Energy for all

Q: My roof is unsuitable for solar panels or a wind turbine. Are there any other options for making energy in the home?

You do-it-yourself energy generators don't give up easily, do you? Well, you're in luck. Not only is there is a new kind of micro-generator on the bloc, sending ripples through eco-circles (which, one way or another is all of us, these days), but there are also numerous ways of saving energy. Think laterally and this is only a small step away from making it; it certainly enables you to wear a large green badge, should you so wish. The point is you end up burning less fossil fuels while keeping your house functioning as cooler weather creeps closer.

Combined Heat and Power boilers
Lean forward and whisper to someone that you've heard about a revolutionary electricity producing boiler and chances are you'll have lost them already. A technology lacking in the inherent trendiness of a turbine and the glamour of a glittering solar panel suffers from being left on the backburner. Soon, though, it’ll be stirring things up.

A Combined Heat and Power (CHP) boiler serves as your very own power station (calm down, boys), driven by a small turbine that draws upon the gas supplied to your home to produce electricity, while the heat that is simultaneously produced is used for central heating and to heat water. As well as cutting your bills, it reduces carbon dioxide emissions by an average of 1.5 tonnes per year. The tricky bit is tracking one down. You see, here we are so much at the frontline of energy generation, there is some catching up to be done.

The product leading the market, the 'Whispergen', a dishwasher-sized device made by Powergen, has finished its trial period but no more installations will be made until January 2007. You can put your name down for one and request an information pack by calling 0800 0686516. Close behind, a boiler designed by the combined forces of Siemens and Microgen Energy Ltd, will be available in 2008.

No one is suggesting you scrap a perfectly decent boiler. But if you’re going to replace yours anyway, as 1.3 million households do every year, it’d pay to invest in a VAT exempt CHP version. The Whispergen costs £3,000 for equipment and installation; Microgens equivalent is nearer £2,000, not much more than a standard gas boiler.

Energy Efficiency
If your house is too low for a wind turbine, too gloomy for solar panels and your boiler shows no signs of biting the dust, don't despair. You are not condemned to life as a carbon criminal. The Energy Saving Trust says energy saving measures, along the lines of double-glazing and draught-proofing, are just as important. Not sexy stuff, I’m afraid, but it’ll keep you in on the action, without having to shout it from your rooftop.

Since around 33 per cent of the heat in your home is lost through the walls, sorting out some cavity wall insulation is the single biggest thing you can do to cut your fuel bill and prevent carbon emissions. The average cost is £260 for a semi-detached house. But there are grants for all energy efficient measures. Call the Energy Efficiency Advice Centre to find out what’s available in your area (0800 512 012).

The only hitch is that properties built before 1920 won't have cavity walls (those built after 1990 will have this insulation by law). In that case, you could content yourself with a 3 inch thick insulating jacket for your hot water tank. Small but satisfying actions like this will leave you in a strong position should such issues as the current energy crisis crop up over dinner - and personally I refuse to pop so much as one single organic pea into my mouth unless I have sparked up some decent eco chat.

Comments

[peter bell]

My Local Authority advised that grants were available to help with installation of Solar Panels. On enquiring further I was told that because we had "mains Gas supply" I was not eligible.!! This does not seem very helpful with regard to reducing carbon emissions and "saving the world". I wonder if the Gov't is aware of this anomaly or is the problem purely local?

[gavin black]

I was very interested in your article in Body and Soul yesterday relating to the Whispergen.
We have no gas supply in the village so use oil to heat the house and water. I have been into the Whispergen web site but cannot see any information about an oil fired model.Do you know if they have developed one?

[Chris Pennington]

Re: small chp units for domestic application (your article 25th)
My son in Germany installed a micro-chp unit 2 years ago with great success.
The unit is called 'Dachs' and is manufactured by the German company SenerTec, which was taken over in March 2002 by the UK BAXI Group.Contin.output of unit 5.5kw ELEC. 12.5kw HEATING.multi-fuel(nat.gas,LPG,oil,bio diesel)
I commend to your readers informative website www.senertec.de (germ/eng.lang)
(NB:I have no commercial/financial interest)

[Chris Pennington]

Re:Small chp units
(supplement to previous posting)
My son in Germany says that "one of his greatest pleasures is to see the electricity meter turning backwards as Dachs feeds into the grid."
This of course highlights the key questions a)what is the price paid for the gas used to generate, and b) what is the price obtained for the units supplied to the grid?
It would be interesting to know whether the parameters and regulations for such regeneration in UK are as favourable as in Germany.
In the case of Whisperjet it seems that the supplier is in the position to determine/manipulate these parameters which suggests the need for some independent input on this aspect.

[Chris Pennington]

Re:Small chp units
(supplement to previous posting)
My son in Germany says that "one of his greatest pleasures is to see the electricity meter turning backwards as Dachs feeds into the grid."
This of course highlights the key questions a)what is the price paid for the gas used to generate, and b) what is the price obtained for the units supplied to the grid?
It would be interesting to know whether the parameters and regulations for such regeneration in UK are as favourable as in Germany.
In the case of Whisperjet it seems that the supplier is in the position to determine/manipulate these parameters which suggests the need for some independent input on this aspect.

[Anne Baker]

Anna - thanks for your column in the Times on Saturday, I really look forward to it!
On the subject of coal, I love my open fire in the Winter, especially the flames I get from burning coal and logs. I try to burn more logs than coal to limit my emissions but am concerned about the size of my eco footprint from this indulgent act. Is there a better alternative on the market so that I can still have my open fires without doing any more damage to the environment? This is my one sin, I recycle loads, have reduced my electricity consumption and haven't flown for four years and promote good practice with my friends, family and work colleagues.

[Alan Noble]

I read lots about wind and solar generation, but what about using the power of our rivers? I'm not talking about the Severn barrage but more affordable and less contentious solutions. A reasonable size river runs through my garden and it includes a weir with a four foot drop. How can I harness the flow to produce electrical power? If it's feasible how much is it likely to cost? Are there any grants?

Considering the thousands of miles of rivers that flow through our green and pleasant land micro power generation seems to get little attention, yet it could be ideal to supply local communities and is more reliable than wind power. When I mentioned it to the Environment Agency their "support" extended to informing me that I might need an impounding licence and worries about how it would affect the fish.

[David Geddes]

We read with interest your artical on energy efficiency. We live in a house built in 1881, a typical Victorian house with 4.5" cavity walls, which we have had insulated. This, along with double glazing and draught-proofing, has made a significant reduction in gas consumption.
It is my belief that most substantial Victorian houses had such cavities?

[Andrew Harmsworth]

I read your column with interest this week, in particular about the CHP units. I knew they existed, and that Powergen were trialling them, but I wasn’t aware of how far they’d come – excellent news!
You refer to houses pre-1920 not having cavities. I believe this is correct. However, although you cannot obviously insulate a cavity which isn’t there, you can get some terrific, thin insulation for interior walls for buildings like this. I have seen rolls, a bit like wallpaper, that are highly insulating and you basically hang it like wallpaper, then decorate over it. If you’re interested, I’ll find the web link and email it to you – no doubt many of your readers would benefit?

[Steve Hallam]

One of my roofs is 100% emminently suitable for solar heating. Being large, south facing and sloping at 45 degrees what could be better?
Problem, I have never found anyone who can give me a quote for solar heating who is honest, knowledgeable and able to give acurate data on grants available(if any).
Can anyone help?

[Andrew Harmsworth]

I have found the link at last - in fact, as a school we're looking at all our old buildings, as many are pre-1920 so don't have cavities to fill. The one product I've heard about before is called Sempatap Thermal: http://www.mgcltd.co.uk/mgc047.html
This was on offer from our local council, East Northants, for trial last year. Obviously it is a perfect solution for older properties, although you do need to decorate afterwards. I'm sure there are other versions of this available, but I've not found any. Not sure what the pricing is, but I'm sure it can't be that expensive.

[Andrew Harmsworth]

In reply to Steve Hallam about solar heating, maybe he could try http://www.solartwin.com who do an online quotation for solar heating. Their design also includes a small PV electric panel to power the electric pump, which seems a very neat solution.

[Alastair Holland]

Re Steve Hallam's query and Andrew's reply: we have installed a solartwin system and it's great. I found their staff to be knowledgeable and to understand the grant position etc. Give them a try.

[Keith Kondakor]

The biggest thing is to reduce energy use. From your bills you can find how many units are used over a year. I read my meters every Monday and have driven down usage by 25%. One tip is to read the meters when you go away for a week or weekend. Our house was still using 40% of the electric when we were away. We now empty of freezer and turn it off over our main Holiday.

[Duncan Gough]

If you still can't find any way to generate your own power, then why not monitor your power usage instead?

Have a read of this little device, called the Wattson:

http://www.ecolocal.com/uk/home_life/show/wattson

There are cheaper alternatives around, but installing an sleek monitoring device like this one should really help you cut down on what you use!

[heating]

If you have looked into solar energy as a method for heating your home, panels are usually the first things that come up. There are, however, other unique methods.

The Solar Heating Aspect You Have Never Heard of Before

The power of the sun is immense. The energy in one day of sunlight is more than the world needs. The problem, of course, is how does one harness this power. Solar panels represent the obvious solution, but they have their downside. First, they can be expensive depending upon your energy needs. Second, they do not exactly blend in with the rest of your home.

Passive solar heating represents a panel free method of harnessing the inherent energy found in the sun for heating purposes. If you come out from a store and open the door of your car in the summer, you understand the concept of passive solar heating. A wide variety of material absorbs sunlight and radiates the energy back into the air in the form of heat. Passive solar heating for a home works the same way as the process which overheats your car in the parking lot.

[Gunnar Kaestle]

http://home.tele2.at/gravitationswirbel/kontakt.html

Concerning the small hydro potential, I saw a new design suitable for small creeks and rivers. It's working with a vortex and doesn't need any expensive grid with an autocleaning tool to rake the debris. The system is insensitive for floating dirt (branches, leaves, etc.) and thus the installation is cheaper.

Sorry, the link reveals a German webpage. Nevertheless, if you feel attracted to the pictures, I'm quite sure Mr Zotlöterer will be able to help with more information. Even in Austria some people are able to speak English;-)

[barry]

I must declare an interest as having developed the Solartwin product. Thank you Andrew for mentioning it.

We developed it in order to do away with two principal constraints.

The first was the need to replace cylinders which usually comes with conventional solar. The system we devised can usually heat the existing cylinder directly, but with the proviso that hardness control may need to be robust in areas where it is needed.

The second was the "carbon clawback" issue from plugging some conventional solar systems into mains power supplies in order to get them to function - which necessitated the use of a PV pump. This reduces a carbon clawback which can be as high as 20%, according to DTI research.

Both we regards as steps towards sustainability. To this, we add phone surveys as a further way of minimising our environmental footprint since this is greener than driving out toi give a quote, even if our dreaded "quote to close ratio" (whoops - sales jargon) is lower than with some direct sell businesses.

I hope this is of interest. Regards from Barry.

[barry]

I must declare an interest as having developed the Solartwin product. Thank you Andrew for mentioning it.

We developed it in order to do away with two principal constraints.

The first was the need to replace cylinders which usually comes with conventional solar. The system we devised can usually heat the existing cylinder directly, but with the proviso that hardness control may need to be robust in areas where it is needed.

The second was the "carbon clawback" issue from plugging some conventional solar systems into mains power supplies in order to get them to function - which necessitated the use of a PV pump. This reduces a carbon clawback which can be as high as 20%, according to DTI research.

Both we regards as steps towards sustainability. To this, we add phone surveys as a further way of minimising our environmental footprint since this is greener than driving out toi give a quote, even if our dreaded "quote to close ratio" (whoops - sales jargon) is lower than with some direct sell businesses.

I hope this is of interest. Regards from Barry.

[barry]

I must declare an interest as having developed the Solartwin product. Thank you Andrew for mentioning it.

We developed it in order to do away with two principal constraints.

The first was the need to replace cylinders which usually comes with conventional solar. The system we devised can usually heat the existing cylinder directly, but with the proviso that hardness control may need to be robust in areas where it is needed.

The second was the "carbon clawback" issue from plugging some conventional solar systems into mains power supplies in order to get them to function - which necessitated the use of a PV pump. This reduces a carbon clawback which can be as high as 20%, according to DTI research.

Both we regards as steps towards sustainability. To this, we add phone surveys as a further way of minimising our environmental footprint since this is greener than driving out toi give a quote, even if our dreaded "quote to close ratio" (whoops - sales jargon) is lower than with some direct sell businesses.

I hope this is of interest. Regards from Barry.