The Metricon Adventure

Timber upgrade

2025-09-10T20:05:00.001+10:00

Come across some amazing American oak engineered flooring and decided one more wall, and hey presto. Now we have a total of 5 walls timberlines that moves us up to the scandi or japandi level . Aside from looking great it provides some sound insulation from the master ensuite.

Air To Energy

2021-11-15T17:04:00.002+11:00

Air to Energy - takes heat (ambient heat) from the air and converts to hot water - Claimed $45 a year for hot water solar assisted if required compared to $700-$800 for our solar hotwater storage and gas boosted system. Good news is the Government gives you $900 towards the upgrade. The old system was a solar boosted / Storage with gas boost. as in first pic.

2021-11-11T15:10:00.002+11:00

Apple Homekit, Phillips Hue, & Siri

Lighting and automation make a home a home, Using a range of Phillips Hue Smart, Lights, Power outlets, movement sensors, all controlled by Apple Homekit, we have transformed our home and added a layer of automation and ambience, that change the way we enjoy our home.

New Security System installed!

2021-07-13T07:33:00.001+10:00

Outdoor Room Upgrade !!

2021-04-05T11:11:00.000+10:00

Outdoor Roomification

Finally roomified our outdoor room - New TV, Heater, 2 x Weber Barbie setup and designer fretwork, sound system, fridge and sink revamp now DONE1

Japanese Lanterns

2019-09-21T11:26:00.002+10:00

Inspired by several visits to Kyoto Japan we have gone a bit crazy on the Japanese lanterns - but hey they look great and the soft warm white light in the garden at night time is amazing.

Butlers Bar / Pantry Upgrade now complete

2019-02-16T07:11:00.004+11:00

With the help of iKEA and a little imagination the upgrade to the Butlers Pantry is now complete and Open for business

New Art

2018-06-15T10:38:00.003+10:00

Metricon Failure

2017-10-30T10:59:00.003+11:00

We have tried to contact Metricon over a serious statutory warranty claim regarding an extremely serious and dangerous product failure. Nothing back from Metricon over two months of trying to get a response.

The Zampatti Oven temperature switch has failed and fallen back inside the oven. It seems the recess switch mounting had become brittle and completely failed.

This dangerous issue should be immediately referred to Energy Safe Victoria, and a total product recall instigated immediately. Do we instigate the product recall proceedings or should Metricom? or do we go straight to Tracy Grimshaw and then Metricon customer service might respond to this serious and dangerous situation

Are they waiting for someone to be electrocuted ???

Tile Time

2017-04-03T06:04:00.001+10:00

Thanks to the closure of Masters - Don't you just love competition The Artisan time range which were like $6.50 EACH (ouch) were sold at a drop your pants rate of just $2.00 so it was time to get the two upstairs bathrooms Fully Tiled = floor to ceiling here is the result...

Baby Cave

2017-04-03T05:52:00.001+10:00

We opted for a 3 car Garage which was actually a 2 Car Garage with a Storeroom complete with full insulation and normal room and power point lighting. So it was a space waiting to become a room,

Thanks to Masters closing down I hatched a plan and I went on a daily hunt for materials for the Man / Baby Cave Project.

Timber stud work saved 60 % but bought 25% too much so it's ended up really strong
Installation 60% off but bought 25% too much
Door hardware 80% off
Timber Flooring saved 50% and got that Perfect
Paint 40% off Perfect
Solid Timber 8 lite door and Cavity slide 50% off Perfect
Solid Timber skirting and trim 80% off - Respect

all up timber, insulation, flooring etc, etc cost only $670, add some help and plaster from AirTasker to whole thing cost only $1,570 - Amazing. Here are some Picks.

Fan Club

2016-03-10T10:12:00.000+11:00

Summer is a cool time but not when it's hot. We have 4 strategically placed Panasonic Split systems that keeps the whole house cool and ensure we can target cooling to where it's needed. Whilst the house is very well insulated and keep cool especially downstairs, a 43 degree day is a hard to overcome. We have now installed some addition fans than work a treat on those balmy 34 degree March Melbourne nights. Sourced from Thailand they are 4 speed, and timer enabled and look the goods. They have a 10 year warranty and are half the cost of similar ones you can by locally. Here are some picks...

Out On The Tiles

2016-01-28T15:57:00.003+11:00

Over a year since the Outdoor Room and Kitchen and TV/Satellite where installed and completed, it was finally time to get the outdoor room tiled - So we called up a local company called Aussie Tilers who were actually all South Korean. There were great and so was the finish of the "sand pattern" semi gloss porcelain from Roca (Spain). The 600 x 300 match the shape and configuration of the indoor downstairs porcelain so the effect is superb. At 28 square metres it's the place to be this summer.

Here is some pics.

Skycam

2016-01-06T05:46:00.000+11:00

- a
view from above

RGB strip lighting

2015-07-30T08:07:00.000+10:00

Installed two sets of RGB lighting to colour up the Kitchen and Island bench
here is the daytime effect, but looks super sublime at night and is infinitely changeable and dim-able.

Digital Loo !^#?

2015-07-30T07:59:00.003+10:00

Not usually the type of home improvement you want to advertise, but following our trip to Tokyo
I was under pressure to get one of these for at least one of the bathrooms. It that latest from Samsung and has a heated seat and even a dryer etc etc

Enter the Digital Toilet - bought direct from Korea at less than half the price of local specialist suppliers. It even has english controls however I'm not sure what "OK Bowel" means

SAMSUNG SBD-AB970S Remote Control Heated Digital Bidet Toilet Seat Dryer

And yes it has a wall mountable remote control !

enough with the timber already

2015-05-07T05:53:00.001+10:00

When your on a roll as they say.. well the is the Last timberlicious entry (possibly)
The Master Bedroom retreat has a Plasma of course and a very comfy Bay Leather couch and a wall or two that needed something? what about timber panelling... of course!
here are some picks...

Timberlicious 2

2015-05-02T06:34:00.000+10:00

After the Timber Lining Project under the front balcony and the outdoor room Western Red Cedar - applied another idea upstairs.
Here's the result... took around three square meters of Paneling. All affixed with the trusty Bosch cordless nail gun with 32 mill braids into wall studs.

Timberlicious Part 1 & 2 &

2015-04-26T06:54:00.002+10:00

The underside of our front balcony looked fine but was lined on plain old plasterboard. Nothing wrong with that right? - correct!. However, a wander through Bunnings and a "clearance" sign on some interesting timber flooring inspired a project. Sure you can buy laminated timber look flooring but after all its just a picture printed on plastic and stuck on MDF. Well this "special" was actually engineered Australian timber (Real Timber on 4 ply veneer - so it was actually timber and the construction was stronger and 12 mill thick verses just 8-9 mill for most laminates. It was also light and rigid which means it doesn't sag like most laminates. The system was tongue and groove so so easy for overhead installation verses most laminates which a some sort of "clip lock" which in fine for flooring but near impossible for overhead installation.

Most of the higher end Metricon display homes have the underside of two story verandas lined, but of you ask the price you quickly are satisfied with plaster. So this project costs around $350 to DIY and probably takes up one and a half days. Hardest part is cutting out down lights and security camera holes. The part finished effect looks great and theres nothing quite like the look of natural timber.

It's not quite finished but heres the progress so far.

Finally Finally Finished
You know what they say "the first 90% of the project takes 90% of the time and the last 10% of the project also takes 90% of the time. The cut in's and horizontal cuts took hours but it's all done! see below:

Now there's some inspiration to timber-up other parts of the house. Here are some interesting wow treatments of the Wolesley residence by Mckimm in Brighton. don't quite have the budget for this... but it's are great inspiration nonetheless

Outdoor Roomification

2015-04-18T14:45:00.001+10:00

Outdoor Rooms are meant to be outdoors right, but sometimes you want them to be a tad more roomy. After all its Melbourne right... stinking hot one month and Antartica the next. Plus once you get a few electronic installed you want a bit of protection from the full effects of the weather... be it good or bad. On a recent trip to masters we spotted so steel laser cut screens and the sizing was right and the application was perfect.

Still lets the inside out and the outside in, so one day later hey presto all done, screens (3) cost $240 and the associated woodgrain effect extruded aluminium was around 200 on top of that the effect looks cool and with around 60% screening works a treat. There is still plenty of outdooriness about the space but more roomy feel with added protection from the elements

Front Landscaping - Complete

2015-03-18T16:50:00.001+11:00

12 months on the front garden is complete. we've gone for selected rows of Rosemary and Lavender, Large Bamboo's (that will get larger and several giant Bird of Paradise, plus giant Agave and a number of unusual succulents. We've also dropped in a American Cotton Palm to match the ones in the rear garden, which should eventually hit 6 - 10 metres in height. I don't miss mowing the front lawn at all and it's great to experience the perfume effect from both the Rosemary and Lavender, Overall the effect is a simple semi tropical feel that looks after itself. An automated sprinkling system system from Gardina also makes this a self sufficient space..

Solar Gaining

2014-08-18T12:24:00.004+10:00

All Done - Solar system installed - After much investigation, pondering, and comparison, we decided to go with Solar Gain. They are reportably the second biggest in Australia and aside from Solar Power they also do solar boosted hot water systems - so on balance they "get" solar energy. The Bloggesphere gave them a pretty good rap on sites like Product Review and Whirlpool and the conversations were intelligent and informative unlike some of the headline marketing outfits which are clearly focussed on "closing" sales. There are a bunch of Panels on the market but some are Chinese al'cheapo's and then there is the Inverter selection. Most of the "Deals to there are cheap 2nd tier technology and have a limited practical life - So these are both areas where you don't want to skimp on.

We went with German Q Cells and Austrian Fronius Inverter - don't know why but I kind of trust Germans - well some of them.

Install took about 8 hours and the team was great and seemed to go the extra mile especially on the wiring - The electrical inspector arrived the next day and gave it a big tick - so thats a reassuring sign.

System headline specs:

Q-Pro C-cells : Panels 14 ~ around 3.75 Kw
Fronius Galvo Inverter
Monitoring - Fronius "solar.web and iPhone / iPad apps

The Inverter install was very clean, very neat - no conduit, no cables, no mess they were all hidden. Plus the proximity to the Fuse Box was perfect - which helps maximise self consumption (so Im told)

The Q Cell Panels - are lighter and stronger than cheaper panels, meaning less weight and higher strength alloy and glass. Plus of course higher efficiency = higher wattage

The Fronius Galvo inverter has built in Wifi and a data server, and a iPad / iPhone app that means you can monitor them real time and it also logs a full power generation history, complete with graphs etc etc. It's a cool piece of kit

Here are some picks of the install:

Also here a snap of the Fronius Inverter iPad app in action. Yesterday on a mostly cloudy August winters day we generated around 10 Kilowatts respect!

The Metricon Adventure: Solarisation

2014-08-02T18:03:00.001+10:00

The Metricon Adventure: Solarisation: As per a previous post we talked about how we installed an off-grid system that peaks at around 1.5 Kw that supplies the outdoor room LED TV...

Solarisation

2014-08-02T17:57:00.000+10:00

As per a previous post we talked about how we installed an off-grid system that peaks at around 1.5 Kw that supplies the outdoor room LED TV bar fridge and led lighting and and stereo.
This system has 2 x 200amp gel batteries that are charge regulated from 6 x 100 watt panels. It great because you have power 240v and 12v 24/7 unlike standard solar that gets you sorted ONLY during the day. So its a great back up should the mains or grid power go down.
But whilst this is great for that space and as a 24 hr back up, it didn't meet the energy requirement of this big house. Of course the house has something like 90 LEDS, and the appliances / TV's are high star rating efficient. On top of this we have 3 split Panasonic systems and gas central heating plus 2 solar hot water panels on the roof, but we wanted to go further. Starting with energy efficiency is the place to start before going solar, for example most nights we'd have about 4 lights on at night plays the tV once the cooking is done. So thee Led lighting is consuming only about 16w to 20W, while the neighbours security light out the back of their house burns 100W every hour - it seems they they want to make sure the Possums don't lose their footing while they much up follage.

After several months of passive and active investigation and a number of quotes we decided on a ~ 4kw system grid tie system, we've gone for German Panels, which from all advice are thinner, stronger, lighter, longer life and more efficient than the bucket load of Chinese stuff on the market and we've gone with a quality inverter from Austria so you know it's good (not Australia) its called Fronius which has a 10 year Warranty, wifi for iPad / mac monitoring, which means you don't have to go outside the monitor the system. There seems to be a lot of tricks in the market like headlining a "3 kilowatt" inverter system that only really a 2kw panel system. The headline "trick" offers are all a bit dodgy brothers and its worth getting into blog-land and getting real like experience. The best panels on the market are reportably SunPower from the USA, which hit about 20.3% efficiency but at DOUBLE the price and no space issues on the Northern Roof, it's much more logical to go with more "less expensive" than fewer "highly expensive" panels. The system will produce roughly 13-14 KW a day "on average" given that an average house burns 18KW a day, it a good deal. In essence you can run a medium air-conditioning unit during a hot summer day for next to nicks, anything larger you might cut the running costs in half. Yes the current feed in tarrif is only 8 cents for KWH but at least that eliminates the daily supply charge we all have to pay, and gives you the option of running the Dishwasher and Washing Machine for free and cuts around a third of the cost of running the fridge which after all runs all day everyday.

The system gets installed in around a week, if the experience and the results stack up or if it doesn't I'll provide an update.

Decorative Screens Out-Door Room

2014-07-27T10:55:00.001+10:00

There a range of compressed hardwood decorative screens on the Market and they are cool. Decorative Screens do four things:

1) They reduce the impact of rain water entering your outdoor space and also reduce the effect of strong winds entering the outdoor room
2) Provide shade and or filter the light in a cool way
3) Provide a sense of enclosure and privacy
4) they look great

We installed these screen do all 4 things and they look great. It's still like "open" but "not" and the effect is breathtaking.

The Sreen sizes are typically 600 x 1200 mm but the challenge was to frame or mount them in such as was as not the have a heavy cumbersome frame thats look bulky and ugly and needs maintenance.
The solution was Anodised Aluminium square tubing using quick lock nylon connectors. Using self drilling SS metal screws and a lot of measuring to get it right making a 1800 x 1200 3 panel section or 600x 1800 side panel effect.
These screen frames were mounted in Merbau half hight walls lined on each side that matched the hight of the outdoor kitchen bench top. The outdoor room has three exit points which will remain open.

The cost of the panels can be a shock the the system, Chippy's in Ringwood stock "OutDeco" brand panels a charge a whopping $85 each for the "bungalow" patten design - its a rip off but they look great (they were used on Channel 9's The Block last year), so far I've used these on the front and side gates (see previous posts) and now in the new Outdoor Room. Bunnings had another design called "Beijing" that were on sale for $15.00 each... yes only $15, so I decided to use these at the other end of the outdoor room and they also look great, They are far enough away as to not look out of keeping with the overall effect of the new "enclosure" Combined with the Merbau half hight walls the effect is very pleasing.

The overall effect is that the Outdoor room is looking brilliant and a great place to be to have a kitchen, outdoor barbie and the solar powered LED TV to escape to. It brings the outside in and the inside out.

here are some snaps...