The Shed magazine February/March 2026 issue 125 on sale now
Going solar
Solar power seems like a great idea; who doesn’t want free power, right? But, what to choose, and what are the pitfalls of solar?
Regular The Shed writer, Andrew Broxholme, has just completed a large solar installation on his property and shares all the good, the bad, and the ugly aspects of his solar power journey.
I’m environmentally aware, but am not an environmentalist, so I’ve gone solar for only one reason, because it makes good financial sense to do so, that said it isn’t necessarily going to be right for everyone and its impact on your power bills will depend on where you are in New Zealand and the orientation and design of your house relative to where the sun rises and sets.
I’ve been interested in renewables for many years. I first looked at it while living in the UK. The early systems had promise, but really didn’t make financial sense as the cost of installation and ongoing maintenance wasn’t offset by big enough reductions in power bills. They wouldn’t repay that investment during their service life, which at the time was 15–20 years (maximum).
That’s no longer true, with higher volume, the equipment has got a lot cheaper, it is more efficient, but we have also seen huge increases in energy costs; this, in particular, changes the economics dramatically. That doesn’t, however, mean that you can buy the first solar system presented or recommended to you. Read on to find out why.
A life in harmony
There is such a thing as serendipity. When Paul Downie was 11 years old a chance meeting at his grandmother’s house was to eventually set him on a course that would define his career.
“I was learning the piano at the time and her friend had a harpsichord that he invited me over to see. I thought it was marvellous,” he recalls. “He told me I should build one and although it sounded like a ridiculous idea, it never went away.”
When he was 22, Paul embarked on the project, researching how to build a harpsichord, scouring junk shops for old tools, sawing bits of wood, and gluing them up until he had constructed the instrument.
“I enjoyed the whole process so much that when I was 23 I decided to build another one. I discovered that overseas museums had very detailed technical drawings of old instruments which you could buy – when they are restored everything about the instrument and the mechanisms are recorded.
“I went on to build two more harpsichords. The first one did work but it wasn’t up to the same standard so I ended up pulling it apart and my sister burnt it as fire wood,” he says laughing. “The others have survived and are owned by very good musicians.”
Create your own parrot-beaked pliers
A specialist tool we made in that Hatton Garden workshop where I served my time was parrot-beaked pliers. These are used by the ring-maker for hand-made gem settings. They present the setting in a ring at just the right angle so the jeweller can pierce and file the design of the setting.
The best pliers for this are a pair of heavy, flat-pointed pliers, known in the trade as snipe pliers. Good jeweller’s pliers can cost up to $50, so I save my students money by most often using second-hand electrician’s snipe pliers. You can pick these up at any market for used tools and they do just as well. I am still using the pair I made during my apprenticeship 50 years ago.
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