Green, ethical, energy issues in the news

Exiled_Tyke · 21 October 2018 at 8:59AM

michaels wrote: »

It is an interesting question, what is more efficient for space heating, a fan heater or the exhaust from a portable ac unit?

I am thinking the exhaust will be bringing outside air in and thus expelling already warm inside air but I guess it depends how the portable unit is configured.

I'd guess that the question of pulling air in from outside won't really be an issue as we are talking about a big leaky building here. I'm guessing that it loses a lot of its existing heat by air rising up and leaking out. In which case new air must come in. If most of that air is coming in pre-heated that could be more effective than trying to heat once it's in.

The real question are: does an a/c unit turned around have a similar efficiency (i.e. around 3-4 times) of an ASHP. And after all the practical considerations (such as were do you position the unit) is it still worth while trying.

Personally I'd give it a go: monitor the electric usage and do a very subjective 'feel test' against a fan heater. The other question I have is 'Would the outside temperature damage the unit in any way?'

Martyn1981 · 21 October 2018 at 4:19PM

Exiled_Tyke wrote: »

Personally I'd give it a go: monitor the electric usage and do a very subjective 'feel test' against a fan heater. The other question I have is 'Would the outside temperature damage the unit in any way?'

Exactly where I was going, then I had another idea, heat pads, the gel types, but they don't last long enough and cost too much ..... so next idea, and a complete reversal on the thread title of new ..... hot water bottles, under a blanket, in the cat nests. Could probably fill 10 to 20 of those for just a kWh or 2, and a better spread of heat than say one or more 1kW heaters going all night.

I'm trawling through my memory for new ideas especially ones using renewables and green energy, but short of PV and perhaps thermal solar panels (those new type that use refrigerant) I'm stumped.

Perhaps sometimes old and reliable is good enough.

Coastalwatch wrote: »

Inheriting a similarly constructed workshop when we moved in a couple of years ago I pondered on the same problem. Eventually settling for lining it with 50mm thick Celotex finished off with plaster board.

I've done similar, 8m2 of the walls were just wire mesh to aid cooling and air flow, so I made removable panels from PIR and a thin layer of HDPE, and edged with duct tape. In the summer I will remove them and store them against the plastic sections of roofing so the foil can reflect sunlight. Unfortunatley there is another 75m2 of T&G 'walls' and no budget left. Plus all the air gaps where the corrugated steel / plastic roofs meet the walls, and I assume (?) blocking up those would create an enormous problem with condensation.

My apologies to MSE for going a bit off topic, but putting to use expertise of members and ideas learnt from this thread and others is sort of interesting, I hope.

Coastalwatch · 21 October 2018 at 8:28PM

Martyn1981 wrote: »

Perhaps sometimes old and reliable is good enough.

Liked the hot water bottle idea, sounds sensible to me. Low tech and low...ish cost probably!
Reading the options posted then took me back to a work situation whereby, rather than heating an entire warehouse, certain types of lamp were placed strategically where personel were stationedto keep them warm. Can't remember the correct term for the lamps:o, I'm hoping someone else will fill in the gaps!

Martyn1981 · 22 October 2018 at 8:07AM

Coastalwatch wrote: »

Liked the hot water bottle idea, sounds sensible to me. Low tech and low...ish cost probably!
Reading the options posted then took me back to a work situation whereby, rather than heating an entire warehouse, certain types of lamp were placed strategically where personel were stationedto keep them warm. Can't remember the correct term for the lamps:o, I'm hoping someone else will fill in the gaps!

I'm going to guess at infrared lamps, as the heat radiation travels through the air without heating it, until it hits something, like a person. Probably a very efficient way to keep those staff members warm, especially compared to others.

I have, purely as a mental exercise, pondered the idea of heated clothing, the sort designed for cold weather activities that have heating and a small battery. You can get trousers and jackets, and I think socks - so you charge the batts from PV, and don't put the house heating on at all, but are really warm and snug. Save lots of money if you ignore all the structural damage and decorating repairs from damp etc.

Martyn1981 · 22 October 2018 at 8:37AM

Cheap job intensive renewables, what's not to love?

28,000 jobs at risk in north of England over low-carbon economy

As many as 28,000 jobs will be lost in the north of England in the next 12 years under the government’s drive towards a low-carbon economy, a thinktank has warned.

The Institute for Public Policy Research (IPPR) said in its report that the region could be at the heart of a “clean energy revolution” – with a potential for 46,000 new green jobs – but instead faced economic decline under current plans.

Luke Murphy, an associate director at IPPR and co-author of the report, said: “With nearly half of the UK’s renewable energy being produced in the north, it is clear that the region is ideally placed to deliver a green jobs revolution of 46,000 new jobs by 2030.”

zeupater · 22 October 2018 at 11:06AM

Martyn1981 wrote: »

Exactly where I was going, then I had another idea, heat pads, the gel types, but they don't last long enough and cost too much ..... so next idea, and a complete reversal on the thread title of new ..... hot water bottles, under a blanket, in the cat nests. Could probably fill 10 to 20 of those for just a kWh or 2, and a better spread of heat than say one or more 1kW heaters going all night.

I'm trawling through my memory for new ideas especially ones using renewables and green energy, but short of PV and perhaps thermal solar panels (those new type that use refrigerant) I'm stumped.

Perhaps sometimes old and reliable is good enough.

I've done similar, 8m2 of the walls were just wire mesh to aid cooling and air flow, so I made removable panels from PIR and a thin layer of HDPE, and edged with duct tape. In the summer I will remove them and store them against the plastic sections of roofing so the foil can reflect sunlight. Unfortunatley there is another 75m2 of T&G 'walls' and no budget left. Plus all the air gaps where the corrugated steel / plastic roofs meet the walls, and I assume (?) blocking up those would create an enormous problem with condensation.

My apologies to MSE for going a bit off topic, but putting to use expertise of members and ideas learnt from this thread and others is sort of interesting, I hope.

Hi

I know someone that 'insulated' their stables every winter by stacking some of the straw bales against the walls instead of storing them elsewhere.

If you've ever been to a 'do' where bales are used as seating you'd understand how quickly they tend to warm-up, so maybe there's a possibility of building this straightforward form of 'low-tech' insulation & draught-proofing into a solution (between cages, internal walls, under 'nests' etc) ? ...

HTH
Z

Exiled_Tyke · 22 October 2018 at 2:05PM

zeupater wrote: »

Hi

I know someone that 'insulated' their stables every winter by stacking some of the straw bales against the walls instead of storing them elsewhere.

If you've ever been to a 'do' where bales are used as seating you'd understand how quickly they tend to warm-up, so maybe there's a possibility of building this straightforward form of 'low-tech' insulation & draught-proofing into a solution (between cages, internal walls, under 'nests' etc) ? ...

HTH
Z

I have a bedroom with a North facing wall and fitted wardrobes. I have far more storage space than I need, so I’ve filled the wardrobes with bags of paper from my shredder. It’s made a huge difference.

silverwhistle · 22 October 2018 at 3:48PM

Talk about the increased employment won't be taken seriously if the following takes place:

https://www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2018/oct/21/migrants-building-beatrice-windfarm-paid-fraction-of-minimum-wage

It would help in this country if we actually had some resources put into enforcement of all sorts of regulation, including employment. Instead we just get the government using the blame game against "the other" and lapsing into a state of learned helplessness.

How about a law such as in the US where internal shipping has to be on the home shipping register with the standards appropriate to that status?

Martyn1981 · 24 October 2018 at 6:32PM

Early days, but a bit of news on V2G (vehicle to grid) in Germany.

Electric Car Charging News: Super Fast In Australia, V2G In Germany

Martyn1981 · 24 October 2018 at 7:00PM

Tough one this, Swansea Council want to proceed with the tidal lagoon, great. But they now need private investors outside of any government subsidy scheme, not so great.

My understanding here is that the Swansea lagoon would produce leccy at a pretty high cost, up there with HPC, but, if it proves the consept, then much larger schemes such as the Cardiff lagoon (10x the generation) would generate at about half the cost.

So Swansea is really important, but really just to get the industry going, a bit like the early high PV rates, to prove the technology but to encourage a larger rollout at a lower cost.

I wonder if crowdfunding has ever gotten close to £1.3bn?

Swansea Council decides to build Swansea Bay tidal lagoon

Green, ethical, energy issues in the news

Comments

Categories

Get our FREE Weekly email full of deals & guides - and it’s spam-free