All Activity

The problem is the reason we should drop the policies is that "they cost too much and we should use the vast reeves or North sea gas and oil to make ourselves energy independent" Which is all bollocks. But sticks in certain minds alongside "we are being invaded" and "the most pressing issue facing our nation is where somebody takes a piss"

The best solution would be a heat pump and possibly a battery EPC regs don't reward that (zero for batteries and a heatpump yields a couple of points over the existing storage heaters). Plus there are planning and install issues (5 stories, conservation area, AONB). The best solution. The one we are going with is to swap the heaters for new HHR storage heaters. If I can get solar fitted I will - and probably a battery. As for the gas properties the issue is not making it more expensive for the tenants (plus the EPC issue). Right now I can't make the bus case stack up despite trying many permutations. Again solar is the current front runner.

Why? Why is the domestic industry mix of UK 2025 inferior to 2000? Or 1975? Or 1950 or 1850? Name a country that has had the same industrial mix that it did in 2000? Certain people have nostalgia for manufacturing but the fact is the UK was always going to have to transition away from labour intensive industry because the world marches on. If we still built cars the way we did in 1970 the cars would be more expensive and poorer quality than competitors who used modern, lower labour, plants. Arguably it's part of the reason out motor industry failed - not modernising. China's industrial mix has massively changed. Has their policy failed? A far better measure is the impact on the economy and living standards of decarbonisation. This is going to be hard to disentangle from the other things that have happened over the last 2 decades that have also impacted out economy and living standards. 2008 crash Brexit COVID Ukraine invasion Hormuz

Here is the serious analysis It is true that upto 2005 the idea that we were merely exporting emissions was mostly true, but since then even our footprint emissions (which includes the footprint of stuff made abroad) have fallen. I'd be very interested to see which "international forums". The UK is generally considered to be a leader in the field of transition policy (at least regarding generation).

I do give a chuff - though this thread is specifically about the non-climate related reasons for needing net zero policies. But the idea of comparative advantage extends to carbon as well. There are some items that can be produced and shipped for less CO2 than being produced here. Aluminium from Canada being an example that springs to mind. For jackdaw gas Vs LNG gas the difference is relatively small - about 0.3% of UK emissions and even smaller if the gas is sourced from Norwegian pipeline (which it will be this winter as LNG from Quatar is not available)

I have about 30 properties to install them in and assume about £10k per property. 30 x 10 = 300

I'd be pleased to have these. & I think they look good too. The plinth in front of the sink in our on-site caravan is ruined, because there was a leak behind the sink we didn't know about. These strips would have saved them.

Like China is working towards, very rapidly. And India, sub Saharan Africa as well. I get the feeling that people that think 'Net Zero' is expensive rubbish think that we should have done it already, not done anything, blame others, not blame others, we are a good example, not a good example, it will make a difference, won't make a difference. I suggest that you all get together and come up with a coherent plan as why we should drop the policies and just carry on as normal, rather than divert the climate change debate to one about personal finances.

So you really don't give a chuff about what is correct climate wise, so what are you trying to achieve? If that's the cost you must have a lot of properties - sell one - job done, if it's costing £300k you must have between 50 and 100. You make your choices and then live by the consequences. I only have one property now, my heat pump cost under £3k to install. If your properties are all electric, let all your tenants to choose there own tariff and add a battery. That may make more financial and environmentally sound solution. Get your own house in order, before preaching to those that have.

Partly, but also our demand for electricity has gone down a lot because we now buy products made abroad (mainly using electricity from coal) vs making here. BL? British Leyland? Obviously, our past economy had lots of problems and we didn't decide to move from production to importation for climate reasons. But my point was we are not a good example of decarbonisation. A good example of decarbonisation would be an economy that has shifted away from carbon emissions without changing the domestic industry mix.

Isn't that because we have stopped burning coal to generate electricity? But our economy has changed to a service one. I don't think there was a debate about climate change, or energy pricing, when BL went under. The UK has always imported goods in relatively recent history, why we had such a large Navy and administratively controlled a third of the Earth's land. Yes. A theory that, if it was a science, would be called a Law. Not many electricians, brick layers, accountants or consultants build their own rockets and launch satellite to get broadband in rural areas. Similarly SpaceX does not farm potatoes, even though they control a lot of land.

I await your explanation of how it will cost upwards of £300K to install your heat pump........

Agree with this. We have already cut our emissions substantially from prior levels, but any serious analysis just shows we've exported the emissions (and to some degree damaged our future economy by doing so). In international forums now we are among examples of 'how not to decarbonise', whether we extract 2% more of our needs domestically or not won't make any difference to that.

The economic theory of comparitive advantage says otherwise. Easy for you to say, but when it will cost upwards of £300k, be extremely hard to physically achieve and you will see zero financial payback it's a harder question. Again, 2% will make zero difference to the price or energy security. As I have repeated, it makes no difference to our prices or energy security if we do or don't licence Rosebank/Jackdaw. There is a narrative pushed by some parties that going all in on the North sea will solve all of the UKs energy issues and obviate the need for "stupid net zero". People need to understand our problems (and need to transition away from oil and gas) will not disappear or even slacken one iota if we licence them. In one sense it is good of they are licences because it will end the discussion, except I worry the next stage - when the promised rewards don't appear - will be to argue "ah, that's because we didn't do a proper job! We need to go even further!". We have seen this tactic for the exact same parties in other areas.

You have a kitchen made from particle board, by far the cheapest and least moisture resistant form of wood out there. Higher end kitchens would be made from other materials that stand up to moisture better*. The plinth board generally will have to deal with a lot more moisture than a normal skirting board, especially around the sink area. That you have a routed slot for an insert rather than just a stick on strip suggests some care but fundamentally everything comes down to cost and ease of installation by less skilled people. I wouldn't expect scribing to be done unless you had a truly custom install or arranged the install separately with someone who you'd discussed this with. I'd be quite disappointed if I'd ordered a bespoke 'made-to-measure' kitchen and got short drawers, etc. The Schmidt website talks up how custom everything they do is but you don't appear to have anything better than could be bought from DIY Kitchens. * My kitchen is also particle board (most are these days) and there is damage to one of the units caused by water from the sink. The kitchen is old an needs a refresh but if it wasn't for that one unit that's damaged I'm pretty sure I could freshen everything up with just some new doors and a bit of glue (some of the melamine edge banding is debonding). As it is, a whole new kitchen is needed.

This finish is very common on high-end kitchens. it is a full floor-seal and makes a very tight and effective seal to the floor. Ours has been in nearly 2 years and is absolutely fine. Even with a major spillage (dropped bottle of red wine) it didn't let any spillage through and was easy to clean afterwards I much prefer the aesthetic of a recessed compression seal than a plastic stick-on channel that you often get in B&Q etc. From a practical point of view the alternative is an exposed mdf edge that will soak up any liquid, whether spills or when being cleaned Ours is below Regards Tet

Schmidt showrooms are run as a franchise network. So sales and installation and customer service can vary dependent on the location but the product is from the same manufacturer/supplier. We have never bought a new kitchen before and clearly there are some particular details to look out for that are not made evident, such as plinth detail, drawer depth that doesn't match cabinet depth, unnecessarily large service voids, standardised units pre-drilled with visible holes, exact light positions etc. Obviously if you are not having it custom made (which can have it's own issues) there are going to be constraints from standardisation, but some of them are subtle.

Great outcome, and thanks for the update.

I would like to thank you all for the advice and just a quick follow up. Eventually, after 3 appointments, one a no-show and many months the pipe work is insulated, supported and all the same colour. I won't bore you with all the details of the many, many emails but the phrase "I have been reliably informed" was used on more than a few occasions. And managed to get an extra 100 quid knocked off the bill for all the hassle. Thanks again.

But the point is importing stuff from elsewhere when we have it available is plain daft. No-one (or at least me) is saying don't go net zero or better, but don't pretend - by importing all the nasty stuff from elsewhere. Get your heat pump(s) installed - lead by example (as you quote) do it without grants, many on here have, including me. It's generally cheaper that the grant chaser will charge you anyway. I love doing the green thing, it generally saves me money it cuts my monthly bills. So I can preach as I have been there and done it, with my own money - once you move away from gas yourself come back and preach. Until then you may need Jackdaw and other gas producers, if we have a hard winter and gas is in short supply (now Putin's gas isn't available) that 2% may make all the difference.

As a side note the "it's green washing - all we've done is shoo emissions abroad and decimated our industry" is straight up FUD from the fossil fuel industry. It sits alongside "the UK is only 1% so nothing we do makes a difference" It is in the fossil fuel industry's interes to make us think we cannot achieve anything so it's not even worth trying. It's stage 3 of the 4 stages

If we are going to tackle a global issue we need to work with other countries. It's really hard to encourage other countries to cut emissions or not start more fossil fuel exploration when we are granting drilling licences - it's not a good look. And as for the argument "we are just green washing, by importing everything that look CO2, oil, gas, bricks, most out goods come from other countries..." It s true that the 50% fall in our "Territorial" emissions measure excludes goods and services from abroad, But our "footprint" emissions which includes that, plus aviation and shipping and pretty much everything else has also fallen albeit not by as much- but still over 20% down from the peak (just under 1bn to just over 750bn). Given you describe 2% as a "good proportion" what would you describe +20% as? "Very good proportion", "Bloody good proportion"?

Other countries are decarbonising as well. Not studies this in detail, and we are certainly not the best, or worse. https://ourworldindata.org/consumption-based-co2

Yes as I never gets bonuses - getting 2% would be good, better than zero. My last bonus was in 2001. But I do work as a contractor. Sorry - who are we to be telling any other country what to do. Besides everyone knows we are just green washing, by importing everything that look CO2, oil, gas, bricks, most out goods come from other countries - but makes our CO2 numbers look fantastic, but it's not real.

The direct jobs are not substantial - 27 according the the owners. A further 250 or so will be more secure at the hub. Again the issue with jackdaw is that it doesn't do much either way. It's a sideshow. Whilst I think it would be better if we didn't licence it and spent our efforts elsewhere (transitioning) I'm not that bothered of we do - part of me thinks it might be a good idea because it will shut up all the idiots who think it'll sort all out problems and the UK will become the Saudi Arabia of Europe. It does if you mostly type on a screen. What unit do you think I am describing when I say "an average home uses 10 kwh a day"? Unless it genuinely causing you to think of another unit it's just pedantry. Says it all! It says that,like the majority of the country, my houses use gas. I'm trying to electrify but am being stymied by regulations, cost and the biggest issue is I don't want to spend money to make it more expensive for my tenants. Ideally an air to air alongside the current gas system would be the safest but I won't get a grant, I need planning for the outdoor units and in the case of all electric flats I get fewer points than swapping to modern storage heaters. All of the above doesn't invalidate my arguments any more than you being on mians water prevents you from complaint about water companies Only if you define 2% (at best) as a "good proportion". If you got a 2% bonus would you describe that as "a good proportion of my salary"? If you lose 2% of your body weight would that be "a good proportion of my bodyweight"? This is the point I keep trying to drive home. Jackdaw (and Rosebank) will make no discernable difference to: - energy prices - energy security - job figures - CO2 emissions* - tax revenues** It does send the wrong message though. It will make i harder for the UK to pressure other countries to live up to their commitments. *This is a point that can be used to justify licencing despite the climate situation. ** I would like to see what the net tax revenue situation actually is. Hopefully it is positive but I have a suspicion that once tax deductions are included the net position will be much smaller than trumpeted and possibly even negative