Thedreamer Posted March 22, 2022 Share Posted March 22, 2022 13 minutes ago, Nickfromwales said: Block & beam atop those piers? Timber joists. Block and beam is less common here. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nickfromwales Posted March 22, 2022 Share Posted March 22, 2022 1 minute ago, Thedreamer said: Timber joists. Block and beam is less common here. Ah. So deffo "combustible" sub-floor then. Did you take the blockwork 'square' all the way up to the stove? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SteamyTea Posted March 22, 2022 Share Posted March 22, 2022 It would be dreadful, after all this work, if domestic solid fuel, combustion devices, were outlawed. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Thedreamer Posted March 22, 2022 Share Posted March 22, 2022 10 minutes ago, Nickfromwales said: Ah. So deffo "combustible" sub-floor then. Did you take the blockwork 'square' all the way up to the stove? Above the stove. I wanted the builder to go further to ceiling height but he didn't, instead stud and plasterboard after that. No queries from Building control, quantity surveyor, or HETAS stove installer regarding the duct. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nickfromwales Posted March 22, 2022 Share Posted March 22, 2022 1 minute ago, SteamyTea said: It would be dreadful, after all this work, if domestic solid fuel, combustion devices, were outlawed. Yup. I suppose it will be on the cards at some point. In the meantime......"man make fire" 🔥 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SteamyTea Posted March 22, 2022 Share Posted March 22, 2022 1 minute ago, Nickfromwales said: In the meantime......"man make fire" I have just got my 'new and improved' prices from EDF. Even I am wondering if I should buy an old stove with a back boiler, rig it up outside, then start burning the shed I want to replace. Standing charge 30.40p-->57.86p Day Unit 26.46p-->35.00p Night Units 14.04p-->18.57p Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nickfromwales Posted March 22, 2022 Share Posted March 22, 2022 Just now, SteamyTea said: rig it up outside, then start burning the shed I want to replace. Would just about fill the bath with hot water lol. Or do what the twats around here do and burn carpet / laminate floor or just about anything that their neighbours have to choke on. Fire brigade have been called a "few" times, lets just say that........ Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Thedreamer Posted March 22, 2022 Share Posted March 22, 2022 3 minutes ago, SteamyTea said: It would be dreadful, after all this work, if domestic solid fuel, combustion devices, were outlawed. Maybe in a urban environment, but in a sparsely populated rural location I would continue to burn and so would everybody else. 😁 If you drove twenty minutes from my house in all directions, I would say 95%+ all burn from a stove or a fireplace. It just so happens that my approach is probably the most efficient from having the wood on site and my stove set-up. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SteamyTea Posted March 22, 2022 Share Posted March 22, 2022 10 minutes ago, Nickfromwales said: Would just about fill the bath with hot water lol That is all a person needs. 11 minutes ago, Nickfromwales said: burn carpet / laminate floor or just about anything that their neighbours have to choke on Oh, good idea, can I burn seaweed. 11 minutes ago, Thedreamer said: Maybe in a urban environment, but in a sparsely populated rural location I would continue to burn and so would everybody else I am semi rural, and right by one of the worse roads for air pollution in the country. It was number three, but seems to have dropped down the rankings. No gas, so the cars and topology get blamed. "Come to Cornwall and enjoy the fresh sea air" It smells of creosote. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nickfromwales Posted March 22, 2022 Share Posted March 22, 2022 1 minute ago, SteamyTea said: That is all a person needs. OK, just it may be impractical and not cost-effective to keep importing knackered sheds each time you need to burn yourself a bath? 2 minutes ago, SteamyTea said: can I burn seaweed. Probably been tried around here tbh. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Marvin Posted March 22, 2022 Share Posted March 22, 2022 IMHO There is a continual cost or effort to get solid fuel. Cutting trees down or chopping up rubbish sheds or collecting seaweed and drying all takes time. I have done all of these. Read Stig of the dump. Its not just cutting the tree down, its the transporting which always seems to get further way, and the chopping up. If you use an internal wood stove with unseasoned or treated wood it will coat the flue which can start a fire. Seaweed was used to power steam ships, but again you try collecting it. You have to wait for the right tide and collect and dry it. You want to see what else is mixed in with seaweed at high tide these days Disgusting! We are using our efforts to try and reduce the heating we require as once changes are made they stay made and they don't become an increasing cost burden year on year. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
saveasteading Posted March 22, 2022 Share Posted March 22, 2022 2 hours ago, Thedreamer said: .I guess in the event of fire fire needs oxygen, and presumably none would reach the PIR 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
joe90 Posted March 22, 2022 Share Posted March 22, 2022 2 hours ago, Thedreamer said: I wanted the builder to go further to ceiling height but he didn't, instead stud and plasterboard after that. I find that odd, my builder did what I told him as I was paying, builders can make suggestions, sure, but they are in your employ surely 🤷♂️ Mine is brick, large and floor to ceiling, lots of “thermal mass” 🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣 (sorry) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
saveasteading Posted March 22, 2022 Share Posted March 22, 2022 4 minutes ago, joe90 said: builders can make suggestions, sure, but they are in your employ surely The less they know, the more they think they know it all. Anything they don't know is wrong, or 'science' which is not true otherwise they, being experts, would know it already. 1 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Thedreamer Posted March 22, 2022 Share Posted March 22, 2022 7 hours ago, Marvin said: IMHO There is a continual cost or effort to get solid fuel. Cutting trees down or chopping up rubbish sheds or collecting seaweed and drying all takes time. I have done all of these. Read Stig of the dump. Its not just cutting the tree down, its the transporting which always seems to get further way, and the chopping up. The wood burnt here is home grown. This winter I burned a lot of branches. Nothing more satisfying then collecting sticks to heat the home. In terms of heating the relative cost is nothing except my time. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Thedreamer Posted March 22, 2022 Share Posted March 22, 2022 (edited) 5 hours ago, joe90 said: I find that odd, my builder did what I told him as I was paying, builders can make suggestions, sure, but they are in your employ surely 🤷♂️ Mine is brick, large and floor to ceiling, lots of “thermal mass” 🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣 (sorry) He said it was pointless going further upwards and I sort of agreed. Just wish on the stud on above the blockwork I had doubled/trebled the plasterboard to add more T_ _ _ _ _ l M _ _ _ s. I won't type it. Edited March 22, 2022 by Thedreamer I can't spell. 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ProDave Posted March 22, 2022 Share Posted March 22, 2022 I burn wood here in a WBS. In a property with trees, I would say it is pretty essential. All the wood from maintaining and trimming the trees including dead wood goes on the stove. That plus other wood collected locally meets our needs. If I didn't have the stove, then all the tree maintenance would provide a lot of "waste" wood which I would probably be giving away to somebody else to burn on a stove. I have also in the last week or so been re thinking how our heating runs and trying to reduce (it's already low) cost. That is reduce cost, not necessarily reduce the amount of energy used. Up to now, the ASHP has just been on a timer to come on at 6AM and then under the control of room thermostats. That works well in the winter when the house needs several hours of low level heat to meet the heat losses. But now, in the shoulder seasons, stating at 6AM means the house has had all the heat it needs for the day early in the morning. So for the last week, the timer has been off, and I have manually been turning the heating on at 10AM once the sun is up and the PV is generating well and by 10AM on a sunny day, the PV generates enough to power the ASHP so although I am still using the same amount of energy to heat the house, I am getting it all from the PV on a sunny day. That is a future project to automate that, probably along the lines of @TerryE system to predict the daily heat input needed and then determine the operating time of the ASHP to best use solar PV generation. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Thedreamer Posted March 22, 2022 Share Posted March 22, 2022 2 minutes ago, ProDave said: If I didn't have the stove, then all the tree maintenance would provide a lot of "waste" wood I am now using all of our trees. Trunk/branches - fire wood Small sticks/small branches - biochar Leaves - compost/leaf mould Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ProDave Posted March 22, 2022 Share Posted March 22, 2022 1 minute ago, Thedreamer said: I am now using all of our trees. Trunk/branches - fire wood Small sticks/small branches - biochar Leaves - compost/leaf mould When the wind blows, our trees drop a lot of small branches little more than twigs. they would normally be a nuisance to get rid of. But I collect them, dry them, and use them as kindling to start the fire. That saves splitting larger logs to make kindling. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
saveasteading Posted March 23, 2022 Share Posted March 23, 2022 2 hours ago, ProDave said: giving away to somebody else to burn on a stove. Or a lovely bonfire, which releases all the carbon for no benefit other than 'tidiness' 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
saveasteading Posted March 23, 2022 Share Posted March 23, 2022 Do I lose a point if I get a sad face emoji? If so I will avoid irony. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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