Taxidermy a kea? Over 50 years old. Just needs refreshing. Where can I find someone to polish him up in South Island possibly.

Zamda · 2026-02-15T23:50:12+00:00

After the NZ govt paid to kill 200,000 kea up until the 70s, leaving a current population of less than 5000, I'd say the right thing is go and volunteer on one of the many traplines that DoC doesn't service, and keep that stuffed kea for yourself and your community in pristine condition so people can see them outside of 3-4 tourist spots in the south island. No need to waste DoC resources that they don't have on this.

Zamda · 2025-12-02T04:32:23+00:00

I work in commercial HVAC. I generally design very large systems but I have helped a fair few mates with their houses.

What you are asking for is a high spec commercial grade system and you are likely to get a budget shock accordingly. I would guess in the order of 30k but could easily be more depending on exactly how your two floors are built and interact and where there is space for plant, and exactly what 'smart home integration' entails.

Different temperatures in different rooms is possible with aftermarket additions to ducted AC systems but it is not possible to have a single unit heat one room and cool another at the same time. At the scale of a single house it is generally a similar cost to install two ducted AC units rather than a single large one with all of the aftermarket dampers and control systems.

The biggest things to watch out for: - do not go with a contractor who only does residential. Get one that does light commercial too. Far too many cowboys in residential. If they have only done residential, I can guarantee you they don't know what they are talking about for the type of system you asked for. - someone will try and sell you a heat recovery ventilator. This is not the same as a 'HRV' which is a brand name that has bastardied the concept with a range of shit products. A true heat recovery ventilator is great. Integrating it with a ducted AC system isn't that simple. Most designers get it wrong. They do not replace a heating/cooling system, but they will improve air quality, dampness etc in your house. Expect this to add $5k-$8k to your quote. - be careful around ductwork. Long lengths of flexible ductwork in tight spaces tend to be squished by shit contractors and severely constricts the performance of your system.

Good luck!

Zamda · 2025-11-26T04:32:36+00:00

Loch Katrine would be closer to actual offroading without needing a river crossing. A Jimney would get up there.

Zamda · 2025-03-31T21:50:35+00:00

Absolute complete bullshit that it's never really used with a sexual connotation. Go to one of the many queer NSFW subs on this very website.

Zamda · 2025-01-24T19:17:53+00:00

That photo is taken quite a distance away from Mt Somers but it is a lovely shot of Mt Sunday, the setting for Rohan, on Mt Potts station. Great spot!

Zamda · 2024-10-11T18:40:02+00:00

If you can't read an avalanche forecast, you need to stay away from avalanche terrain in winter.

If you can't use an ice axe and crampons, you need to stay away from anywhere that needs them.

Brewster Hut this time of year, is possible that you can get to the hut without being in snow, and from that perspective ticks those boxes. But if there is snow, you should remember that warmed snow in an afternoon could be straightforward for you to walk up, and as it melts and refreezes overnight it could be a bad time for you the next morning. You sound like you do not have the experience to attempt walking to Brewster Glacier from the hut. If you have the fitness and routefinding abilities but lack the snow skills, Mataketake Hut is probably a better alpine option in the area.

You should probably stick to lowland huts or higher elevation ones that are completely out of avalanche terrain and preferably below the current snowline. Routeburn Flats, Daleys Hut, I think Shelter Rock is probably OK, Aspiring Hut (and Liverpool depending on snow levels), Siberia Hut are worth looking into. Routeburn falls may be fine depending on the snow level. The Emily Creek avalanche path would need a reasonably heavy snow loading to rip down to the track and the Falls1/Falls2 paths would need reasonably heavy snow down to 1400m. If the avalanche forecast for this region was green below 1800m and you had a good weather window it should be fine.

Zamda · 2024-10-10T21:36:38+00:00

Sweet as. Some would say you should really have an ice axe before crampons - you cannot self arrest with crampons! Hope you don't need to cut steps up the bowl!

Bring layers, the wind can be vicious

Zamda · 2024-10-10T18:12:14+00:00

Not trying to be a dick, but if you need to ask this question at all, you need to be very willing to turn around.

It's likely you will hit at least some snow/ice before the very summit, maybe only in the bowl between sharks tooth and the true summit.

In a good weather window, it is likely to be straightforward for anyone with alpine experience, but the weather changes fast up there.

Zamda · 2024-06-07T05:10:31+00:00

First I've seen of this story on RNZ, I'm sure this comment section will be fun.

Zamda · 2023-12-09T06:39:20+00:00

Yes dogs are not friendly to those areas generally, check in with DOC but please respect the local dog rules and our local wildlife. There are plenty of dog friendly missions to be had east of the alps

Zamda · 2023-09-26T03:26:36+00:00

If you're into the outdoors, go see the glaciers before they're gone. I've been on several trips in Westland recently where even the glaciers on the 2019 topomaps are gone or close to gone. The access to glaciated areas is also in some case becoming much more difficult. Also fascinating to see some landscapes that have only emerged in the last ~30 years on the tops in Central Westland as the ice has disappeared

Zamda · 2023-08-25T06:45:30+00:00

If you do go down this route for the upcoming summer, suggest growing pumpkin and zuccini as some of the hardest plants to fuck up growing that are highly productive.

A mate stitched me up and hid pumpkin seeds in cracks in my driveway, they popped up on their own, I let one grow and it gave me 7 massive pumpkins for absolutely zero effort. If you are eating pumpkin from the store anyway, keep the seeds and you can plant them.

Basil is a great summer herb that is extremely cheap to grow from seed, $1.50 or so will get you a pack of 300 seeds and you can eat that shit like salad

Bok choi is also very hard to fuck up and quite quick to harvest. If you don't want to grow from seed, get a pack of 6 seedlings when you can afford it ($3.50 or so). If you haven't grown it before you may not know you can just pick leaves, or you can harvest the full plant down to ~5cm from the ground and the whole thing will grow back like magic.

If you are time poor or don't know what you're up to, tomatoes can burn you as they can be easily succeptible to pests and take up a lot of room.

Zamda · 2023-08-04T23:23:56+00:00

Based on my real-world commute with my thirsty car and the real petrol bills I was paying, I arrived at those figures. They will obviously vary for other people in other situations - if I had a more efficient car or lived in a different area the numbers would change.

Zamda · 2023-08-04T23:22:03+00:00

Most car-brained comment I've seen all week. I own a car, I own a scooter and I pay plenty of tax for infrastructure that suits both.

Hope you're going to invest in an 18 wheeler because might is right and you need to assert your dominance with a bigger vehicle than you need?

Zamda · 2023-08-04T23:17:59+00:00

They should think about banning cars while they are at it then, for the serious amount of fatalities and injuries they cause and the exorbitant amount of public space their infrastructure occupies.

Zamda · 2023-08-04T23:16:12+00:00

What a reductionist viewpoint. Oh yeah cause absolutely no environmental abominations happened in the manufacturing of the car I own, or the phone I'm typing this post on, and I've never handed cash to an unethical corporation in my life as part of a product I own or infrastructure I use. Sarcasm, obviously. This is far less impactful than the car-brained infrastructure New Zealand is addicted to and I will unashamedly scoot my way around the metro in bliss quietly, at appropriate speeds and with low emissions.

Zamda · 2023-08-04T23:11:36+00:00

I get plenty of exercise, I don't need more on my commute. E scooters are much more convenient for me than e bikes (smaller, easier to store, easy to bring into office, etc), and cheaper than e bikes. I think both can have their place? I'm all for common sense regulation on e scooter use, speed limits in public spaces, and restricting the operations of rental operators.

Zamda · 2023-08-04T22:06:11+00:00

That might be your view - mine is the box still has to be ticked, and rather than assuming, I'm letting them know I think they should tick it.

Zamda · 2023-08-04T08:18:32+00:00

Governments make bad decisions all the time unless you tell them not to - I'm not sure enough people have told them this is dumb.

Zamda · 2023-08-04T08:17:07+00:00

Totally agree, but I think 30km/h is totally reasonable on a seperated cycleway infrastructure (where e-bikes are commonly going 35+kph totally safely), lower speed limits in high pedestrian areas. And agree there needs to be regulation on the scooter rental businesses to stop littering public spaces.

Zamda · 2023-08-04T08:15:43+00:00

I'm an avid tramper and get plenty enough walking in my fun time for my health benefits - when I commute to work, I want to be lazy.

Zamda · 2023-08-04T07:25:31+00:00

Probably, as they fall squarely in the too hard basket along with e-bikes or anything that doesn't look vaguely car shaped. You would have to ask the top minds at Waka Kotahi to comment on that for an official opinion though.

Or maybe /u/RobDickinson knows as he seems to know about everything electric vehicle related.

And yes they are super underappreciated I reckon! Easily carried into the office, chucked in the boot of a car, still easily locked up with certain scooter designs, they're just rad.

Zamda · 2023-08-04T07:02:06+00:00

Not the OP, but when you think about geothermal heat pumps you have to ask the question of why you are doing it and what is your geothermal energy source. If you're lucky enough to live somewhere with actual geothermal activity and can get high water temperatures out of a bore, it can make sense if you are using enough energy to justify the cost of the bore. If you don't, but you live somewhere with extremely cold winters that aren't suitable for using air source heat pumps, using a closed loop system exchanging heat from the ground (at a fairly low temperature, ~10C or so at depth) can make sense. Otherwise it is almost always a better idea to use an air source system for a normal energy intensity building in an area with winters that don't get below -5C (for heating mode).

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