We’ve already covered cotton bobbins – they were one of the first things we featured on the site – but how about ones that are quite a bit bigger?

John threw this one-piece plastic reel at me the other day after he finished wiring up some speakers. I’ve also ones with a little metal (aluminium?) core and cardboard flanges (if that’s the right word, I mean the sticky out bits at the top and the bottom), and really giant ones made from wood.

So any suggestions?

This is something that’s been bugging me for a while but I’ve not known what to do about it – and it occurred to me the other day that some of you awesome, knowledgeable and inspiring people might have some suggestions.

The inconsistency in doorstep recycling across the UK drives me mad. Every council has a different way of collecting it, collecting different things and picking it up on a different schedule. For example, living in Leeds (as I did for a decade until three weeks ago), we had one green bin, emptied monthly, which could contain cans (but not foil or aerosols), all paper & cardboard, and plastics 1, 2 & 4 – but not glass, which had to be taken to bottle banks at supermarkets or tips, or tetrapak which had to taken to one of five locations spread across the city. Now living *just* over the border in the neighbouring council Bradford, we recycle cans (including foils & aerosols) & glass in one bin, paper & card (but not brown cardboard or brown envelopes) in another – but not plastics or tetrapak in either (which have to go to a tip).

Now I know in the grand scale of things, there are bigger things to be annoyed about but I think the confusion caused by such inconsistency and complexity really hinders the everyday recycling process. If in doubt about something, cautious people will leave stuff out – meaning stuff that can be recycled is going to landfill – or less cautious people will throw it in, which could jam up the whole sorting process. It also means recycling advice on packaging is vague – I’ve seen guidance which says “this packaging may be recycled in some places”: gee, thanks for that.
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A bit of a weird one but we’ve opened up an old, long closed chimney recently and now have bags and bags of old soot. At the moment, it’s earmarked as filler where we’re levelling up a drastically sloped bit of the garden – all the rubble and stuff we’re generating at the moment will go in there as misc filler – but I wonder if there is anything else that can be done with it instead of just being bulk.

Ash from fires can be put on compost heaps or beds as a fertiliser (albeit a rather alkaline one) and soot apparently can be used in a similar way but is best if left to “weather” for about a year. As well as being a fertiliser, it’s apparently a deterrent for slugs. (Ours has, presumably, been weathering in the chimney for 30+ years so I’ll keep some of it aside for that.)

Any other garden or household reuses for it? Any better alternatives to being misc filler?

Do they have a name? Those plastic pocket things used in ring binders or lever arch files, for paper you don’t want to or can’t hole punch? If there is a name, I don’t know it, which makes it might hard to find a photo of them ;) UPDATE: Jack sent over a photo for me to use – thanks Jack!

Anyway, they’re great for reusing for their original purpose time and time again until you overfill them one time and the hole reinforcement strip tears/pulls out and from then on, it constantly, annoyingly, falls out of the folder every time you lift it up.

What can be done with the rest of the plastic then? It’s usually smooth, flat and clear – there must be some practical and crafty reuses for something like that.

They’re usually made from polypropylene apparently (plastic code number 5) which can be recycled but isn’t collected as standard in all places. So how can they be reused instead?

Following on in our few days of very seasonal heating & energy themed posts, I thought it would be worthwhile for us to share our super-greenie tips for reducing energy consumption (and bills!).

Whenever I read/hear mainstream media advice on cutting back on energy usage, it’s always the same basic stuff: put on a jumper, close your curtains and turn down your thermostat – very useful tips but when you’re already in your woollies, with your heavy lined curtains closed and your thermostat as low as it will go, they’re not that much help.

I’m presuming that most of the people that read this site – particularly the regulars (hi beloved regulars!) – will already be doing more than the basics — so what are your green+ tips for reducing your heating and electric bills?

Have you installed solar panels or some other expensive-but-more-sustainable heating alternative? Have you installed fake ceilings or partitioned rooms to make them easier to heat?

Have you insulated somewhere out of the ordinary? Ceilings? Floors? Walls? Did you insulate with something different to normal (and/or recycled)?

Have you modified your windows to make them less of an energy leak? The other day Lizzy mentioned using cling film to make secondary glazing – any other secondary glazing tips? Anyone gone for triple-glaze or the equivalent? Did it make a difference?

What about smaller, less-expensive things too? Wrist warmers, snuggy slippers, hooded scarves for around the house? A strategically positioned cat or loved one to stop your feet getting cold? Cutting down drafts between rooms with curtains/draft excluders?

What else?