Amac Plains - Cabin at the foothills

First of all, welcome to Amac Plains. We have lived on this property for the past 10 years and have felt so lucky to call it home. We used to live in this little cabin with our kids before we moved into the second house on the property. We like to consider the environment in everything we do here at Amac Plains, so there are some important things to help you throughout your stay.



Use of POWER:
We are off-grid solar, but have recently upgraded our system which means general use of power is fine and generally we don’t need to worry about it. We do still use the gas stove top for the kettle and prefer you use the wood heater for heating.

During the cooler winter months when sunshine is limited, the power may run on the lower side, however we do have the generator which will turn on if too much power is being used at once, or if the batteries are low. So you will never be without power – however we try not to have the generator going unless absolutely necessary.



How to light and manage the FIRE:
- Make sure the vent is fully open, this is controlled by the silver knob at the front left of the fireplace. This controls the amount of airflow going to the fire. When lighting the fire, always have this knob as far left as possible, when the fire is going well, you can move this to half-way or even farther right to slow the fire down and have it running with less intensity
- Scrunch up 10-15 pages of newspaper separately and place in the fireplace
- On top of the newspaper, put plenty of sticks and smaller pieces of wood and kindling (feel free to collect plenty of sticks from the surrounding bushland, these are great for getting the fire going!)
- Try to start with the smallest pieces first, then put a few small-medium pieces on top of these - there are also firelighters which can assist with getting a fire going
- Light the newspaper in several spots and close the door of the fireplace
- Keep an eye on it initially, as you might need to put some more wood on the fire
- Once the fire is burning nicely, you can start to put some larger pieces on
- Once the larger pieces are burning well, you can turn the fire down a little bit by moving the silver knob slightly to the right
- The fireplace does have a fan to move the heat, there are three speeds. The control switch is located on the right hand side of the fireplace
- If you want to try and keep the fire going overnight, best to put in plenty of wood, let the wood burn well for a couple of minutes, then move the silver know as far to the right as it will go
- FIREWOOD: A small amount of firewood is supplied. If more is required, it is available to purchase. Please just let us know.


The AIR CONDITIONER/CEILING FANS:
There are ceiling fans in each of the rooms, to use these you just need to ensure the switch is on at the wall, then control it by the remote. Ceiling fans use very little power so these are fine to run overnight.


Using the OVEN:
- To use the hobs on top of the stove, simply push the knob in and turn to the right, you will hear it click a couple of times and it should ignite
- To use the oven, use the two knobs on the left-hand side. Second from the left controls the temperature
- Have the oven door ajar, push the temperature knob in and turn to the left, the gas should light at the bottom of the oven, hold the knob in for 5 seconds and then release
- To use the fan in the oven, turn the second from the left knob anti-clockwise two clicks

RUBBISH:
Unfortunately, our local rubbish collection does not have a recycling option as yet, so we just have general waste. So all rubbish can go in the same rubbish bag. Please put your rubbish bags in the blue bin at the front gate.

The PROPERTY:
We live in the white house near the cabin. We will not disturb you during your stay, but if you need me at all I am available via text message for any queries.

We do have dogs as well, but they will be kept away at all times. We have pens for our dogs, or they will be with us. You will not need to worry about our dogs interrupting your stay or interfering with your own pets.

You are more than welcome to wander around the property, there is approximately 60 acres of bushland to explore to the right of the cabin. We do ask that you avoid the bushland behind our house, but you are very welcome to wander along the driveway and to the dam. There is plenty of wildlife on the property, so be aware that if you are bringing dogs, that kangaroos, rabbits and wombats frequent the property. So walk your dog on a leash if you are concerned that they may chase the wildlife.

Bringing PETS:
If you are bringing along any furry companions, please be aware that there are chooks on the property, plus wildlife. At the end of your stay, please make sure to clean up any dog poo in the house yard.

The CHOOKS: We do have chooks that reside in a pen next to the cabin, if chooks aren't for you, just let us know and we can keep them locked up. Otherwise we do try to let them out most days for a few hours. There is a rooster, so you may hear him crowing. Please feel free to check for any eggs in the hatch at the back of the pen, you are very welcome to any eggs you collect.


On DEPARTURE/CHECK-OUT:
- Please put all towels in a pile in the bathroom
- Please strip any beds used of their sheets, pillow and quilt covers (leave mattress protectors on) and place these in a pile in the bedrooms
- Please put all dishes away, if the dishwasher needs to be run, please start it before your departure
- Empty rubbish bin in the house and drop rubbish in the blue bin at the front gate on your way out
- Return keys to the key safe