Ditching gas, going electric immersion only, a wee project

Solarchaser

I think I need you to expand on what you mean to be honest.
I know the times of day demand is highest... but, those can be quite different for different days, I can finish early or late, the days can be OK, cold, freezing etc and so the demand will vary with each scenario 

Freepost

Just lurking and then 70sbudgie went and mentioned standard deviation ................ argh, I'm reasonably good at arithmetic but then found myself to be sihte at maths. When 70sbudgie mentioned SD did he really mean;

         
;-) F.

70sbudgie

Ha ha ha! I was mostly just being cheeky. I have actually forgotten all the formula for SD. But thinking about it now, a useful metric would be to plot a count of your daily consumption (kWhr on the x axis, count on the y). That should give you a bell curve of consumption and frequency. The peak should be your mean (but might be offset?). The spread is related to the SD, so don't really need to know the formula to use the information. The optimum system size will be somewhere on the down slope of the bell curve. Off the top of my head, perhaps at the 85% mark? Not 85% of the max capacity, but 85% of the count? You know you can get the additional 15% by topping up with peak rate electricity on the occaision you need it, but the rest of the time the system can handle it. 

If you really get into the data crunching, you may be able to identify seasonal requirements for different numbers of tanks. Ultimately giving you, almost a geared system, that operates at optimum efficiencies for low, medium and high demand.

Freepost

I'd like to say that I'd forgotten the formula but in truth I never remembered it in the first place.

F.

Reed_Richards

Solarchaser said:

Ahh well now, I have to say this week I've been eating some humble pie from Ken and Chris, and even from Reed_Richards as well as eating quite a bit of peak rate electric

I can't think what you're referring to but "even from Reed_Richards" made me laugh.

gefnew

Just a random thought but could you use evacuated tube system to also help in using solar gain in the tank with a extra loop coil fitted in the new extra cylinder you are installing.

Martyn1981

gefnew said:

Just a random thought but could you use evacuated tube system to also help in using solar gain in the tank with a extra loop coil fitted in the new extra cylinder you are installing.

I was wondering that too ..... or bite the bullet and go with a heatpump, just don't tell wifey ..... till it's too late.

Solarchaser

Reed_Richards said:

Solarchaser said:

Ahh well now, I have to say this week I've been eating some humble pie from Ken and Chris, and even from Reed_Richards as well as eating quite a bit of peak rate electric

I can't think what you're referring to but "even from Reed_Richards" made me laugh.

Ahh, then let me explain,  Ken and Chris on this thread and even from you in another thread, so the even was to do with it not even being related to this discussion, rather than the even being to do with you.

I accept the way I worded it wasn't great, and I can see why you would think it was a dig at you, but honestly it wasn't, it was a dig at myself saying I wasn't just wrong here, in this single thread, but so wrong that I'm wrong in another thread altogether too.
Apologies for the poor wording which I agree did look like a dig at you, hopefully you can see what I meant was a dig at myself with my explanation. 

So the what?
In the sunamp thread I said I'd sorted thermal loss from water movement with a combination of one way valves and loops, however the radiators being warm 2 hours after the pump stops says the one way valves and loops are not controlling the water movement, so I was wrong.

Solarchaser

gefnew said:

Just a random thought but could you use evacuated tube system to also help in using solar gain in the tank with a extra loop coil fitted in the new extra cylinder you are installing.

I could, and I'd really like to, but I can't.

The tanks are under the house, evacuated tubes would need to go on the roof, (wife would definitely not have them on the deck) and when you add in the piping, pump and connections its just too much.

I've tried to have a conversation about a heat pump in the last few weeks when I noted the off peak wasn't enough, but it was a firm no.
She would rather be cold than have a big ugly box thing ruining the look of her garden apparently. 

After me saying the house hasn't been cold, it was cold today, the tank temp was 50C before I noticed and that's enough to maintain temperature, but not enough to bring it up, or at least not in the hour I gave it before switching on the fake fire, the stat was clicking at 16C, and thats no good for wifey.
Fake fire lifted the livingroom up, but I definitely need to sort a controller to kick on when it goes below 60C to get the house to warm.
I set the eddi to heat, but as I mentioned before, that only maintains the temperature when central heating is running, doesn't raise it.
Been between -10 and -6 today, so I dont think that heat pump plus rads would be a good solution for this 1950's house, 50C is just not enough to overcome that sort of chill in today's experience, and there doesn't seem to be too many do over 50C.

Reed_Richards

Solarchaser said:

Apologies for the poor wording which I agree did look like a dig at you, hopefully you can see what I meant was a dig at myself with my explanation. 

No need to apologise, I didn't really think it was a dig at me and even if it had been, I really don't mind a gentle dig every so often.