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Domestic hot water

Traditionally, domestic hot water has simply been a choice between a combi boiler or a vented system (with the odd Point of Use water heater thrown in).

With water saving design, and zero carbon housing which will possibly become the standard in 2016, this all changes slightly for several reasons -

with PassivhausSee more on [...]

The Renewable Heat Premium Payment is a one-off grant designed to help towards meeting the costs of installing renewable technologies in your home, until the Renewable Heat Incentive is introduced for domestic customers.

Technology

Voucher Value

Solar Thermal Hot Water £300 Air Source Heat Pump £850 Ground Source or Water Source Heat Pump £1250 Biomass [...]

Flues

Fluespipe to conduct gas, typically ventilation air or boiler exhaust. see more on Flues are pipes or ducts which carry waste gasses away from a building to the air outside. This can be caused by two possible mechanisms

the exhaust gasses are hot and rise naturally up the fluepipe to conduct gas, typically ventilation air [...]

Part L and SAP (England)

The Building Regulations, part L, is the section which covers energy conservation for new buildings (with part L1A covering new buildings and part L1B covering existing ones)

At present there is a period of transition which is well explained in an NHBCThe National House-Building Council describes itself as being “the leading warranty and insurance provider [...]

Energy Harvesting

There are several methods of harvesting energy for a house but non of them are as important as providing excellent levels of insulation, air tightness and energy efficient appliances in the first place. Witness to this fact is the design of the PassivhausSee more on the Passivhaus standard. The PassivHaus Institute has pioneered a [...]

Straw Bales

Boilers are available for burning straw for domestic heating and constitute an almost carbon neutral source of heat as the carbon is recycled annually. Various sizes of bales can be used and are usually batch loaded by tractor. There is nearly always a hot water storage accumulatorusually a large water tank used to store [...]

Burning Timber

How clean is wood burning?

Arguably one of the greenest methods for heating a rural house in the UK (including domestic hot water) is a combination of solar thermal collectors (for summer) and wood pellet or chip (for winter). Logs come a close second if they are dry and burn cleanly. They are also [...]

Central Heating Plumbing

Depending on which type of central heating system you have chosen there are several factors which can influence how ‘green’ the plumbing is

Is the circuitry as compact as possible? Is the circuitry zoned where necessary? Is the pipework sized properly? Is the pipework well insulated? Will the materials be reusable or recyclable [...]

Solar Collector Plumbing

Existing buildings

Plumbing for solar collectors is normally carried out by specialist companies when they retrofit systems to existing buildings.

New buildings

The challenge with solar collectors is to do with working out pipe runs that go from the collector outside and through the roof to the inside space where there is a tank [...]