Heating?

[Anonymous]

With the latest news of dwindling gas and oil supplies (the predicted fuel price rises) and Blair saying electric energy from renewable and god help us nuclear energy is the future, how will we be heating our houses in the coming decades?, will we all have to rip out our oil and gas boilers pipes and radiators to install storage heaters or similar, how will the average bod afford this? Isnt it typical that we have to address this when the oil and gas is nearly all gone and not a decade ago!

 

[Anonymous]

We are sticking with solid fuel until something better comes along! No, not perfect I know.

I agree - it's a difficult choice at the moment. Windfarms are becoming a blight on many a beautiful landscape, and I remain unconvinced that they are the future. Ditto nuclear.

Of course, wind is making some people rich, and that's why it's being heavily promoted. If zillions had been invested in looking at alternatives a decade ago we may now be rather nearer a solution.

 

[Anonymous]

My very wise grandfather counselled against being reliant on only one type of fuel. His theory was that, should the supply fail, one would be up the proverbial gum-tree. So he made sure that he always had an electric kettle, a gas hob, some portable gas lamps, and at least one open fire.

 

[Anonymous]

We are feeling the same way about our prospective move to the wilds of Northumberland, and researching the options available (no central heating in the property), with the environment in mind, we came across wood boilers. Apparently burning wood is a zero carbon rating as you are only releasing carbon dioxide that was taken up by the plant when it grew. You can get wood boilers that use logs, ones that use pellets (which are made from recycled wood) and those that use shavings and straw bales (farm sized).

Unfortunately the only automatic feeders are pellet burners, and prices for boiler and instillation are likely to be in excess of £10k. So not actually an option for us!

We are opting for oil central heating (which is now considered the equivalent rating of LPG - it is the efficiency of the boiler which is most important), a log burning stove in the sitting room (and one in the main bedroom when we can afford it), and LPG cooking. Plus geothermal and solar for water and under floor when we can afford it -way down on the list at the moment!

The wood burner is our immediate priority as currently we have only an electric bar fire in the sitting room with complementary strip lighting inside the inglenook for ambiance, and wall mounted fan heaters! (the property is currently a holiday cottage)

 

[Anonymous]

One thing worth remebering - if the gas runs out, the electricity will go ut - we rely on gas to power the stations these days. Coal is too dirty and is being phased out.

 

[Anonymous]

Wilds of Northumberland? I'll have you know it's remarkably civilised really! Apart from some of the natives of course, we can be downright scary.

 

[Anonymous]

Evelyn.....I wholeheartedly agree with you (except for the nuclear bit) wind is a nonsense and has been given too much of the R&D budget for too long and is essentially a means for big business to be paid subsidies. The developer of the wind farm near to me will be paid millions in subsidy to operate this which will off-set their costs in running 4 airports which serve the budget airlines (air travel is the fastest growing and most damaging source of CO2) and a leisure shopping destination which generates millions of tonnes of CO2 from millions of pointless car journeys each year.

To the original poster (and to get back to something more linked with property matters) - I think you'd struggle to get anything out of solar in the North of England.
Invest your money in the best insulation you can buy and the most efficient boiler.

BTW, loft insulation is half price at B&Q at the moment (but not sheep's wool insulation)

 

[Anonymous]

Oil/gas are also CO2 neutral when looked at over the right timescale - its just a question of rate of absorbtion v release. Wood grows more quickly than oil is formed, but we are still depleting it more quickly than it is replaced.

 

[Anonymous]

It's a major issue in Northumberland at the moment - with big business linking up with farmers to put up 'small' windfarms in beautiful scenery. Of course, the usual glossy brochures and supplements with the Hexham Courant are being peddled. It's amazing what#####those making zillions are prepared to write. Once one 'small' windfarm is given permission, it will be impossible to resist other applications.

I have major concerns re the safety of nuclear.

And I'm totally against cheap air travel and Stansted expansion! The environmental costs are huge, and not being paid for by those making fat profits.



http://www.stopstanstedexpansion.com

 

[Anonymous]

We are actually planting trees quicker than they are being cut down in this country.

However, for water heating, I would like a solar heating system, but can't really justify yet.

If gas prices stays high, and gets even higher we will no doubt find alternatives. Systems such as district heating from incineration, biogas production, will become more prevelant.

 

[Anonymous]

This is very sensible, and indeed something I try to do.

I have a real fire (I tend to use smokeless coal), gas central heating, and can heat the hot water with gas or electric.

 

[Anonymous]

Here, here. We're not wild are we.
Try going to the Otterburn Moors (out of the Army's firing season in spring) and find their wooden tank sillhouettes - they'll keep the stove going for a bit
Don't put any round/oval bits of brass looking metal into the stove though - at least not if you don't want to have a 100% rebuild job your house!

 

[Anonymous]

"Oil/gas are also CO2 neutral when looked at over the right timescale "
That's a 200 million year timescale you're talking about? No, no, no. Oil and gas are most definately not carbon neutral. Burning them releases CO2 that was locked up many millions of years ago. It's time we faced reality and stopped risking humankind's existance on the planet. We need every bit of sustainable energy production we can get hold of. Stop getting jealous about someone making a living out of wind farms. There's 20 turbines going up near my house and, yes, the farmer will earn more from the site rent than he did from the sheep that will soon have someting to scratch their back's against. More importantly 18% of East Lindsey District's electricity will be produced sustainably without CO2 emmissions.
If you've got mains gas, Powergen have just started selling the Whispergen domestic combined heat and power boiler. It generates electricity while it heats the central heating water. It will eek out what's left of the gas. Scottish and Southern Electricity are selling the Swift rooftop turbine - a bit more noticeable than a Sky dish but at least it will do something useful, and not much more expensive than a home cinema system.

 

[Anonymous]

Mmmm - yes, Biff, 200 million years is exactly the timescale that I am talking about, my point being that saying something is CO2 neutral is not the same as saying its renewable/sustainable.

The modern economy can no more be powered by burning wood than it can be by burning oil.

I agree with you about windfarms, and I am not sure the prior post about "something turning up" is good enough to reassure me.

I think we need to invent perfect superconductors that can be dumped into the core of the sun, with the other end being used to boil ice moons to produce steam to drive turbines to power our spcae stations that we will all live in by 2020

 

[Anonymous]

If I could have afforded it as my roof is being done as I write (they are probably packing up for the day now though) I was going to get this system bolted onto the roof.
It's a direct water to panel to tank method and was developed in Edinburgh so should be suitable in NE England, especially as I am a one person household.
You would need backup for winter time hot water though it doesn't need direct sunshine.
It doesn't need planning permit either though a listed building is probably a different tank of hot water.
Add a small wind turbine (some are specially built to be low vibration and can fit to the gable end of a house or on a pole in the garden) and it would go a long way to helping - although the initial cost of producing the bits will be quite high in financial and environmental terms.
I suspect that it won't be long before new builds have to be as energy self sufficient as possible and houses which aren't will become difficult to sell.



http://www.solartwin.com/

 

[Anonymous]

>>More importantly 18% of East Lindsey District's electricity will be produced sustainably without CO2 emmissions

 

[Anonymous]

I see you've taken that from Ecotricity's marketing blurb. If you want I'll show you how their figures are a gross misrepresentation of the truth, but this forum may not be the most appropriate. Let me know and I'll direct you to another site where we can have a more detailed discussion

 

[Anonymous]

You mean this one, Nigel?


Powerswitch

 

[Anonymous]

I think I've got one of them in my shed, cmcwilliam. <IMG SRC="http://www.periodproperty.co.uk/discussing/smileys/wink.gif" BORDER=0 ALT="">

 

[Anonymous]

I haven't seen that before, thank you. I was thinking of Yes2wind.