable entry to the sub switchboard. It should make the contractors job a little easier.

Around lunch time today my eldest son arrived home from Melbourne with his new acquisition, a race ready MG TF he intends to run in club events and hill climbs, the car was imported from Japan and prepared for the track in Melbourne. It is quite a well finished and maintained car and probably more roadworthy than many cars on our roads here today.

Its fully kited out and race ready with roll cage, big brakes, uprated suspension,the usual engine mods and new set of wets.

I have had a long association BMC, MG and BL vehicles, having raced a Mini Cooper S many years ago and owned several road going variants. So I can foresee some time under the bonnet of this beast into the future.

View media item 37411
I also spent a few hours at my dads, setting up his DVD player and repairing a sensor light as you do.

So that's was my Australia Day weekend in a nut shell, pretty lay back and relaxing really.

 

[80WTI_55_CHEV]

Hi Steve, love them lamp shades mate, i can't get enough of them. I want to find some of the red ones and the black ones but seem to be a bit harder to find. The old style bulbs look great in them when they are lit up, Those tables look ****** good as well, give yourself a pat on the back.

 

[1/2 Cup]

Hi Steve, love them lamp shades mate, i can't get enough of them. I want to find some of the red ones and the black ones but seem to be a bit harder to find. The old style bulbs look great in them when they are lit up, Those tables look ****** good as well, give yourself a pat on the back.

I remember as an apprentice putting those lights up NEW, I am still chasing a couple more of the same.

I have some real old cast iron bulk head lights that I rescued from an upgrade we did many years ago, the glass is as thick as all get out. I stripped them and had them powder coated and they came up really nice, they haven't been installed yet and I will post some pics of them shortly.

Thanks for the compliments on the tables, I am very happy with how they have come up.

Mrs 1/2 Cup has actually given me tacit approval to build a dining room table, similar in design to the others but using features from both with an all metal finish. Instead of using the 3 x 3 SHS for the top support all round, I intend to use I Beam with the 2 " holes.
I scored some nice planks of Jarrah some time back that I will be using on the top.

Cheers

 

[HOTFR8]

How many Solar panels will you go with and what size ? Will they be on the house or the shed ? Just jog my memory are you going battery back up as well ?

 

[1/2 Cup]

How many Solar panels will you go with and what size ? Will they be on the house or the shed ? Just jog my memory are you going battery back up as well ?

System specifications and rational;

1. There will be 24 x 250 watt panels - 6 KW in total.
2. 500 watt Micro inverters at every second pair of panels, these provide individual panel performance monitoring and trending which I can look at remotely.
3. The system will be balanced over three phases.
4. The installation will be on the Shed Downunder's roof. I will loose a small percentage in terms of overall system performance due to the orientation but I am prepared to sacrifice that.

I was never a big fan of installing the on the house roof, although it is ideally oriented for solar, I could never bring my self to install them there basically due to the fact it is an older house and it would loose so much street appeal.

I will post pics of the install as we progress.

I did, how ever, have one issue that is now getting resolved as you will see and that there is ( soon to be was ) some Pitostrum screening trees in the neighbours yard along the fence that shaded the shed roof after 5.00 pm. however with some very tactful negotiation I have now been able to mitigate that problem with the aid of a pruning saw and green waste recycle bin, chopping about 6 feet out of their overall height.

 

[HOTFR8]

Will be watching the progress. The micro invertors sound like very new tech.

 

[1/2 Cup]

Will be watching the progress. The micro invertors sound like very new tech.

The mountingframes are getting installed as I type this, will post progress pics this evening.

Micro inverters have been around for 4 -5 years but have only taken off here in recent times.
Basically the solar panel DC out put is converted to AC at the inverter that is mounted underneath the panel, so there is no big inverter mounted near the meter panel.
The AC will be directly fed into a 3 phase circuit breaker installed in the shed sub switchboard.

The system communicates back to the house router wirelessly.

 

[RivennHewn]

1/2 Cup, thanks for sharing the link to this thread. Don't know how I've missed it.

Great thread!

I'm loving the workbench. Makes me feel like I need to step up my game.

Can't wait to see it complete.

 

[1/2 Cup]

Many thanks for the compliments, RivennHewn.

Looking at your work I would consider it is me that has to lift their game.

I am pretty happy with how both benches are turning out, I really only get the weekends to work on my projects in the shed and it seems like i take forever to get there.

Cheers, keep up the great work and enjoy.

 

[HOTFR8]

The system communicates back to the house router wirelessly.

Interesting, you can monitor it then via an computer connected to that router.
Still waiting for a cable system although I do not see the value in it.

 

[1/2 Cup]

The Solar Installation day 1

An early 7.00 am start for the installation team due to the fact that the forecast temperature was and did reach 36 C here today.
I have taken a couple of days off work to see the installation through to completion.

I have to admit to being a little apprehensive as in all my time as an electrician I have never had any other sparky work at the Shed Downunder and this was in every way a totally new experience for this black duck. My insecurities in this were soon put to rest as the guys doing the install were totally professional with a great work ethic in their approach to the project and gave 110% to the install and task at hand.
I was able to take a back seat roll and for the most part and become a "hired labourer" for the day and lending a hand and advice as was needed.

My first task for the day was to do, let me put it this way " system optimisation " and tackled the shading issues I had with the trees next door. This photo was taken at 6.00 pm yesterday and as you can see the shadow line starting to migrate across exactly where some of the panels would be placed.

View media item 37496

The Micro Inverter, there is 12 of these units mounted to the support frames, underneath the panels. There is one 500 watt unit per 2 panels. They come all pre terminated so installation is a breeze being basically plug and play.


View media item 37497

Looking to the South west ( for the benefit of you guys up past the equator one has to remember the solar aspect is a little different Down under ).

The shading issues are no longer

The support frame installation in progress.


View media item 37498

The support frame installation, looking nearly due North.
The arrays will arranged in three banks due to the fact that this is a three phase installation and simplifies the panel interconnection some what. The advantage to this type of system is that it is easily added to later on should that be required.
I am fortunate to have more than ample capacity in terms of the existing electrical installation infrastructure to support any upgrades in to the future.


View media item 37500
We have run the feed in cabling back to the Shed Sub switchboard and I have a little bit to finish off today.

The panels will be installed this morning and all should be completed by lunch time.

An electrical inspection has been booked for next Tuesday.

 

[HSpencer]

Very high quality work and a super shop to boot!! I have really been enjoying all your posts and projects. Thanks for keep us up to date.

Best Regards
Herb Spencer

 

[1/2 Cup]

Very high quality work and a super shop to boot!! I have really been enjoying all your posts and projects. Thanks for keep us up to date.

Best Regards
Herb Spencer

Many thanks for the kind feedback, Herb.

I will endevour to keep the thread up to date as much as possible.
I tend to get a little errant and sidetracked with posts at times but it reflects our life and times at the moment.

 

[HOTFR8]

Interesting to see the panels will be on both sides of the roof. I guess the layout will be most effective that way due to the situation of the building.

 

[1/2 Cup]

Interesting to see the panels will be on both sides of the roof. I guess the layout will be most effective that way due to the situation of the building.

As it turned out it is the most effective way to arrange the panels, I will loose less than 5% over the 6 kw based on the "average" day light hours.
I works well interms of connectivity given the system is to feed in over the 3 phases.

The panels are going on as I type.

Cheers

 

[1/2 Cup]

The Solar Installation day 2


Another early start to beat the expected heat today.

1 of 24 - 250 watt panels to go up on the roof of the Shed Downunder today.

View media item 37526

The first 4 panels being installed. The temperature reached 39 C, believe it or not it was actually cooler working on the roof than in the shed.


View media item 37527

All the panels installed with just the isolators to complete.



View media item 37528


The roof penetrations for the AC feed in and earthing cables from the isolators. I ran the cables inside the shed due to the fact there was so much stuff to move and could have been damaged in the process and I did not want the installers having that responsibility.



View media item 37525

We added 3 new circuit breakers to the shed sub switchboard that provide an isolation point and circuit protection for the solar system.
Basic installation and safety checks completed, the system was turned on at around 3.00 pm.
Tidy up works included the mandatory warning labelling and identification of components for isolation purposes.
I loaded the monitoring software and configured our router with the appropriate addressing, which worked first up with no issues. The software package is great to use and provides individual inverter / panel performance monitoring and historical trending

We still have the mandatory inspections to be competed by the power company which is booked for next Tuesday and negotiations with our Energy retailer in regard to tariff changes.

I monitored the system performance from 3.00 until last light and we had generated nearly 11 KWH, which I was pretty happy about.

The other unexpected benefit has been, is that the shed is now notably cooler with the panels on the roof.

I intend to post a few more pics of the installation and an update on the systems performance over the weekend. I will also include a little more info in terms of the rational behind and our thoughts in making the investment decission we have.


After the clean up I sat down with a well earned nice cold beer and watched the display unit tick over.

 

[MSD Shop]

Awesome install. subscribed. I am wanting to some sort of solar on my barndominium as well. I just want to offset the utility bills each month as much as I can. Going to go back and re-read this for more info. Thank you for posting and explaining it so well.

 

[1/2 Cup]

Awesome install. subscribed. I am wanting to some sort of solar on my barndominium as well. I just want to offset the utility bills each month as much as I can. Going to go back and re-read this for more info. Thank you for posting and explaining it so well.

Cheers,
Should you need to know any more I am happy to oblige.

 

[HOTFR8]

Looks good. Shop round now for a tariff feedback deal and see who is the best. Next thing will be you will need to see how all performs and that may take 12 months to compare with what you paid for power before the install and after.

 

[1/2 Cup]

Looks good. Shop round now for a tariff feedback deal and see who is the best. Next thing will be you will need to see how all performs and that may take 12 months to compare with what you paid for power before the install and after.

Don't worry about that Mrs 1/2 Cup is right on the case.

I am monitoring ( and will be into the future ) the system performance very closely. The system provides me with the software tools to do this.

 

[HOTFR8]

Don't worry about that Mrs 1/2 Cup is right on the case.

I am monitoring ( and will be into the future ) the system performance very closely. The system provides me with the software tools to do this.

The performance will be best shown in you power bills .

You made need to swap to another supplier to get the best feed back tariff.
I know when the system went up here it took a lot to work out. Those fitting the system for you may have some suggestions given they are doing it all the time.

 

[1/2 Cup]

The performance will be best shown in you power bills .

You made need to swap to another supplier to get the best feed back tariff.
I know when the system went up here it took a lot to work out. Those fitting the system for you may have some suggestions given they are doing it all the time.

Agree, bottom line is the cost of your energy, without doubt.

Mrs 1/2 Cup is right on to them and we have had some very helpful discussions with the suppliers / installers, they have been great.

 

[SBogaCH]

The Solar Installation day 1

View media item 37500

I don't understand. How does ventilation work?