Ferdinand

You clearly ned a Winnebago. That would be fun in the remote northern parts of Caledonia 🙂 .

Mine's called Leigh Bear.

Autotrader currently has 5k of secondhand electric cars with ranges >200 miles - so there are some around.

I think there's a lot to be said for secondhand electricals, given depreciation. I'll consider one next time around - still waiting for something sensible able to tow 2 tonnes.

Given that FITs are only index linked, no one is going to get a massive cash windfall, perhaps. Is there modelled data on this for domestic FITs and commercial FITs? I'd perhaps have more of a beady eye on the Export Payments of rent-a-roof companies - which perhaps fall more into "windfall" territory. In my domestic setup, the FITs are what I am relying on for a basic return to pay for the £12k I laid out on the solar, and the Export payments are the thing that might balloon.

Question for your Peter, as I am looking at that option. Do I need a specialist company for that, or just a normal plumber?

What's your EPC value? You can check it on the public register. https://www.gov.uk/find-energy-certificate I'm not *totally* convinced by 2007 - aiui the big jump in Building Reg insulation etc requirements was in 2010. My house was converted from a bungalow in 2008-9, and he built to better than regs but I still only call it OK (eg 70mm Celotex in the walls). Put in a diary note to take thermal photos this autumn to look for gaps in your insulation. My EPC as converted was 74C, which is still above average but not *that* above average. Average EPC for all UK housing stock is now just under 70. Don't forget existing extractor fans. If no shutter they are a hole in the wall. There are models which recover 80% of the heat and put it into incoming air. Those prices look OK. Good responses. I hope you don't mind lots of questions. Two other checks: 1 - What is your heating flow temperature? If it is above 60C your condensing gas boiler will not be condensing, and will be using maybe 10% extra gas to cover the lower efficiency. Needs to be 2 - One more checkpoint is your radiator sizes. I am probably nearly ASHP ready as I have ufh downstairs, and large rads upstairs to match the lower than normal flow temperature for the ufh. 3 - I'd still say that you need to do your own heat calculations as a check on any suppliers. I think your basic issue is still the complexity. I'm really not convinced by the electric boiler and preheater as described. F

They put a payback calculation in the Graun? Ye Gods... The original piece does contain uncorrected errors (start date of FiT are one). And for the ones which have been corrected, the editorial processes of pf such high quality that the correction has been added twice. Have a nice BH, everyone 🙂. Harry does not seem to own up to the revenue he is getting from FITs as part of his payback calculation, nor to have considered divert devices.

* Further perhaps disconnected thoughts: Adding it up and guestimating, you are looking at something like a £50k investment at a time of peak demand and high prices, plus other stuff to glue it together. 2 x PW2 installed = 15-20k. 2 x Thermino = 5k + VAT + install. Electric boiler = 2k installed (?) 6 kWp Solar = 10k installed I think this feels over-complex. That's the sort of sum that people do quite substantial renovations for, so it is great that you are taking the time to think it through. There's a French horse jumping proverb - reculer pour mieux sauter - which applies, "pause in order to jump better". * Suggestions: - I would suggest looking at recasting the problem - rather than treating it as a fixed demand that must be met. Can demand be reduced, so making the problem to be addressed smaller? See below. One of the basics with going all-electric is that the house *,must* be fundamentally efficient. - You also need to check timing considerations - can you get it in for this winter? In the context I can see an argument for scheduling the solar in for the spring, as it will deliver little in the winter. Is this programme better in phases? - How does that electric boiler compare with your combi gas boiler? Presumably if nothing in demand is changing you need it to be the same power, discounted for however much the water is preheated. The biggest load challenge is always water heating. - I'm skeptical about projected prices. But my own strategy is based on reducing winter gas demand, and I already have a large solar array on the roof. - I'd keep an eye on what Fizzy Lizzy is going to do when she is the new PM in a few days. I have little faith at present as she is putting out naive statements about tax reductions mainly when the govt strategy for the last 10 years has to take people who now need the most help *out* of income tax, but she may be mugged by reality. - I think you are not thinking separately enough about water for human use, and central heating. If you plan to use Thermino preheated water to feed heat to your central heating and permit a smaller electric boiler, you will need a tank with a thermal element of some sort to transfer the heat from your Thermino preheated water to your circulating water. That sounds complex, and it may just be better to eliminate the Heat Battery and use a Powerwall driving the electric boiler directly. Others are better than me on that. - Will your rads need replacing? * Reduce, Reuse, Recycle I think it's also going to be worth you doing a runaround the traditional reducing demand options again perhaps; increased prices have moved a lot of balance points. eg Are you *fully* LED bulbs, insulated and sealed loft hatch?, how old is your fridge & freezer (modern ones are *much* more efficient), are your hot water pipes insulated?, does your extractor fan have a backdraft shutter? or Heat Recovery, are your window reveals insulated?, do you have underfloor draughts? - all of the classic small reductions that are now worth 3-5x as much as they used to be. And bigger things such as whether your floors are insulated etc. Ferdinand

Hmmm. Interesting. That's a lorra lorra gubbins. As a ballpark, what is your current EPC value? I think you want a lifecycle cashflow model, working out eg the cost of replacing your Powerwalls after 10 (?) years and so on, to model the economics at various electricity prices. That is in addition to the thermal model of your house you need to build to understand your demand. We have a striaghforward Jeremy Harris ss available here that seems to be quite good as an approximate model. The central heating sounds unorthodox (others will comment), but I'd suggest that more solar pv might be useful.

In a few years it would be absorbed in your hedge behind it. Then they can trim the face of your hedge 12 in into their land. In those circs I would put it right on the boundary, with your hedge 12 inches behind it (ish). If they don't like it they can put something on their side.

If just to restrain the dog and keep it secure, I would suggest the system used everywhere in the 1950s - many of which are still there. Concrete posts postcrete-d in, tighten-able strainer wires (use turnbuckles) mid and top, or 3 for a 2m fence, and plastic covered or galvanised chainlink mesh. At the ends / corners you want stronger posts or tensioning ground anchors to absorb the tension along the fence and keep your strainer wires tight (this is a standard technique used eg for field fences). With conrete posts, make sure you have an easy way to attach your wires and fence to the posts, which probably means holes cast into the posts. The lengthways tensioning is important, as a post with a horizontal force at the top may buckle. Get your supplies from a trade or agricultural supplier. (The latter may not have chain-link). It may come as a system. Or you might find a local fence supplier who makes their own posts. Should last 20+ years. Let the edge of your hedge grow through it stood off a bit from the main growth (trunks of hedge bushes could make it lean). Just remember where it is when trimming. For "how to do it", try youtube vids. For cost control, you need the right stuff bought well, not the cheap wrong stuff bought at full price.. F

I think this is the rule in the European Electricirt market, of which we are a part. Was it not done to drive renewable investment? I don't see that can be reformed without buying out the existing contracts at the existing prices, which is less efficient than letting them run. F

It's either 1 - Engage in an argument which you may win or lose, and is guaranteed to take up time. 2 - Reinstall now, and keep quiet, and hope no one notices. Leave it off the PA. 3 - Reinstall later, if lack of security is not a problem. Leave it off the PA. In cases 2 and 3 just be prepared to move them 5m back if smoeone fusses. The best route would have to have just done it before your planning app - you have now told them they aren't there. F

Are they thinking road safety and the need to pull off the road? Is it a classified road? Any new policies in that area? Would a powered gate help? What happened to the old one? Alternatively you could replace the gate and call it "maintenance / repair". I would probably do this, and not consult them at all. Then consider applying for a Cert for Lawful devlopment if planning have kittens.

FAQ is here: https://octopus.energy/blog/outgoing/ It seems to say yes you can explicitly. Seems to have been there for some time since 2018. I see this having its wings clipped a little in due course, I think. IMO Octopus are trying to get a big stake in the Smart Grid by recruitiing the core mini-suppliers. Words: Do I need to have solar, or could I take advantage if I have home batteries and/or V2G? × Outgoing Octopus is best for homes with significant renewable generation, but you don’t HAVE to be generating energy to benefit. Join Outgoing Octopus and use home batteries (or your EV battery, if you've got hold of a vehicle-to-grid charger...) to take advantage of low consumption prices on our Agile tariff and high export rates on Outgoing Octopus. It’s a balancing act. Store electricity at times of the day when the Agile prices are super low or even negative (on December 8 2018 Agile dropped to -2.31p per kWh). Then export from your battery when energy on the grid is most in demand, and most expensive. Not only are you powering your home with cheaper stored energy, but supporting the grid when energy is in high demand, and making money off anything extra you export. If you’re exporting more energy than you’re using, you might even get your Octopus bill into credit. And we’ll even refund the cash if you wish. It’s worth remembering, though, your home will consume battery discharge first before sending the surplus to the grid).

Now I need Octopussy to recognise what I have sent them !

The copy of my letter sent to the installer in 2015, he has arrived from the DNO. Bloody good service from Western Power Distribution. I only phoned them yesterday after receiving an email from Octopussy at 3:15pm yesterday that they needed the original. F

According to the helpdesk at the DNO, they found my installation details and dates etc whilst we were talking, and he phoned up the relevant team to see if he could send me a copy of the DNO Notification Confirmation letter on the spot. They were closed, so he has emailed them to ask for one to be sent AM tomorrow. And he has given me their phone no for if I don't hear by 10am. Failing all of that, Plan B is for them to generate a new one, and Plan C would perhaps be for me to re-register. Hopefully I get a nice email tomorrow early. This was a familiar scenario, so I guess they have a way to deal with it, and that it should become more efficient over time. My surmise is that Octopus are demanding at the front end of the applicaton, as they have found that it ends up in the soup without full proven details if they don't. F

My other thoughts were: 1 - That's a lady's hand. 2 - He's showing off the only finger that isn't chewed to the quick.

I thought that was the one you were planning to smoke. My Iraqi neighbour, who makes something wrapped in vine leaves from the leaves of the vine that comes over his other fence, took the dish around to the vine owner - who was surprised that his climber was being used for lunch.

So what is super-distinctive about that leaf that is the same as all the other leaves?

I supplied the MCS Installation Cert with the application, as I already have that. I tried the "we have informed the DNO" email as Plan B for the other one, but they have come back and asked for the original - which I do not have. F

OK. So reply recieved. Octopus do indeed want a copy of the DNO notification letter - which is the thing to confirm that your feeding of power to the grid has been accepted by them. My DNO Western Power are being helpful and it is a usual query. We shall see. F

A news story from Orkney brought to my attention. Date is late July. Is this a thing? https://www.orcadian.co.uk/ridiculous-energy-block-on-new-build-homes-challenged/