Holistic Homestead Energy Systems.
- Thread starter TeeDee
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There's been a few things on YouTube about it. Think it was on The fully charged show.
Plus Japan is using electric cars as grid tied storage solutions and its helping the grid be more earthquake resistant.
Did some work on reinstating some of these a few years ago - fantastic bits of kit just be aware that they are noisy old things to have anywhere near a house unless in a soundproofed box!
I agree , fairly clunky!!! I've also seen ( don't know what they are technically called ?) water wheels that have a coiled pipe on the side of the water wheel , as the water wheel turns the end of the pipe if filled with water and as it rotates the water is then forced down the pipe and shunted along the pipe which ends with a central axis feed point.
I seem to have found a video.
Aside from the legalities there’s another obstacle, efficiency. By that I mean the energy lost between the transfers and storage (transferring from the grid to the batteries, storing for the time period until the increase in price, and transfer back to the grid) . If the loss is greater than the price difference it won’t work. I have no idea how efficient the systems are so it might work but I definitely wouldn’t count on it without more research.
I sometimes wonder if a miniaturised version of our hydroelectric might work.
Excess used to pump water up into a holding loch, and then when the electricity is needed, open a valve and let it flow through the turbines.
https://www.visitcruachan.co.uk
Big swimming pool
Excess used to pump water up into a holding loch, and then when the electricity is needed, open a valve and let it flow through the turbines.
https://www.visitcruachan.co.uk
Big swimming pool
Theres versions of lime plaster that has cork mixed into it to gain a measure of insulation whilst looking traditional.
I have no idea how good it is, just that I've worked in someones converted watermill that had it as well as lime and cork based floor concrete substitute.
Think it was called Ecocork lime or something like that.
I assume the main good thing it does is to seal the leaky walls as I can't imagine its as insulative as rockwool but its another option.
I have no idea how good it is, just that I've worked in someones converted watermill that had it as well as lime and cork based floor concrete substitute.
Think it was called Ecocork lime or something like that.
I assume the main good thing it does is to seal the leaky walls as I can't imagine its as insulative as rockwool but its another option.
Its already been mentioned on The Fully Charged Show on youtube. Plus some parts of Japan is using lecky cars in a similar way to increase buildings earthquake resistance.
I suspect the gain will be very small.
There is a floor product that is highly insulated that looks like large concrete blocks, structurally strong, but almost the same insulation as Closed Cell blocks. Do not knoew the name.
I am not sure I would go with the 'latest' as nobody really knows the longevity.
The house we are building has a normal steel reinforced floor, covered on top with some kind of closed cell foam blocks. Then in some crucial areas underfloor heating.
it will be a low tech house though, but with the goal to use as little bought energy as possible. Ultra energy efficient.
No weird cellphone remote controls, electronics, stuff like that.
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First thing to do is work out your power requirements. Then you can choose what you require to provide the power. Having hydro is good. I survived 30 years off grid with basic affordable equipment, solar and wind. Solar was both photovoltaic, and home fabricated water heating. I had my place reliant on only the bare minimum of electrical appliances, so all I really required it for was the fridge freezer, and lighting. Marlec, I think, used to make a small hydro power unit that resembled an outboard motor, and you "hung" it in a fast flowing stream. There are a few info clips on YouTube showing small hydro power supplies. My system was so basic there was not much to wrongwith it, just the occasional service/replacement of batteries, and I had one charge controller fail.
I wonder how much of a houses day to day 'needs' and mod cons can be implemented on a low-draw 12v system?
If you spend a bit of time looking at marine/caravan/campervan equipment, quite a lot. Even 20" flat a teen telly's.
Here's some info on rain harvesting,
https://rainharvesting.com.au/field...g-your-roof-surface-area-for-rain-harvesting/
Also, modern insulation can make your home very thermal efficient. My heating is on for around 1 hour max per day, and it wasn't on between the second week in March and late November last year.
Solar water heaters are worth investigating for summer use, that way you don't have to fire up your log burner unnecessarily on hot days for water. The ones I made were similar to this.
There's loads of info out there.
T
https://rainharvesting.com.au/field...g-your-roof-surface-area-for-rain-harvesting/
Also, modern insulation can make your home very thermal efficient. My heating is on for around 1 hour max per day, and it wasn't on between the second week in March and late November last year.
Solar water heaters are worth investigating for summer use, that way you don't have to fire up your log burner unnecessarily on hot days for water. The ones I made were similar to this.
There's loads of info out there.
T
Ram pumps - I built one about 15-ish years ago and it still sits in the stream bed on the edge of our land. Built from scrap that was being thrown away from a place I worked, it take its in-feed through a 1 inch iron pipe at about 6 feet head pressure - and can pull about a ton of water per 24 hours when the stream flows. I use it to top up my rain-water storage occasionally but it does silt up due to the nature of the ground and that it only flows following heavy rain.
Great project though
Good luck with your endevours.
Great project though
Good luck with your endevours.
The house currently has a Fuel Oil ( Kerosene ) boiler for hot water and central heating. As mentioned previously it also has a wood stove which may get upgraded to a multifuel burner with back boiler.
Did you follow any plans at all or make it to your own design?
I've run a Blake Hydram for a number of years but it needs replacement parts. A hole new ram is £2k and replacements parts are £100s, even the washers (clacks) are £100+ each although I have had success cutting my own from suitable rubber sheets.
It does work well if installed correctly though, so would recommend one. Some more details here: https://www.allspeeds.co.uk/hydraulic-ram-pump/
Instead of a stove, look at a rocket mass heater.
It gives an enormous return of heat from very little fuel, and it can become a built in warm area to sit/lie on too.
google for images, etc., and there are dozens of designs out there
I hope your new property is an excellent place
I don't suppose there are any commercial products out there? I've looked at building some form of mass stove but I shudder to think what my house insurers would think. I've looked at the Ecco stoves and the look good but expensive.
I read a few books and did the standard Youtube research to get the basic principle, but made it out of what was to hand - main body was from 2" galvanized iron gas pipe, with a few bits bodged to fit, made my own leaf spring and plate valve, used a stainless steel filter housing as the riser / air chamber and a couple of NRV's which I doctored the springs of and a standard ball valve. The in-feed pipe was about 24 feet of 1" iron in various size lengths.
It did take a while to tune - but that made it fun and a bit of a challenge.
I haven't used it for a few years on account of there being sufficient rain to keep my 5 tons of storage topped up - and that the silt and rust had got to it - but that's all my own fault for not keeping it properly maintained.
It did take a while to tune - but that made it fun and a bit of a challenge.
I haven't used it for a few years on account of there being sufficient rain to keep my 5 tons of storage topped up - and that the silt and rust had got to it - but that's all my own fault for not keeping it properly maintained.
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