Stopping draughts is cheap and extremely effective.

“If you seal a building, you can increase its energy efficiency by 30 to 40 per cent,” says environmental building consultant Jan Brandjes. “Whenever there’s a slight pressure difference between inside and outside, air will always travel through gaps. It’s like a pinhole in the bottom of an aquarium.”

Because of draughts, the air in an average Victorian house is replaced 1.5 times every hour on a calm day, according to Mr Brandjes. In strong winds, the exchange rate can be up to 20 times per hour. “Fixing air leakage is the cheapest and easiest way to save energy,” he says.

Common leaks include exhaust fans, wall vents, downlights, and chimneys and evaporative coolers (without dampers). There are usually cracks around doors, windows, skirting boards, cornices and floorboards. Also watch out for gaps around internal doors to heated areas and to ventilated rooms such as bathrooms or toilets.

Hardware stores sell a wide range of draught-excluders, weather-strips, caulking compounds and fillers. “Most people can seal the majority of leaks by themselves for very little money,” Mr Brandjes says. He estimates that gap-sealing materials for the average house will cost DIYers about $200.

To get the best results, however, Mr Brandjes suggests hiring professionals, such as Air Barrier Technologies, to test and draught-proof your home. An expert job on a difficult house can cost over $1000, including labour. “Even then, it’s a good investment with a short payback period,” he says.

More information

Eco-paints are good for your health and for the planet.

 It might signify a job well done, but that new paint smell can be bad for you. The volatile organic compounds (VOCs) in conventional paint give off low-level toxic fumes that can worsen asthma and cause headaches, among other health problems. They also add to air pollution. “On exterior surfaces, the ‘off-gasing’ of VOCs produces smog,” says Daniel Wurm, from Green Painters. Happily, there are eco-friendly options.

Low VOC

Most brands offer low VOC coatings in the full range of colours, for about the same price as premium grade paints. To avoid greenwash, Mr Wurm recommends products bearing the Good Environmental Choice Australia tick. It certifies that the product is low VOC and that its manufacturing process met environmental performance standards.

Natural paints

“If you’re serious about making a difference to the environment you can’t beat natural paints,” Mr Wurm says. They’re made from renewable or highly abundant resources such as clay, linseed oil and citrus oil, and come in a wide range of colours. The only catch is cost: up to double the price of standard paints. “But in comparison to a house, it’s still a very small amount,” he says.

Heat reflective paints

Exterior paints are now available that are both insulating and low VOC. “They can cut your cooling costs by up to 40 per cent,” Mr Wurm says “They reflect solar radiation so they stop the heat from getting into your house in the first place.”

Scratch around with backyard bantams

“Chooks have personalities,” says poultry enthusiast Debra Maffescioni. “In a group, there’ll be a shy chook and there’ll be one that runs straight up to you. They’re sensational pets.”

Conveniently, they also produce food – if you treat them right, you’ll get fresh, organic, free-range eggs. And if you’re a gardener, chicken poo is free fertiliser.

Ms Maffescioni’s business, Book A Chook, supplies (either for hire or purchase) everything you need to keep hens. She recommends that city dwellers keep smaller bantam chickens, rather than full size birds, which need more space and can be destructive. Most bantams lay an egg every second day (weighing about 45 grams). They’re easy to care for, even if you’ve got other pets. “Cats don’t bother chooks,” Ms Maffescioni says, “and most dogs can be trained to accept them. Visiting dogs are the biggest threat.”

Regulations

Check with your local council – each one has different rules. Nearly all will let you keep at least a few chooks without a permit. Most don’t allow roosters, but be sure to find out. “Keeping a rooster is good for the hens,” Ms Maffescioni says. “If you can do it, I’d highly recommend you do.”

Expenses

Pure breed bantams cost between $25 and $40. September is hatching time, but hens are in demand, so it’s a good idea to put your request in early. Ask Poultry Stud Breeders and Exhibitors Victoria for a list of local poultry clubs and reputable breeders.

Ms Maffescioni estimates that it costs about 20 cents per day to feed a fowl. Serve up table scraps and chook pellets or seed mix, available from pet shops and stockfeed suppliers.

Essentials

Bantams don’t need a lot of space – so long as you provide dirt for dust bathing, even an inner city courtyard will be enough room for two. They’re social animals, so you need to keep more than one. Chooks need shade, shelter and water. The coop must be fox-proof, and have a roost for sleeping and a nesting box for laying.

Recycling food and garden waste is a win-win scenario.

Think composts smell bad? Permaculture gardener and compost advocate Adam Grubb says it needn’t be so. “A good compost smells like a rainforest.” What’s more, it harvests nutrients for your garden and reduces greenhouse gas emissions from landfill.

Grubb’s business, Very Edible Gardens, runs two-hour composting courses. “To get the balance right, every time you put in food scraps or something green, you should add something brown as well, like soaked cardboard, straw or autumn leaves.”

Worm farm

If you’ve got mostly kitchen scraps (not much garden waste), a worm farm is best. They cost about $80, or you can make one using polystyrene veggie boxes. Worms cost about $50 for 1000.

“They’ll quickly turn your food scraps into worm castings – black gold for gardeners,” Grubb says. He also recommends worm farms for apartment dwellers, “so they can turn balconies into mini food-gardens.” Bokashi Buckets are a super-compact alternative. “They’re great for dealing with meat scraps, but the result isn’t full of the best biology for your garden.”

Compost bin

A regular compost bin works well for green clippings and food scraps. Before you buy, contact your council for discount offers. If the bin doesn’t have air holes, Grubb suggests you use a drill to add ventilation.

Hot compost

To kick-start a new garden, make a cubic metre batch of compost. Layer green waste, manure, food scraps and straw, and turn it regularly. “If the pile is really big, it heats up in the middle and breaks down rapidly,” Grubb says.