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  • PLANET MECHANICS

DESCRIPTION

Planet Mechanics features Dick Strawbridge and Jem Stansfield – two eco-engineers who use ingenuity, resourcefulness and humour to confront ecological challenges head on. Travelling around the U.K. and Europe to help people lower their energy consumption with the environmentally-friendly technology of the future. From catapulting themselves on the first registered air-propelled motorbike to taming a fuel guzzling grain dryer with cow manure, this dynamic duo shows how a little creativity can go a long way in helping our world.

EPISODE GUIDE

  • Planet Mechanics: Air Propelled Sandwich
    Meet Dick Strawbridge & Jem Stansfield – two eco-engineers who travel around the U.K. & Europe, using ingenuity, resourcefulness & humour to help people lower their energy consumption.
  • Planet Mechanics: Cow Power
    Dick Strawbridge and Jem Stansfield bring their unique brand of eco-engineering to a farm in Devon in southwest England. They want to tackle the problem of fossil fuel consumption in agriculture and set their sights on a massive grain-drying machine which burns enough diesel in one day to run a small family car for a whole year. Our Planet Mechanics come up with an ambitious plan to fuel the drier using cow manure. With the help of farmer Andy Barnes and his three teenage sons they construct a biogas plant that will harness the natural methane gas given off by dung.
  • Planet Mechanics: Electric Water Taxi
    Invited by former Olympic sailor Alberto Sonino, Dick and Jem travel to Venice, Italy, to help save one of the world's most beautiful cities from the damaging effect of boat pollution.
  • Planet Mechanics: Heavy Metal House
    Eco-engineers Dick and Jem tackle Britain's affordable housing crisis by turning cheap and plentiful shipping containers into economical and sustainable homes of the future.
  • Planet Mechanics: Solar Paella
    The Planet Mechanics travel to Southern Spain to face their toughest challenge yet - to try and harness solar energy. They join forces with a solar enthusiast who’s planning to convert a traditional Spanish ranch into a renewable energy eco-farm. Will they be able to overcome the extreme heat and push their mechanical barriers to the limits as they try to build cutting edge machines to convert solar and wind power into useful mechanical energy?
  • Planet Mechanics: Surf Power
    Dick Strawbridge and Jem Stansfield bring their unique brand of eco-engineering to the west coast of Ireland and undertake a wave power project. They want to take on the Atlantic Ocean and generate green electricity for surfers Keith and Rosy. The challenge for Dick and Jem is to power up their portable surf shack a caravan (an RV) using simple resources and a limited amount of time. With practical experiments and demonstrations, the Planet Mechanics devise a huge wave energy converter based on some surplus sewer pipe and bolt it to a concrete pier. But will it survive the ravages of the sea? And can it really generate the electricity required?
  • Planet Mechanics: Tree Powered Truck
    The Planet Mechanics pull out every stop for the finale of the series… they run a pickup truck on WOOD! and they drive it through the streets of London. Dick and Jem come to the aid of a group of discerning environmentalists, the London-based regeneration organization, Trees for Cities. These modern-day eco-activists are 21st Century tree planting pioneers and are on track to have planted 1 million trees in the capital by 2012. They are based in the heart of London and our dynamic mechanical duo turn one of their vehicles into the ultimate recycling machine. Dick and Jem turn an old pickup truck into a Franken-vehicle and power the engine by burning waste wood off-cuts.
  • Planet Mechanics: Water War
    Eco engineers Dick Strawbridge and Jem Stansfield are the Planet Mechanics. Their mission is the rescue of Black Sail Hut, England's most remote and hugely popular hiker's hostel. Very soon, Black Sail finds itself without access to electricity and may have to close. Dick and Jem have been invited to find a solution while the clock ticks against them. Their only allies in this battle are the elements that raw nature can provide them with: wind and water. With a couple of ambitious solutions in mind, they set about building machines that can generate the greenest electricity possible and hope that it's enough to save Black Sail.
  • Planet Mechanics: Water Wars
    Racing against time, can they find ways to generate enough electricity to save Black Sail Hut; England's most remote and popular hikers hostel.
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