How to make everything yourself - online low-tech resources
Low-tech SolutionsManuals and tutorials for low-tech solutions.
Articles by Kris De Decker
-
Rings of Fire: Hoffmann Kilns
Obsolete technologyDepending on the size of the kiln, it took between one and six weeks for the fire to complete a full circle.
-
-
-
Wind Powered Factories: History (and Future) of Industrial Windmills
Obsolete TechnologyWould it make sense to revive the industrial windmill and again convert kinetic energy directly into mechanical energy?
-
Water Powered Cable Trains
Obsolete TechnologyCable trains (or funiculars) are one of the most energy-efficient modes of transport out there.
-
Get Wired (Again): Trolleybuses and Trolleytrucks
Low-tech SolutionsTrolleybuses and trolleytrucks have all the advantages of electric cars — and none of their drawbacks.
-
The Monster Footprint of Digital Technology
High-tech ProblemsThe embodied energy of the memory chip alone exceeds the energy consumption of a laptop during its life expectancy of 3 years.
-
Small Windmills Put to the Test
High-tech ProblemsWind power rules, but commercially available small windmills are a swindle.
-
Cargo Ships, Then and Now
Low-tech SolutionsTime for a new age of sail.
-
Who Killed the Electric Grid? Fast-charging Electric Cars
High-tech ProblemsFast recharging times generate lots of excitement, but what seems to be forgotten is that they can lead to a fabulous amount of peak demand.
-
Sunbathing in the Living Room: Oven Stoves and Heat Walls
Low-tech SolutionsOven stoves are greener, more efficient, healthier, safer and cosier than all modern heating systems. Why are they gone and how do we get them back?
-
Tiles as a Substitute for Steel: The Art of the Timbrel Vault
Obsolete technologyThe craftsmanship associated with timbrel vaulting has long vanished, but the achievements are still with us today.
-
Urban windmills harm the environment
High-tech ProblemsA small windmill on your roof or in the garden is an attractive idea. Unfortunately, commercially available micro wind turbines deliver hardly enough energy to power a light bulb.
-
A Steam Powered Submarine: The Ictíneo
Obsolete TechnologyNarcís Monturiol successfully resolved the two basic obstacles presented to submarine inventors: air supply and mechanical power.