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joth last won the day on April 26
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About Me
Completed UK's third "Enerphit plus" retrofit, during the pandemic
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Hertfordshire
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Is ASHP Going to Work for us - terraced retrofit?
joth replied to Richini's topic in Air Source Heat Pumps (ASHP)
forget about the PV and sort out insulation underneath your new wet UFH. Now is your only chance to do that. As you say, you can come back later and add PV -
How to match build materials and insulation
joth replied to Swampy's topic in House Extensions & Conservatories
We did something very similar to this. 200mm pavatherm EWI retrofit on existing 60s B&B cavity wall, and extension is 300mm blown cellulose TF with 80mm pavatherm EWI. Thermal bridge free all the way around Likewise the EWI is continuous up into the roof insulation -
I made a mistake in my original response. I take it you mean a UVC using the normal DHW connections? Just coming back to this to finally place an order. Again the same question arises: a 120L UVC costs less than a buffer tank. https://www.snhtradecentre.co.uk/product/gledhill-es-120l-direct-unvented-cylinder-stainless-steel/ vs https://www.plumbnation.co.uk/site/gledhill-stainless-lite-plus-direct-buffer-store-cylinder-120-litre/ Any reason not to use the UVC? It has a complementary PRV. 2x immersion heater and expansion tank...
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I wish we'd installed it upstairs, for increased cooling capacity, not for heating! Like others we currently have no heating upstairs and it still runs 2-4ºC warmer than downstairs. Stack venting cools downstairs a treat, but the house stratifies the warmth very well and retains it upstairs. For a new build I guess the cost is negligible but we were a retrofit and installing upstairs would have been quite a lot of expense, so still glad we didn't, but I now have a never ending project getting the upstairs FCU installed and effective.
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The sensor is probably a simple thermistor or possibly a "1-wire" digital sensor, either way fairly easy to extend the wires on it if you need to. Just make sure the joint is water proof if it will end up under the floor at all. (I like to solder the wires, cover in epoxy and heat shrink, but other methods exist) My ASHP controller doesn't have any underfloor thermostat (although I added one for my own data logging interest) - it uses sensors on the UFH flow and return pipes
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Where to buy Loxone kit (DIY)
joth replied to Hilldes's topic in Networks, AV, Security & Automation
Very similar here. I was given a miniserver by a colleague and initially I just hooked up various super cheap switches and bulbs via to the built in digital inputs and outputs. I trusted that the Tree gear would "just work" if I ever bought any, so was more interested to learn about interfacing to less proprietary standards before committing. I played with KNX a bit (and discarded using it at all), got the dmx extension and then got comfortable using the Loxone config programming software before deciding to commit. All in a lot less cost, and a lot more educational for me and my goals, than buying a demo case. -
Rookies diving into the passive house deep end
joth replied to Jake Smith's topic in Introduce Yourself
Which year was it that the challenge to become a SI unit pedant? We certainly noticed that one 😆 -
So true. It's a small mercy they didn't restrict 0% VAT on tampons to supply & install too.
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You can do it either way. Some people like to run DMX all over the place to have drivers in the ceiling void with the lighting fixture. Personally I don't like that as DMX is a pig to diagnose if something goes wrong so my DMX universe is strictly internal to the Loxone cabinet. Per the title of this thread, I use a start topology with one power cable back to the cabinet per light (or logical group of lights). If I need any remote DMX actuators I'd put them on a separate DMX universe, probably via an IP to DMX bridge. Another option is to use a DMX amplifier/splitter which at least separates branches from each other at the physical layer (separate termination resistor needed per branch, but not as clean as independent universes)
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Yes, I bought my "Panasonic" FCU from shopclima, (actually rebranded Systemair unit). Rather tatty condition package by the time it got here, but otherwise do drama (pre-Brexit). Note the size of FCU makes a big difference to the price, and you need to size it (and the buffer tank) carefully both to be effective and to avoid short-cycling the heat pump.
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We will have a motorised velux at the highest point (my architect is mad keen on velux for purge cooling) We have this (actually, a Fakro PH window) at the highest point and it works great for cooling. Overnight it's much more effective than the ASHP (via UFH or FCU). Couple notes: - we also have an opening rooflight in the ground-floor extension flat roof, opening both together is most effective to create a through-draft - the open plan area, inc hallway stairwell and landing, all cool down fabulously. However, the bedrooms tend not to benefit much as we keep doors closed (no cats in bedroom policy!) which means I'm still working on designing in some extra mechanical ventilation to push cold air around into those rooms more effectively. (The MVHR, even on bypass and boost in winter, isn't enough to compensate for 2 human bodies in the room) - I really appreciate the home automation for keeping track of indoor and outdoor temperature, heating and mvhr status, and current rain status, and automating the skylight open position accordingly. - originally I just had it "open" or "close" but it's a bit slow to move between end-stops (30secs?) and a bit noisy, so when at the threshold temperature it would clatter all night opening and closing every 15 mins. so now I set the skylight angle proportionally to the amount the house is over target temperature, which very nicely modulates the window down to "closed" as the house cools down, and gradually opens it up as it warms back up.
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Improving output from existing MCS 4kW array
joth replied to Solarexploits's topic in Photovoltaics (PV)
You can still make changes to the trees (esp lopping that maybe needed for safety), you just need to file an application https://www.gov.uk/apply-work-on-protected-tree We've done several -
Does anyone understand how ADSL broadband actually works?
joth replied to ProDave's topic in Boffin's Corner
The problem is 30 years ago the government decided to sell off BT so they could profit from it, rather than invest in making it ready for a digital future https://www.techradar.com/uk/news/world-of-tech/how-the-uk-lost-the-broadband-race-in-1990-1224784