Sunday, July 24, 2011

When it rains, it pours...


Literarily, yes. But that is Australia in a nutshell, isn’t it. The weather here doesn’t do anything half-hearted. When it’s hot, it’s hot, 40 plus, you feel like a piece of bacon, sizzling away. When it’s dry, it’s dry, the ground full of cracks, Spinifex on the horizon, water restrictions and dead cattle. When it storms, it storms, roofs flying off right, left and centre, cars in the trees and waves the size of 12 storey buildings. And when it rains it pours. None of that Swedish drizzle I used to grow up with. The one where you weren’t sure if it was wet fog or light drizzle.

But when the rain gets cracking in Oz, the weather makes sure we know about it. Did I say 72 hours straight? Well, yes, that was just the warm-up, I’ve since lost count. Everything gets waterlogged, the garden, the car, the house, the shoes, the kids and the cat. Rows and rows of weeping double brick houses that just can’t deflect any more moisture. Let it rise, let it come down from above, damp walls have never been so damp. In this water world, I keep thinking Tretorn. And why I didn’t get any on my last visit to Sweden. For the non-informed, Tretorn is the most reliable gumboots manufacturers in Swedish gumboot history. This is the gumboot for the real weather people, none of the fashion statement Kate-Moss-on-her-way-to-a-rock-festival-kind-of-over-rated-type of gumboot. Tretorn is like the Volvo of gumboots, perhaps not fighting for a spot on the catwalk, but delivers on the promise of dry feet and a comfort.

The gumboot is a bit like travel insurance, you feel slightly annoyed that you keep paying the premium and never ending up needing it. The gumboots fall in the same category. 99% of the time those boots will stand there in the wardrobe looking at you, all shiny and unused. You feel it was a bit indulgent to buy them, waste of money and all that. But then comes that golden moment when the skies open up and let the torrents of water flood our streets. Those boots then get a chance to shine, in more than one way. They keep you dry, they keep you protected and they will continue to do so wear after wear. And you thank your lucky star that you wisely invested in a pair of gumboots.

Thursday, July 14, 2011

Control Your Climate


In the spirit of ‘don’t ask what the climate can do for you, but what you can do for the climate’, Swedish interior designer Anna-Carin McNamara will guest blog on how to control your climate, stay warm/cool and have a fatter wallet to show for it. Please enjoy some climate words of wisdom....

“You should be used to the cold – you are Swedish!” is something I get told very often. The fact is I have never felt or been colder than here in Australia.
Creating a comfortable indoor climate, something Swedes are quite spoilt with, seems for some reason an unsurmountable task for Australians. Delusional believes that we live in a tropical climate and a “That’ll do” attitude is drying out our skins and our wallets without us even being aware it could be so different.

I know it comes down to dollars and “cheap and quick” is the mantra. To spend money on heating and cooling for the lifetime in a draughty house is conveniently neglected when the renovation budget is tight. Not sure about you but I think we use our heaters from April to October – 7 months out of 12! Still, heating and insulation are neglected and cooling is always prioritised.

If Australians were to adopt some of the Swedish ways of construction, not only would we leave the cold out in winter but also prevent the heat from coming in during the summer.

So what would it take to build the Swedish way?

Insulated walls and floor - lesson number one in building technology in my Swedish college was to calculate the time it takes for heat to travel from one side of wall to the other thereby classifying - depending on where you live -the type of wall you need to build to maintain a perfect (20-22 C) indoor climate. And I can reveal it was never just double brick.

Windows - Double-glazing or at least a “no gap” frame.

Controlled ventilation – no, the beach towel in the gap between the windows does not qualify.

Heating - hydronic (ie water) carried heating in either radiators strategically placed or as underfloor heating.

Voila! The perfect base for a pleasant room climate, to be enjoyed without your fleece and woollen beanie.

Colours/lighting/ furniture are rendered useless if you have to spend your time rubbing hands for heat or hover around the heater in the corner…. If you are like me generally by bedtime- finally – an acceptable temperature have been achieved and then the next morning it all starts again with slippers and mittens…

So go for it, take control of your indoor climate and you’d be surprised how much more pleasant life will become, summer and winter. And your wallet will also be happier in the long run.





Image courtesy of belowtheclouds.com