Ban on sale of coal and wet wood.
- Thread starter Gaudette
- Start date
It is easy to build a couple more nuclear powerplants.
That is the only way to satisfy a such increase in demand.
Solar and wind would cover your countryside and coast totally.
You can go fashionably 'sustainable' like Norway is doing. Then augment the shortfall quietly by buying (Nuclear generated?) electricity from mainland Europe.
That is the only way to satisfy a such increase in demand.
Solar and wind would cover your countryside and coast totally.
You can go fashionably 'sustainable' like Norway is doing. Then augment the shortfall quietly by buying (Nuclear generated?) electricity from mainland Europe.
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Norway is a major producer of hydrocarbons, surely it burns its own gas ?
Strikes me that the ban is nothing more than window dressing, we virtually do not use coal for electric generation anymore, industry produces the same particle as the government wishes to ban and oil is a major contributor too. Yet in the problem areas in cities, people may have an occasional wood fire or use a bit of coal, but to my nostrels this is few and far between. The only place that this sort of fuel seems to be used in any quantity is in the countryside with few cars and lots of space. Seems like a pr stunt like the plastics ban and the outrage pariament shows about other such things. Maybe they have shares in a heating oil distributor or boiler maker.
You mean in the same way that previous Government cabinet members had shares in Spanish wind turbine companies?
@petrochemicals
Norway produces about 99% of its electricity by hydroelectrics, a tiny bit from thermal and wind.
The gas is exported.
Norway produces about 99% of its electricity by hydroelectrics, a tiny bit from thermal and wind.
The gas is exported.
Oh yes, I remember now, small population, lots of water and dams. Doesnt work for the nederlands though.
Yep, and hs2 at present. Each sleeper at present is costing about half a million ! Something is very questionable there. I wonder how much land has been purchaced at market value, and how much is "compensation". I tried to find a list of costs but couldnt find one.
If stephensons railway cost 10 years the "average wage" per sleeper it would never have been built. "Average wage" I do not know many people on the average wage, and that "average wage"does not include "one off bonuses" for "success". "Rant! Over"
Houses waste a huge amount of energy for a start though.
Just making them better insulated and more airtight makes a massive difference to their heating (or cooling for hot countries) costs.
You shouldnt need a fire in temperate countries if your house is well enough insulated it takes very little to heat it.
Almost all current UK housing is an utter joke as far as insulation and airtightness is concerned.
There's only three buildings I remember being in that were what I'd call well insulated and I built one of them*, insulated and sealed another up and the other was owned by a bloke who built it out of SIPS panels.
With a well insulated home, solar panels on the roof, possibly a battery bank as well, ground or air source heat pump and underfloor heating a home could have a chance of actually making a huge difference to running costs.
*Big head, moi?
Just making them better insulated and more airtight makes a massive difference to their heating (or cooling for hot countries) costs.
You shouldnt need a fire in temperate countries if your house is well enough insulated it takes very little to heat it.
Almost all current UK housing is an utter joke as far as insulation and airtightness is concerned.
There's only three buildings I remember being in that were what I'd call well insulated and I built one of them*, insulated and sealed another up and the other was owned by a bloke who built it out of SIPS panels.
With a well insulated home, solar panels on the roof, possibly a battery bank as well, ground or air source heat pump and underfloor heating a home could have a chance of actually making a huge difference to running costs.
*Big head, moi?
It woul solve their problems for sure!
But The Netherlands have a similar coastal shallow as UK, so wind turbines placed offshore are easy. In Norway, they have to blaced on land. Flat land is a premium there though.
Each country need a different solution!
I am not sure wind can compete with hydro power. The uk is becoming festooned with wind turbines that only turn when the wind blows, all together they make up 4percent of energy usage. Not like the tap on a hydro plant. Costa rica is also a hydro centre i believe. Trouble is that the reservoir takes an awful lot of land
I think the population level ( per square kilometer) in UK is similar to the Netherlands. I do not know how they solve it.
But the first thing UK should do is to demand state of the art insulation levels.
We all should. Research needs to be done for the most efficient, most environment friendly way.
I am 100% sure they could develop wood burners with a higher efficiency level, and high 'cleanliness'
Even when fuelled with wetter wood.
Wind is inefficient compared to Hydro.
Sweden has less possibility for Hydro, all large ( efficient Hydro) rivers except ONE are utilized. So other energy sources are used.
Hydro is environment friendly for sure, but the Salmon and other Salmonids do not think so.
Plus the natural cycle with floodings, sediment deposits etc are changed.
But the first thing UK should do is to demand state of the art insulation levels.
We all should. Research needs to be done for the most efficient, most environment friendly way.
I am 100% sure they could develop wood burners with a higher efficiency level, and high 'cleanliness'
Even when fuelled with wetter wood.
Wind is inefficient compared to Hydro.
Sweden has less possibility for Hydro, all large ( efficient Hydro) rivers except ONE are utilized. So other energy sources are used.
Hydro is environment friendly for sure, but the Salmon and other Salmonids do not think so.
Plus the natural cycle with floodings, sediment deposits etc are changed.
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In the old property we had in E. Sussex, we had to replace the front door. ( Plus much else)
I wanted a properly insulated one, as the house was extremely cold during the cold season.
(Most windows in the old house body were from 1600-1700'. 3 bay Wealden hall house originally, extended twice )
Had a long fight with the council. At the end, I had a fully insulated one made, using acid treated Oak, and double panes made using handblown glass.
Insane.
Doors are large energy bleeders. Could you add an extra piece on the frame, about 1.5 cm square, and add an insulating strip with the highest insulating value on it?
Then you can insulate the door itself, using Expanded Cork sheets.
You should get the money back the first winter in saved energy cost.
I wanted a properly insulated one, as the house was extremely cold during the cold season.
(Most windows in the old house body were from 1600-1700'. 3 bay Wealden hall house originally, extended twice )
Had a long fight with the council. At the end, I had a fully insulated one made, using acid treated Oak, and double panes made using handblown glass.
Insane.
Doors are large energy bleeders. Could you add an extra piece on the frame, about 1.5 cm square, and add an insulating strip with the highest insulating value on it?
Then you can insulate the door itself, using Expanded Cork sheets.
You should get the money back the first winter in saved energy cost.
Properly constructed Canadian houses have double doors. What we call a "storm door," on the outside.
That covers the more massive, insulated core door within. All glass is at least doubled as well.
Downstairs, I've replaced all the weatherproof gaskets around the back door.
Insulated hollow walls of course and a thick layer of insulation just above the ceilings.
However, do too good a job, cutting off all air exchange and you get a "sick house".
I do agree though, plug all the really obvious air flow "leaks" as best you can.
If your home is draughty/drafty, don't let it stay that way, it costs you big bucks in lost energy.
I have a single, external 6" air feed to be heated by the central furnace.
That gets pushed throughout the house. Next, that air is pulled through return plenums
and used in combustion and flows up out the chimney. The make-up is the cold air intake.
"Temperate countries?" The swing here is enormous.
Shade air temperatures from -37C this January past to +47C,end of July.
The smart thing was to plant grape vines (2001) on the west side, 24" out from the wall.
They cover my entire west side now. 2013 was 30kg fruit per vine.
The August shade effect is 7-10C in the kitchen and master bedroom.
Electricity (all hydro) is relatively cheap here (sliding consumption scale) so I can afford to run
ceramic cube heaters to take the chill off a room I'm using. Great for rotten, shirtty dark days in January.
That covers the more massive, insulated core door within. All glass is at least doubled as well.
Downstairs, I've replaced all the weatherproof gaskets around the back door.
Insulated hollow walls of course and a thick layer of insulation just above the ceilings.
However, do too good a job, cutting off all air exchange and you get a "sick house".
I do agree though, plug all the really obvious air flow "leaks" as best you can.
If your home is draughty/drafty, don't let it stay that way, it costs you big bucks in lost energy.
I have a single, external 6" air feed to be heated by the central furnace.
That gets pushed throughout the house. Next, that air is pulled through return plenums
and used in combustion and flows up out the chimney. The make-up is the cold air intake.
"Temperate countries?" The swing here is enormous.
Shade air temperatures from -37C this January past to +47C,end of July.
The smart thing was to plant grape vines (2001) on the west side, 24" out from the wall.
They cover my entire west side now. 2013 was 30kg fruit per vine.
The August shade effect is 7-10C in the kitchen and master bedroom.
Electricity (all hydro) is relatively cheap here (sliding consumption scale) so I can afford to run
ceramic cube heaters to take the chill off a room I'm using. Great for rotten, shirtty dark days in January.
Don't talk to me about insulation and draughts! We live in a 350 to 370 year old cruck barn. It moves with the wind just slightly so as fast as I fill in any gaps that let the draught in at one end they open up at the other end of the barn. It's part solid stone (so no cavity) and part timber clad and it's open plan (no doors downstairs) consequently it's very difficult to keep warm - you couldn't drag me away with cart horses though 
Broch, I said the same. Then we moved, and we built a new house, with Scandi level of insulation ( but reversed H20 barriers). Love it. Walls are straight! Corners are 90 degrees!!!
In our old house, I had a 'bump' on my head for the first 6 months or so, from hitting my head on the inner door frames.
People were midgets in the past.
In our old house, I had a 'bump' on my head for the first 6 months or so, from hitting my head on the inner door frames.
People were midgets in the past.
Among many other features, my home is equipped with a big walk in cold room. The butcher hooks for panchetta are still there.
There are adjustable vents cast into the concrete wall. I am acutely aware of just how cold an uninsulated house can be.
So bad this winter that with all vents plugged with fiberglas batts, I had to leave the door wide open to keep preserves, etc
from freezing and broken jars.
There are adjustable vents cast into the concrete wall. I am acutely aware of just how cold an uninsulated house can be.
So bad this winter that with all vents plugged with fiberglas batts, I had to leave the door wide open to keep preserves, etc
from freezing and broken jars.
WOODSORREL on here uses a reburn chamber to maximise his efficiency, had it on one of his threads, very very interesting. Burned all of the smoke off. If he can take it to the woods in winter, Im sure its possible at houses in suburbia.
Study the combustion process in a wood pellet stove. There is no smoke as it performs like a smithy's forge.
The fire in mine is about 6" wide, 2" from front to back and perhaps 2" deep. That's it for "fire".
That heats 2 x 1200 sqft to hold 20C in the upstairs kitchen, maybe 18C down the hall in the master bedroom.
I clean the ash out (40-60 minutes work) every 500lbs. Maybe 2lbs ash? I never weigh it.
I confess that when it's -25C or colder outside, the stove has a job to keep up. -10C or warmer is easy.
What I see mostly wrong with wet wood is the physics of the energy flow.
It costs 540 calories per gram to evaporate water. Fast or slow, you can't negotiate anything else.
So you blow all that energy (money) up the chimney AND then, get the wood up to ignition temperature.
Without forced air (more energy cost), there has to be incomplete combustion = smoke.
Add to that the bark trash and the bark bugs plus the power saw and so on, no thanks.
The fire in mine is about 6" wide, 2" from front to back and perhaps 2" deep. That's it for "fire".
That heats 2 x 1200 sqft to hold 20C in the upstairs kitchen, maybe 18C down the hall in the master bedroom.
I clean the ash out (40-60 minutes work) every 500lbs. Maybe 2lbs ash? I never weigh it.
I confess that when it's -25C or colder outside, the stove has a job to keep up. -10C or warmer is easy.
What I see mostly wrong with wet wood is the physics of the energy flow.
It costs 540 calories per gram to evaporate water. Fast or slow, you can't negotiate anything else.
So you blow all that energy (money) up the chimney AND then, get the wood up to ignition temperature.
Without forced air (more energy cost), there has to be incomplete combustion = smoke.
Add to that the bark trash and the bark bugs plus the power saw and so on, no thanks.
Is it possibly the time to mention the biofuel boilers and the grants that mean the people get so much money to burn the wood that it was actually in their financial interest to leave the windows open.
That to me is criminal, no doubt there will be someone on here who knows more than I do about it but its an oft reported anecdote.
That to me is criminal, no doubt there will be someone on here who knows more than I do about it but its an oft reported anecdote.
