The best hotwater system setup

As I am waiting for more details on the up coming government program for renewable energy, I had a long talk with someone that deals with heating systems every day. He told me about a way to setup your hot water heating system so that it will operate at it's top efficiency.

Most contractors setup heating systems by just connect up a thermostat to the control unit that runs the circulating pump. When you need heat it turns on the pump and you get heat. This is actually the worst way to run a hot water system because your heating system will keep over shooting the temperature that you want. You will find that the house will get really hot, then cool then hot again. This all takes a lot of extra energy. It also means that the furnace it's self keeps will run for 2-3 minutes at a time trying to stay hot. When it takes a minute or so to heat up all the parts of the furnace before it starts heating the water again you can see how this would reduce your efficiency.

The (not so new) setup that I was told about is much more efficient because it allows the furnace to cool off, right down to room temperature when it is not needed (like during the summer and maybe night time), when heat is needed the furnace will turn on and heat up, the pump that is connected only provides enough heat to the house to bring it to temperature. The control that is used keeps track of the water temperature that is in the radiators, the temperature outside and the requested indoor temperature. All of this data is used to tell the system exactly how hot to make the water that is pumped into the radiators. So for example, if it is -20degC out side then the system may need water temperatures of 180degF but if it is only -5degC out side then the system may only need water temps of 130degF (or maybe less). This means you get a much more even heated house and a system that uses less energy/oil.

Here is a diagram of the basic system
(This is very basic diagram so don’t try to use it to setup a system. You things like heat traps, expansion tanks etc. Once I get it all figured out I will post another diagram with more details)
Pump#1 – this pump is controlled by the furnace and will only turn on when the furnace is running at a set temperature, this is what allows the furnace to be turned off completely when no heat is being called for. (Prevents cold water from being circulated)

Pump#2 – this is a variable speed pump. The control senses the temperature of the zone pipes as well as the outside temperature then decides how fast to run this pump to get the radiators at the correct temperature. (This is basically a mixing pump; it pulls just enough hot water out of the furnace to get the water in the radiator loop to the target temperature)

Pump#3 – this pump is used to keep all the radiators at the same temperature, it just circulates the water with in the radiator loop.

Pump#4 – used when the hot water tank calls for heat (I am not sure that I put this in the correct spot) the hot water tank is an indirect tank, it has a coil in it that the water from the furnace circulated in to heat the drinking water contained with in the tank.

Each of the zones would also have a zone valve on the return so that each zone could be controlled individually.

Goverment Program

Well it looks like the government of PEI will be putting together another renewable energy program for home owners. The details of this program have not been announced but hopefully it will be some kind of grant/loan program.

Bad News

Well it looks like the PEI government has stopped their loan program for renewable energy, this is going to be a bit of a blow to my project. We will have to see what other options are available to us.

Solar Shadows

Here is the solar shadow model that I created using Google SketchUp. This software allows you to actually set your place in the world by using Google Earth. all very cool.

When you watch the video you will see the shadows going across the house (takes a few seconds to start, ok more like 10 seconds to start) The first time the shadow go across the house I have the date set to Jan 15th second time Feb etc. Each time the shadow goes across the house this represents a single day. Just for reference the house being studied is the one with the shadows on it.

Help on types of Solar.

I have decided to put a solar hot water system on our house, but now I have to decide what type of solar system to use to generate the hot water. From my understanding there are two types of systems that are normally used; flat panel collectors and evacuated tube collectors.

I have done some research into both but still can not figure out which is best for the PEI climate.

Here is what I know so far:
Flat panel systems – are less expensive, and work well when in sunny conditions and when it is not too cold.
Evacuated tube systems – more expensive, but work even when it is cloudy. Can produce very high temperatures.

So it looks like price is the big thing that stops people from using the evacuated tubes (I think) so here is some of the pricing I have gotten so far (I will update this as I get more pricing) these prices don’t include installation because I am planning on installing it myself.

Flat panel system (manufactured in NS) ~ $5000

• (2) 4’x8’ panels
• (1) photo electric panel to run pump
• (1) storage tank (just a hot water heater)
• (1) heat exchanger/pump/control unit that run on 12vDC from photo electric panel.

Evacuated Tube system (sold by company in NS) ~$4500

• (1) 14 tube collector (exact area is not clear but I think it is around 1.4 sq m)
• (1) storage tank (not clear on the size) super insulated tank. (contains the heat exchanger inside it)
• (1) pump/control unit that runs on 120vAC

The 2nd system is cheaper but it is not clear if everything is included in this price.

Does anyone have any further info about these systems?

Looking for co-authors....

I am looking for input from other people that have used or have done research on solar hot water heating. (and other types of environmental endeavors)

I would like to create this blog as more of a community blog, so if anyone else has or is the process of doing environment things such as using solar, wind, ground source heat, etc. I would like to add you as a co-author of the blog, to do this please post your email address in a comment and I will invite you as a co-author.

Home made Laundry detergent. (Cheap & more environmentally friendly)

This comes from an environmental workshop that I have been going to over the past few weeks.

We have just started trying this out, we used some of it this weekend and it worked great. We also figured that $15 of supplies would replace over $80 of store purchased detergent.
(you may actually save more then $80 becuase the $15 of supplies make 9-10 gallons of detergent)
One note is that the soap does not produce many suds but it still cleans really well and is good for the pocket book and the environment.

Apparently it came from the following website: www.thefamilyhomestead.com/laundrysoap.htm

1/3 bar laundry soap (such as Sunlight laundry soap)
½ cup washing soda (Arm and Hammer)
½ cup borax powder (20 Mule Team)

These products are all widely available at most grocery stores.
Here's what I paid for each item:
2 bars of Sunlight laundry soap: $1.99
Arm & Hammer Washing Soda: $5.19
20 Mule Team borax: $4.99

You will also need a small bucket (about a 2 gallon size)

1. Grate 1/3 of soap bar and put it in a sauce pan.
2. Add 6 cups water and heat pan until the soap melts.
3. Add the washing soda and the borax and stir until it is dissolved.
4. Remove saucepan from heat.
5. Pour 4 cups hot water into a bucket.
6. Add the soap mixture and stir.
7. Add 1 gallon plus 6 cups of water and stir.
8. Let the soap sit for about 24 hours and it will gel.

You use ½ cup per washing machine load (for a front loading washing machine). (If you have a top loading washing machine, you may have to use 1 cup.)

The finished soap will not be a solid gel. It will be more of a watery gelthat some people have described as an "egg noodle soup" look. Before using, you may want to stir the soap to break up the gel - or if the soap is stored in a container, you may want to give the container a shake to ensure the contents are well mixed.

Optional: If you want your soap to have some sort of scent you can scentthis with ½ to 1 oz. of essential oil or fragrance oil of your choice.

THE START....

I am starting this blog as a way hopefully spread some of the things I have found as I have been doing the following projects:

1. Trying to convert my house to use more solar energy (Mostly solar hot water)
2. Trying to start a small back yard garden, to reduce the number of miles my food has to travel to get to me.
3. Building homes as part of Habitat for Humanity and my attempts to make these homes a bit more environmentally friendly.
4. Any other projects I happen to start, including slamming political parties for doing stupid things.

For the information of those people that may follow my solar endeavors, I am located in Prince Edward Island, Canada (~ 43deg N, 63deg W).