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Green Building Bible, Fourth Edition
Green Building Bible, fourth edition (both books)
These two books are the perfect starting place to help you get to grips with one of the most vitally important aspects of our society - our homes and living environment.

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Heating and cooling: Most secure heating and backup

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1 to 13 of 13

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    Various problems meant I couldn't get to my second home over the winter - visited recently to find oil heating had failed and there was flooding from burst pipe/tank in loft (even through water was turned off and drained). The question is what to do about the heating to preclude a possible repeat, with lowest carbon footprint. My initial thought would be ASHP with inline immersion heaters in case of ASHP failure. Any thoughts about reliablilty and alternative systems would be appreciated. There is no gas to the cottage and single phase electricity - would flicker be a problem with ASHP?
    • CommentAuthorCWatters
    • CommentTimeApr 5th 2016
     
    Is the house suitably insulated for ASHP?

    I'd be inclined to fix the oil boiler and get yourself an alarm that can send a text message?
  3.  
    Probably cheaper and greener to fix the water system so that when it is turned off and drained it actually IS turned off and drained. That way there would be no need to heat an unoccupied building all winter to prevent water freezing.

    Over here care is taken with draining down to ensure that pipes are empty and if the system is not installed so that a drain down is guaranteed to work then a compressor is used to blow the pipes through to make doubly sure that no water remains. For the WC either an environmentally acceptable anti freeze is put in or more frequently a salt/water mixture is used to prevent the WC pan splitting due to ice in the loo

    As another thought go mains pressure DHW and get rid of the pipes/tank in the loft and put antifreeze in the CH to take care of that problem.
    • CommentAuthorringi
    • CommentTimeApr 5th 2016
     
    First check you have rcbo on each electrical circuit rather than a RCD that covers all your circuits. Then put two electric heating on different circuit with their thermostats set a little lower than boilers frost stat. I would consider just having the electric heating and using E7, as if the thermostats are set to 5c, they will not come on much in the daytime.

    If you don't use the holiday home over winter and spring, a FULL drain down including checking the tank is empty etc may be the best option. It is not easy to drain down 100%, as some pipes will be level. Getting into the loft to fix an airline to the outlet pipe from the tank will be a pain every time you wish to drain down.

    Personally I would sill like a little heat going into the building to help keep it dry.

    Plastic pipes are more forgiving with freezing.
  5.  
    Thanks for your thoughts - must add that I normally visit frequently through the year, but circumstances were against me this winter.
    • CommentAuthorgyrogear
    • CommentTimeApr 15th 2016 edited
     
    Posted By: ChrisEnglandI normally visit frequently through the year,


    Just a thought, could you work out something local, key-holder-wise, somebody who could nip in and stick the heating on etc. contra a little gift at christmas...

    gg
  7.  
    You either drain it properly and so can walk away with confidence or don't drain at all and heat to prevent freezing. IMO there is no point in draining and then having to check and heat - just in case the draining did not work !!

    Fix it so that it turns off and drains must be the cheap (and green) option
    • CommentAuthorringi
    • CommentTimeApr 15th 2016
     
    Draining if you are going to use it the next weekend is not cheap or green due to the chemicals you need to add when refilling a CH system.

    The problem is that freezing risk is not predictable and the time when you fail to predict it may freeze is also likely to be the time you can't get there.
  9.  
    CH can have (the right sort) of anti freeze in it. DHW and domestic cold water should be drainable at the cost of the volume of water in the tank and pipes
  10.  
    Thanks for further thoughts. The CH supposedly had antifreeze to prevent freezing below -15C. Heat was left on at low levels to both prevent freezing and minimise any damp problems (condensation etc can be a problem).
    •  
      CommentAuthordjh
    • CommentTimeApr 16th 2016
     
    What pipe and tank was it that burst and flooded?
  12.  
    I'm not entirely sure what it was feeding - it wasn't the heating, and all taps had been turned on and left on after the water was turned off. I have a suspicion it might have been a remnant from an old back boiler that had not been properly disconnected.
    •  
      CommentAuthordjh
    • CommentTimeApr 16th 2016
     
    Sounds like get an accurate plan of all the plumbing might be the first step in any plan to improve it then! :bigsmile:

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