Home made draught excluder made from recycled stuff

     

It is really cold here at the moment!  Freezing and we are frantically searching the house for any draughts coming in.  The front door is particularly blowy, mainly because of the catflap, we have tried in the past to use that stuff that they sell which you put around the door frame and it is supposed to make a seal, what a load of rubbish!  After a while it comes off and sticks to the door or gets all twisted up! and the door won´t shut properly.  A curtain is a great idea if you don´t have a catflap, I suppose we could cut out the shape of the flap from the curtain, which defeats the object a bit!  

So my hubby had a brainwave and using some masking tape (the stuff that you put around glass windows to stop paint getting on them) and placed it around the edge of the door:  It is very cheap and works a treat, the only thing is that when it is really windy the door makes a sound like someone breaking wind!  

For the bottom I am going to attempt to make an excluder from old towels and sheets.  It involves some sewing and cutting up of  materials. Watch this space for the great unveil!

We used to have a really cool one which we bought in Gretna Green, when we got married! but it eventually went past the point of no return and we had to say bye bye!  So we are missing one! I don´t think that the one I make will be as good (it was in the shape of a sausage dog) but I will give it my best shot.

 The blog song for today is: "Waiting for the sun" by The Doors.

TTFN

What to do with old keys!

     

I was having a bit of a sort out the other day and near to my front door I have some hooks with a lot of keys hanging up, I have no idea what they are for!  This sent me on a mission and I then found even more stashed in drawers all over the house!

What on earth can I do with them!  I think some were even from somewhere in the UK! 

After a bit of investigation I came across this advice!

Best Suggestions

Reuse: Lots of people have suggested using them as different type of decorations and jewellery. At the moment this one is not an option for me!

Recycle: If you’d rather recycle them for charity, they’re collected by a number of charities. I have been l have found two so far, one is called key for hope and the other keys for kindness.  I am not sure how it works.

I haven´t seen anything here in Menorca, but I was thinking about just taking them along to our local recycling centre on the industrial estate,  They have sections for almost everything there, it must be better than throwing it in the green organic bin.

The blog song for today is" Telephone line" by Electric Light Orchestra

 

TTFN

 

How can I reuse or recycle old compact discs (cds)?

 

I came across a load of old CD´s the other day and was wondering what to do with them.  They did bring back memories of when normal folks like us were able to "burn" a cd and put whatever you wanted to put on them, which of course sounded much easier than it actually was!!

I really liked the 3 1/2 inch floppy disk, after the rigmarole of formatting them they did actually work every time unlike the cd which failed quite a lot in my experience, normally after a lot of time spent trying to understand the software that in theory enabled you to do it.  Each computer had its own software installed on it which of course was incompatible with any other!

What fun times!  When you finally figured out the software then you had to make sure that the thing you wanted to copy could actually be copied, which you never knew until you had gone through the whole process first!

Many people used the old Cd´s in the garden to scare off birds, we had cats for that so no good for us! Then of course there was the folders to store them in.  We brought all of them here to Menorca when we moved here and haven´t had the heart to throw them away, but now all new computers don´t even have a cd player in them, it´s all on pen drives!

Here are some interesting uses that I have come across for using old CD´s;

I make my old cds into clocks they look good and I put pictures on them any design I want by cutting out pictures from magazines and glueing the picture on them and then putting a clock motor on them and hands.

Discs have good reflective properties similar to amirror. If you want to experiment
form numerous parabolic dishes with a long focal length and glue discs to the inside then direct the dish directly towards the sun you can provide a concentrated beam onto a small area. Sounds fantastic, a bit out there!

When you have collected about enough, thread them on a minature fluo’ tube. Light the tube with the appropriate circuitry. The light shines through the edges of the discs and makes a super-geeky table lamp for your computer desk!!!
I have done it and it works! You can also use a small string of christmas tree lights with less effect.

If you have chickens they love to entertain themselves with old cds on a string.

For years, I have been reusing CDs at Christmas time by putting colorful string or yarn on them and hanging them from a tree outdoors to create a very festive Christmas tree. I encouraged my neighbors to add theirs also and it became quite a spectacle. Adding lights makes them even more reflective. Sometimes I glue two together to cover the writing on one side. People come and look at it all holiday season long.
I also use them as gift tags on packages since it is easy to write TO: and FROM: on them and it looks pretty too.
I saw an idea for using them instead of bird scare tape. I am about to go hang some CDs on my grape vines and plum tree. The reflections look like fire to birds and scare them away. There is always plenty for our feathered friends too so I will allow them to eat the fruit after a few weeks.

If you put them on top of a little jar (the smaller ones from hotel marmelades or patè) and then you put them in the oven you’ll get nice shiny tea-lights holders!
They’ll bend over the jar as little skirts.
With a towel you can give them even more shape if you press down when they are still warm. They can be used as candy mini bowls or for whatever you want!

I think my favourite one is the chicken entertainer!

The blog song for today is: "Roundabout" by Yes

 

TTFN

 

 

 

Aerosol can recycling tips

    

How to Recycle Aerosol Cans

Aerosol cans are used to store everything from food to bathroom products to paint. While the can itself has the same value as other metal cans, the pressurised air inside and potentially hazardous contents make recycling a bit more complicated.

Aerosol Can Recycling Preparation

1. Do your best to use up all the product inside. If the can still has product inside, even if it’s nonhazardous product like whipped cream, your recycling program will not accept it. The easiest way to make sure it’s empty is to shake the can and listen for liquid inside, or spray until nothing comes out.
2. Most aerosol cans come with a plastic cap, which should be removed and recycled separately. 

It is not easy to keep up with all the different types of recycling, but not impossible! When the new system kicks in here in Menorca I think after we have all got used to it we may realise that it is best for us and the environment.

I am still cutting down on the amount of plastic stored products that I buy and also trying to encourage family and friends to do the same! I have started to make my own cleaning products so that has cut down on the plastic! 

The worst thing here at the moment is that the rubbish collection system is different to that of the UK for example. There is a great big green bin which the bin men come and empty on a daily basis, which is great except that people cannot be bothered to recycle and put everything in it.  There are 2 lots of recycling bins within 2 minutes walk but unfortunately it seems to be a step too far!  

We have hotels whose workers seem to throw everything including the kitchen sink in the green bin which fills them up really quickly resulting in people leaving full bags of food rubbish on the floor next to the bin, "walk to the next one!, blow that I´m on holiday, besides they have road sweepers to do that!"  It is not entirely the fault of one group of people it is everyones responsibilty to keep the place tidy! The silly thing is that if you ring a number they will arrange to come and collect the item free of charge!

I wonder what the hotels will do when the new system starts, surely they will have their own bins! 

The blog song for today is "Enjoy yourself (it´s later than you think)" by The Specials.

TTFN