Random Renewables Thread

the_amazing_raisin

So I was confused about the PSO levy being €0 on all the energy plans I was looking at when it's supposed to be negative

Then I noticed that the statement from the CRU says they're working with "relevent stakeholders" about how to repay customers and have set it to zero in the meantime

Am I the only one getting flashbacks of the feed in tariff payments 😬

jkforde

forecast for cold weather next week, here's hoping for a repeat of December's bright, calm weather, well it was bright for those of us not stuck in fog the whole bloody time!, hopefully ye'll get a decent dose of 🌞🌞 this time!

Ubbquittious

Hope we get a good dose of 🌨️🌨️ as well. It would be pure bliss. Not a sinner on the road, the whole place white

ELM327

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120100556#Comment_120100556

I'll not be checking anything, the installer should have done the job to code. If it fails and they fail to remedy I'll be publicly naming and shaming.

DC999

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120104018#Comment_120104018

I'd agree it's on the installer to pass the audit. They are SEAI registered and they have to re-accredit / jump through some hoops every so often with the SEAI. So if solar is their game, it's with them to be delivering work that passes the audit. I'd guess SEAI note which installers are failing audits and that's flagged as part of their renewal

unkel

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120104018#Comment_120104018

And of course before you do that, start a case in the small claims court. Works wonders convincing the seller to either fix things or give a full refund as we both know 😁

Gerry

Not strictly solar related but our B rated condensor dryer is going to make for a horrendous elec bill next month. its on lets say 1.5 runs a day, which is in or around 10kwh. this will decrease as the weather warms, so its most of an issue when solar is at its least. So, more panels aint gonna sort it.

Bit of running the numbers and I think an A++ dryer would be paid back in under a year. It would save more elec than a few panels would produce.

unkel

FWIW @Gerry, changed my old skool condenser dryer recently for a heat pump dryer. The old one used about 5kWh per cycle, the new one 2kWh. So if your leccy rate is 30c and you run it once a day, the savings per year are 365 * (5-2) * 0.30 = €320 per year

That is of course if you don't have cheaper night rate and / or you don't normally run it at night or on PV or on battery charged up with cheap night rate. All of these would drastically reduce those savings. But even at 8c night rate, the saving is still €90 per year. I think I paid €329 for mine (B graded)

Gerry

yeah in this case the current dryer seems to take about 6kwh.

despite best efforts, it's going to be on day and some at peak rate which is going for 50c average, no batteries

2 is a safe figure for new one so yeah

if say once a day for 6 months as an average.

(6-2)*180 days * .5 is 360 euro . so maybe not 1 year but inside 2.

the_amazing_raisin

Second the heat pump dryer, had one (well, two) since 2016. Never had a condenser so can't comment on the difference in consumption but it doesn't seem too thirsty

Go back a page or two for a big discussion on them 😁

If you're okay with waiting longer for dry laundry then they work well. I've noticed mine generally finishes before a wash cycle, so I'm not waiting on the dryer to finish before putting more clothes in

DC999

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120104676#Comment_120104676

Cost wide, best dryer is no dryer 😊 They ate the juice. But we live in Ireland.

We only use ours for towels and sheets. And I dry them on the line as much as I can first. Do they not shrink clothes or was that the older ones back in the day?

If getting a new heatpump one, get one that also has the moisture setting so turns off when it’s done – I assume you can get those. Some older condenser models ran for the time you set, so could easily over dry wasting energy. There’s other stuff you can do to reduce the cost. I’d forgotten about some of these: 7 Energy Efficiency Tips For Your Tumble Dryer | eSpares. And I don’t clean the internal filter often at all. I’d be surprised if “energy saving dryer balls can reduce drying time by up to 25%”.

Extra spin cycle on washing machine is likely using 100w for a few mins to get a bit more water out. Versus 3-4kW for the a dryer.

I’m using the ‘delicate’ drying mode recently and only runs on 1.4kW. We’ve a condenser one with a moisture setting. I haven’t checked if that setting reduces the energy usage. I assume it’s less hard on the machine and clothes though. And in spring I could finish the clothes in it from 1.4kW of solar (don’t have a battery).

I’ll deffo get a heatpump one when ours dies. 

the_amazing_raisin

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120104878#Comment_120104878

Regarding shrinkage, my experience is that clothes will still shrink a bit at first even in the heat pump dryer. After the initial shrinkage, they don't shrink much more

How much seem to depend on the general quality of the clothes, stuff from Penney's seems to shrink quite a bit

Having said that, it seems the kids clothes shrink most, and it can be a bit hard to tell because kids also grow taller 🙂

The devils

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120104825#Comment_120104825

As the guys said we chatted about it a couple of pages back, I'd be happy to send the details of the one I got.

I have use mine mostly on night rate - has moisture setting also which helps.

Half load most times which is approx 1 kw. (Night rate @ 10 cent - going up to 13.5 cent feb onwards)

Washmachine finishes @ 6 am and dryer starts amsoon after-i don't mind if it goes a little into 9 am

silver_sky

I'm not sure what type of dryer mine is but it doesn't seem to use that much. It's not even 2 years old. I must stick an energy monitor plug on it and the washing machine. It'd be handy for alerts too.

con747

I have a Beko condenser about 4 years old and have it set on low heat and it uses about 1.7kwh on a 85 minute dry according to the power monitor which does just about all our drying at that setting. I always spin the wash again after the programmed spin and clean the fluff filter each time I use it and bring the main finned filter outside and use the hose to clear it every month or two.

It's worth looking at the hoover and hob as well, I picked up a cordless hoover in the Amazon sales and it does a great job and is charged for free compared to the 2.5kwh corded I used to use. The hob I replaced a ceramic for an induction and the difference is massive, a fellow boardsie donated a single portable induction hob they weren't using so I could test if it suited me. It did and got 1 in the sales cheap as well.

DrPhilG

Anyone care to chuck an estimate on how much benefit it would be to replace your old windows and doors?

House is 18 or so years old. Good attic insulation, walls not so good. Aeroboard but not pumped and I don't intend to. Bedroom is dry lined, others will follow in time.

The windows are double glazed but old and probably cheaply done. Quite drafty.

Could replace the lot with triple glazed argon filled for about €10k, plus another €5k for front and back door.

Just debating it as an investment, it'll obviously reduce the heat loss considerably and the house would be much more comfortable in general but hard to estimate a € saving in order to think about the ROI.

Busman Paddy Lasty

What's your annual heating bill? Is it oil central heating?

Myself and herself have gone bananas on door, window replacements and we're getting external wall insulation. Our 2021 gas bill was about €800 so the RoI of all this is basically never!

We are investing in not being freezing while the heating is on. If our gas usage is halved it will be a bonus I guess but the payback for us is comfort.

the_amazing_raisin

For the doors, would it be possible or economical to build a porch with a decent door on it? Or replace both if you're feeling generous

I've a supposedly A3 rated door on my house and it still leaks some air. Probably installed on the cheap but the point is they're not exactly magical

Personally I think an insulated and airtight porch should be part of the building regs. Not only helps retain heat but also improves security, the prospect of having to smash through two locked doors might make a fair number of robbers think again

THE ALM

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120106680#Comment_120106680

Just done all ours a few months ago, like you, replacing 16 year old drafty double glazing and a job that really needed doing.

Is hard to quantify how much we will be saving but the house is certainly a more comfortable and easier place to heat. We might cover our investment in the same length of time we had the old windows. There is a value in not having a draft down the back of the neck when watching the telly.

We are looking at it as adding value to the house and if we sold in the next year or two then we would certainly get our money back, plus they look a lot better.

Unless it was a really bad house, which yours doesn't look to be, with very poor windows would you save much more than €500-1000/yr on heating? making it 15-20 years before you covered the cost.

graememk

On a windy day do you feel any drafts on the windows?

You can replace the seals /get someone to do it. Over time the seals do give up.

I've done half a window so far lol never got back to it. But only doing one side is noticable.

Other lower cost options can include getting only the glass replaced too.

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120106739#Comment_120106739

Possibly the door could be adjusted to have a tighter fit, especially in the locked position.

I know mine has adjustment for the locks. Definitely a better seal when "locked"

jkforde

just reading that there's s couple of sunspots coming around to face us in the near future (more irradiation!)... and it got me thinking, do veteran PV owners notice the effect of the 11yr solar cycle on yearly generation? realise it might be too small to notice on a residential system but must be at least noticeable on commercial scale.

paulbok

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120105677#Comment_120105677

I've just ordered a Knightsbridge double wall socket with energy monitoring to stick my drier on. Not enough room behind to stick a plug on without worrying about it getting whacked pushing stuff back, or it getting loose. I'll use the power monitoring to create alerts.

I have 2 of their regular smart plugs for testing power usage on individual devices, and they work fine in HA through the Tuya integration, so confident they will be ok.

Planning on getting a few more for the washing machine and tv unit in sitting room, will automate that to turn off everything at night, between standby on 3/4 devices and the missus only turning off the tv and not the sky box, it should reduce usage.

Similar plans for the desks in the offices.

Rough calcs say they will pay for themselves in around 3-4 years. Will have a few regular sockets then to reuse in a workshop fitout I'm hoping to get at later this year, so that will lessen payback.

The devils

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120107095#Comment_120107095

Would you mind sending on a link for the sockets please.

Thanks

The devils

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120106680#Comment_120106680

Very hard to know @dr phil.

All I know from my own last ten years - going from a C2 /C3 to A3 just recently.

Triple glaze front ( very good 👍)

Double glaze back ( warmest part of the house)

Front door we kept and placed a double glazed 3/4 door in front - made such a difference (like a vacuum)

Spray foam voids/ceiling and gable end of house. (Made such a difference)

And other bits and pieces (pv, water heat pump)

Anyway like I said can't put a value on it,,,but would I recommend it - 100%

slave1

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120106680#Comment_120106680

From memory your house is a detached bungalow, I'd chase the external walls and put in deep external insulation, you can get experts to render. This will require a lot of DIY on your part but it's not rocket science, mostly dirty labour. You could do it over the late Spring/Summer as a get/keep/improve fit exercise

DrPhilG

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120108375#Comment_120108375

Have you any links or pics to demonstrate? I don't think I understand what you're recommending, what is "deep external insulation"?

DrPhilG

My house uses oil for heating, and I go through probably 2-3k litres a year. Used to be way worse but I improved it first by fitting Wiser heating controls and then by using a lot of electric heat via 7.9c night rate.

As @THE ALM says though, regardless of financial savings I just think the house would be way more comfortable.

Currently the hall sits at around 16 degrees and we try to only properly heat (to 20 or 21 etc) the living room and bedroom.

The house just doesn't retain heat well at all and to keep the whole house at 20 in winter would burn easily 20+ litres of oil a day.

Aside from that, our windows have those stupid little square dividers in them which we both hate, and she wants anthracite or black instead of white.

paulbok

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120108268#Comment_120108268

DM sent

silver_sky

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120108840#Comment_120108840

Can you send on to me please also? sounds great

paulbok

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120108979#Comment_120108979

Sent