Micro combined heat and power stations for your home

probe

Much of the money spent on one's ESB supply is wasted on transmission losses, energy conversion losses and ESB's fat margins.

With a micro CHP plant in your house you could generate your own electricity as well as providing heat and hot water.

http://www.csmonitor.com/2006/1114/p01s02-usec.html

.probe

Kelter

I believe SEI are doing a study on the subject at the moment in Dundalk

www.sei.ie/getFile.asp?FC_ID=1764&docID=57

probe

I hope I’m wrong, but it reads frighteningly like a ComReg consultation where nothing substantial happens at the end!

The key issue blocking micro CHP, use of fuel cells, and other green energy power generation in the home and business premises is the absence of an obligation on the ESB/national grid to buy surplus power from the user. This would greatly change the economics of investing in new technologies. One wonders when gov.ie is going to take action to force the ESB to buy electricity and allow people’s meters to turn backwards?

A combined heat and power plant should be no different to a central heating boiler – it uses the same single source of heat to generate electricity as well as hot water. Ideally CHP kit should be able to run on renewables (eg wood pellets) rather than gas.

One doesn’t have to leave it running all night to provide electricity when someone gets up to go to the bathroom – this type of electricity can be purchased from the ESB. CHP boilers would tend to be running during periods of peak electricity demand – which would help reduce the investment in generation capacity by networks and thus keep the price of electricity lower.


.probe

One can see the demand for electricity in IRL in real-time here:
http://www.eirgrid.com/EirGridPortal/DesktopDefault.aspx?tabid=System%20Demand%20Curve&TreeLinkModID=1451&TreeLinkItemID=7

and wind energy production here:

http://www.eirgrid.com/EirGridPortal/DesktopDefault.aspx?tabid=Wind%20Generation%20Curve&TreeLinkModID=1451&TreeLinkItemID=247

liamc1

Is there any diesel fueled micro CHP units available

Markcheese

What are you going to do with all the heat in summer ?? ( if yr in a domestic situation)

Capt'n Midnight

Baxi Ecogen gas boilers in the UK cost ~£5,000

So with UK feed in tarrifs you could save up to £500 per year
So it can pay for itself, if you upgrade to one when you next change your boiler. in the UK customers get a good rate for electricity
not sure if they still get credit for electricity they themselves use too
Here the economics are different.

it's two heaters in one ,
a small 6KW of heat you get 1KW of electricity (most of which becomes heat later on)
if you need more heat then a second heater kicks in, so up to 24KW


http://www.baxi.co.uk/products/baxiecogen.htm
British Gas have the UK rights
Calor do them here http://www.calorgas.ie/calor-at-home/innovations/chp/

djpbarry

Guys, this thread is almost 6 years old - let it die.

But by all means start a new one on the subject.