Back to all listings

Backyard Bazaars

Domestic Apple Wood Biochar Aquarium Filter Producer

Pyrolyse domestic apple tree prunings into high-purity activated biochar granules for aquarium water filtration.

Startup Cost: £35 Location: Hybrid Difficulty: Medium Potential repeatable business A few hours a week

Earning and time figures are our broad estimates, not guarantees — actual results depend on your area, your effort and demand.

Why it's left-field

Fish keepers buy bags of crushed apple wood charcoal burned in your garden retort to purify home fish tank water.

How it works

  1. 1Collect clean timber prunings from domestic apple trees during winter pruning.
  2. 2Heat twigs inside a sealed dual-drum garden retort to produce high-carbon biochar.
  3. 3Crush biochar into 3mm granules, rinse, package, and list on aquarium supply forums.

Official platforms

Some links on this page are affiliate links. If you sign up through one, we may earn a small commission at no extra cost to you — it helps fund the sanctuary, and we only recommend platforms we'd use ourselves.

Get the Selling Crafts & Natural Materials kit (£5)

Explore similar

Backyard Bazaars

Homegrown Dried Herb Bundle Seller

Bundles of home-dried mint, rosemary, thyme and lavender — grown in a bed or pots — sell as kitchen and craft staples at markets and online.

Startup cost: Startup Cost: £10-£20Location: Location: Home/MarketsDifficulty: Difficulty: EasyEarning potential: Useful side incomeTime needed: A few hours a week

Why it's left-field

Supermarket herbs cost pennies but arrive damp and wilted; a beautiful dried bundle from a real garden looks generous and sells at craft-fair prices.

Backyard Bazaars

Upcycled Drawer Planter Maker

Old wooden drawers become charming herb and salad planters — salvaged free from skips and refits, then sold filled with plants at markets.

Startup cost: Startup Cost: £10-£20Location: Location: Home/MarketsDifficulty: Difficulty: EasyEarning potential: Useful side incomeTime needed: A few hours a week

Why it's left-field

The materials cost nothing and the finished piece looks deliberately rustic, which is precisely what garden buyers pay extra for.

Backyard Bazaars

Pet Memorial Stone Painter

Hand-painted stones with a pet's name and dates — made from free or cheap stone — sell steadily to grieving owners who want something personal.

Startup cost: Startup Cost: £10-£20Location: Location: Remote/HomeDifficulty: Difficulty: EasyEarning potential: Useful side incomeTime needed: A few hours a week

Why it's left-field

Grief doesn't check price lists, and a painted stone made to order feels irreplaceable in a way mass-produced plaques never do.