Pizza book

The truth is I’ve been doing a bad job of this for years… but isn’t that the way of all great inventions… I could have done that… Yeah but you didn’t!

 

Earth hour 09

Go on… switch off for an hour this evening at 8.30

http://www.earthhour.org/home/

Airlocks and how to bleed a radiator

Airlocks are a major problem in many radiator systems. When new water is added to a central heating system, a certain amount of air also enters the system. The action of the pump also draws out dissolved air from the water while slight leaks also allow air to slowly enter the system. Finally open systems (other than apartments, most systems are open systems) which are supplied with water from a tank small in the attic can cause problems where the tank is allowed to run dry for some reason, allowing air to leak into the system.

As air is lighter than water, it rises to high points in the system, this is especially noticeable within radiators. Air in radiators mean less water in the radiator and so can be detected as points which provide less heat and so are cooler to the touch, When the system is switched on, feel the top and then the bottom of the radiator – if the top is noticeably cooler than the bottom, there is a good likelihood that there is air in the radiator.

In very severe cases, the whole of the radiator may be filled with air so no difference in temperature between the bottom and the top, though the radiator in question will be cooler than the others.

 

How to bleed a radiator

• If the central heating system is an open type, ensure that the water supply tank for the system in the attic has not run dry
• If the central heating system is a sealed system, check the pressure and, if necessary, top it up as required. This is a bit more complicated so check out here for more advice.
• When the system has heated up, switch it off completely. If you do not switch off the system, particularly the pump, there is a good chance more air will be drawn into the system while you are bleeding.
• A “bleed key” is used to open the bleed valve. The bleed valve can be found at the top at one end of the radiator. A bleed key to fit the valve can be purchased in any good hardware shop.
• Loosely wrap a piece of old cloth around the key to catch any expelled water. If you are careful there should be no need for a pot to catch water, but if it’s your first time, it might be prudent to have one just in case.
• Slowly open the bleed valve by about half a turn anti clockwise. You should hear a hissing sound
• When water starts to dribble out, close the valve. They are generally quite easily damaged so take care not to over tighten.

Information on the government bike scheme

So… things are beginning to look a bit like spring, so isn’t it time for you to think about making use of the government bike scheme… here are the details…

The government have put in place a scheme for employers to buy bikes for their employees. Before tax. This means that if you are lucky enough to be on the top rate of tax, you can essentially get new bike at 45% off. You can also get reflectors, locks and other bike accessories.

 

Think of it like this, take the top €1,000 of your wages (the one over €35,400 and so in top rate of tax-41% plus 4% prsi, more if your a civil servant). When paying it to you the employer they give you €550 and the tax man €450. Instead your employer can spend €1000 on a bike, and give it to you. The shop owner still gets the €1000, but you only lose out by €550. The one who loses out? The taxman!

 

If you only pay the lower rate of tax, the same thing applies, but you will only be saving €250.

 

If you only want to spend a smaller amount, that’s fine too. Any number up to €1,000 is ok.

Whats the catch? New bikes only! And from a shop/supplier who is tax registered, and of your employers choosing. Most of the big bike suppliers have schemes in place to make it easy for your employer though.

 

Other points

You need your employer to administrate the scheme, and it is voluntary for them, so you have to explain to them that it won’t cost them a penny, just a bit of administrative hassle!

Your employer doesn’t have to pay employers PRSI on the money, so saving between 8.5% and 10.75% of the money spent.

You can only make use of the scheme once every 5 years.

Electric bikes are eligible. Electric bikes are limited to those with an electric motor with a maximum rated power of 0.25 kilowatts and a max speed of 25 km/h

You also need to use a bike shop who has registered for tax. No Swedish imports for you!

 

The Greens have put together a nice little website here

Raleigh have a good site here

 

Irish Government Home Insulation Grant Scheme

Well it’s official. The “Home Energy Saving Scheme (HES)” has gone national. I reported on the pilot scheme which ran in a few regions some time ago, but now here we are, with the national role out. The gist of the scheme is that it provides grants for home owners to improve the insulation and draft proofing levels in their homes.

So how much are the grants?
Grants are fixed for each type of measure as indicated in the table below. If the cost of the work (vat inclusive) is less than the fixed grant amount, the actual cost will be reimbursed. You can apply for one, some or all of these measures.

MEASURE	CATEGORY	GRANT *
Roof	Roof Insulation	€250
Wall	Cavity wall insulation	€400
	Internal Wall Dry-Lining	€2,500
	External wall insulation	€4,000
Heating Controls	High Efficiency Gas or Oil fired Boiler with Heating Controls Upgrade*	€700
	Heating Controls Upgrade*	€500
BER Assessment (Building Energy Rating)	A Before works and an After works BER assessment	€200

* Minimum requirement of: 2 zones (space and water) with 7 day programmer (time and temperature) control and boiler interlock, time and temperature control of electric immersion heater and either 1 more zone control or 3 TRV’s.

* There is a minimum grant amount of €500. The BER grant cannot form part of this €500 amount.

So what’s the catch (s)??
No DIY. All works must be completed by a contractor from SEI’s Registered List, which will be published when the scheme opens for homeowner applications. The list is being assembled as of now. If undertaking a BER, these must be completed by a registered BER assessor. A list of registered assessors is available on the SEI website www.sei.ie/BER

No grants for work you’ve already done.

Hold your horses!!!

The scheme is not open to home owners just yet. The plan is to put together a list of installers put together. ASAP. Then get going. As you need a grant approval before you start, you can’t start yet. Hold it now!!!

 

Want to know more? Check out www.sei.ie/hes

Curtains – Fair use policy

A little while ago I wrote a post about the Curtains stating that they are the best value for money energy efficiency measure. Well recently I visited a house that had thrown that out the window (no pun intended).

If your house has radiators under the windows like the one shown here, then take care that the curtains are not closed on the room side of them, trapping the heat they emit away from the room beside the window. This crazy set up happens a lot and means the heating system is mainly working to heat the earth, not your house. If your house has this problem, make sure to put the curtains between the radiators and the window, directing the heat into the room.

Niall Mellon Township Trust – Table Quiz

If there is an advertising value to this blog, we are pointing it firmly in the direction of the Niall Mellon Township Trust. So as we’ve never asked our readers to look at general… profitable… ads… Well not its time to pay up.

We are holding a table quiz in Madigans of Donnybrook at 8pm on Thursday 29th January. A fun night will be had by all and a better cause you will not find. 

So come on down, see you there

Reply to Consultation on Domestic Export Tariff

Hey Folks,

The CER and ESB Customer Supply are coming together to offer an export tariff to domestic home owners. So the idea is that if you install a Wind turbine, a Solar PV panel, or a Micro-CHP, you will be in a position to sell electricity to back to the grid for profit. The drawback is that the rate they propose to pay you will be far less than what you currently the pay for electricity. (this is explained by the difference between retail and wholesale prices. Anyway, you can find their proposal here. I’m responding to the consultation and am blogging it here. Sorry for all the acronyms, but hey… thats what google is for…

 

Dear Sir/Madam,

I am delighted to have this opportunity to comment on your proposal to develop an export tariff for Domestic customers and hope that my comments are helpful and useful. Congratulations to both yourselves and to ESB Customer Supply (ESBCS) on taking this initiative.

My comments on the ESBCS proposal

Financial approach – The proposal set out by ESBCS appears to be a largely based on a simple financial calculation. This does not take into account subtle softer benefits of such generators which tend to encourage their owners to be more aware of energy use, and so reduce consumption, particularly at peak times. This will act to help Ireland Inc. reduce our National GHG emissions and improve security of supply.

Benefits of embedded generation – The proposal does not seem to recognise the benefits of such embedded generation in reducing system losses and generally strengthening the grid.

Need for increased dispatchable capacity on the grid – As identified in Eirgrid’s report on Generation Adequacy report 08, Ireland requires more installed generation plant. This initiative could act to provide some or all of that capacity.

Danger of channelling funding through ESBCS – While I understand the attractiveness of using ESBCS to provide this scheme, doing so is to create a further barrier to other suppliers entering the residential market. Could a system similar to the WPDRS be used to allow all suppliers to provide such a tariff with your support.

Though the proposal suggested that the approximate price comparison between wholesale and retail electricity is two thirds, the price of 9c/kWh is not two thirds of the published domestic kWh tariff, of 16.4c/kWh.

 

General  comments

Environmental approach – The proposal does not focus on the environmental benefits of many of the likely technologies to be included in the scheme.

Capacity/Reserve/AER/Wind/REFIT/WPDRS tariff structures – In the past financial structures have been created to facilitate generators which bring benefits to the system which are not simply kWh based. I propose that a similar pragmatic approach be taken here.

Licence to build/generate – Using the current structure, registration of such a large number of generators by yourselves will create great challenges for both the generator owners and yourselves. Is a simpler solution being developed?

The existing Grid Code is not suitable for consumption of domestic generator owners, though the risk their generators will create is potentially greater than all the existing capacity on the grid. Is a more suitable guide/code on the way for their benefit?

Of all the benefits I have mentioned here, greater benefits could be exploited by introducing a similar scheme for small and medium businesses. Could such a scheme be fast-tracked for their benefit.

 

In conclusion

I believe that the potential scale, environment and security of supply benefits of this scheme are being severely underestimated by this proposal. Furthermore I disagree with asking ESBCS to act as the main agent for the scheme. Provision of funding could be provided by the CER to be paid to any supplier who offers such a tariff. Finally I believe that the administrative burdens this will create are significant, and should not be underestimated.

While I congratulate you greatly on the proposal, I do believe that a larger tariff should be introduced considering the benefits the scheme will bring. A simple net metering structure would provide a far greater incentive and a greater benefit to us all.

 

Regards

 

XXXXXX XXXXXXX

Consultation on domestic electricity feed in tariff

Movement is afoot to allow home owners in Ireland to sell electricity back to the grid. Two main things are going on. Firstly a pilot scheme to fit smart meters is going on. These meters will be the physical kit required to measure electricity being exported to the grid from your home. Secondly, they have begun the methodology. A consultation is currently ongoing regarding the price and arrangements that will be in place for people who are selling electricity. All the information can be found here. If you have comments and want them passed on, please pass them on here or email them on to me. I’ll be putting together a response on behalf of this blog and pass them on.

 

The main details are…

• We currently pay 15.97c for electricity (before VAT and standing charges).
• The proposal is to pay you 9c for electricity being exported to the grid.

 

Other issues to consider (some pro, some anti)

• The government incentivises lots of things, perhaps they should do so here
• There is a recession going on and the grid is not a charity
• Domestic renewables have the effect of making normal people think about energy, leading to better efficient use of energy etc.
• Distributed power generation makes the grid stronger, and reduces the losses on the system
• Having generators everywhere is a bit dangerous, and if it goes wrong, it’s really bad PR for the green sector.
• When the wind stops blowing for the wind farms, it will also stop blowing for domestic wind turbines
• As renewables going, electrical ones are rarely the best from a CO2 abatement point of view, so excessively incentivising them is a questionable strategy.  

The Smart Grid