The Sustainable House

Michael Mobbs has lived in the Sustainable House since 1978 and began the process of making it sustainable in 1996. The house is on Myrtle Street (Michael is one of the prime movers behind the community garden) and there are regular tours where Michael talks candidly about what worked and what didn't work. Unlike the Smart Home, which is a high-end showcase for expensive technology, Michael and his experiences in the Sustainable House (he has also published an excellent book) show how each individual family can make steps towards living sustainably, starting with something as simple as a change to a water-efficient shower head.

Exterior view

Heath Robinson bell pull

Rustic stairs

Back garden

Nasturtium flowers for salad

Michael Mobbs

Ordinary livingroom

Interior decor

Curious chook

Chook run at the side of the house

Solar panels

Sunken pond to collect stormwater

Plants fed by "wicks" in pipes

Passion fruit flower

House from the rear

Grapes in the back yard

Beehive

Stingless bees (ideal for urban neighbourhoods)

Self-cleaning gutter

The back of the house

Kitchen - designed to maximise light

Kitchen windows

Inverter (converts output from solar panels into 240-volt AC power)