Hot on the heels of the car and boiler scrappage schemes (the latter still a twinkle in a plumbers’ merchants eye), comes the double glazing scrappage scheme.

The Glass and Glazing Federation has launched a petition calling on the government to introduce a scrappage scheme as a subsidy to new double glazing in UK homes.

And they make their point in a short statement:
“The view that the double glazing and window industry is worthy of government support is not a new one. Indeed, since May of this year commentators from both inside and outside of this industry have noted that subsidy would not just support the employment base of the industry, but also promote the purchase of a product that would help the government meet its obligation to cut emissions; properly installed energy efficient double glazing.

“A similar justification was given by motoring executives earlier this year, when they argued that a scrappage scheme for cars would provide the financial motivation people needed to trade older, less fuel efficient and more polluting vehicles for newer ones.”

The Glass and Glazing Federation go on to say that a properly organised double glazing scrappage scheme would provide the perfect opportunity for homeowners to demonstrate their commitment to the problems of global warming. It’s likely that they would find it easier, say The Glass and Glazing Federation, to lower their property’s carbon footprint by the relatively simple act of either installing, or upgrading their double glazing. And, they say, it will be more effective than trying to entice people into low interest loans to fund their green-minded house efficiency improvements.

The Glass and Glazing Federation need initially 500 signatures to get their petition forward as a serious contender.

They no doubt hope that it will ultimately have the same success at the car scrappage scheme which has appeared to revitalise the car industry not only in the Uk, but also on mainland Europe and in the US.

The boiler scrappage scheme has got the initial number of signatures it requires, but only time will tell whether it’s adopted by the Government as a serious idea.

Guest Article by Neil Camp

Boiler manufacturer Baxi Group had added its substantial weight behind calls for a boiler scrappage scheme.

The Company’s CEO, Board of directors and many of its employees have signed the petition which is urging the Prime Minister to adopt a concept similar to the car scrappage scheme which has proved so successful for the automotive industry.

Mark Kelly, CEO of Baxi, said:
“There are approximately 16 million standard efficiency boilers operating in UK homes today. Of these, 4.2 million [according to HHIC] are SEDBUK band G boilers.

“Replacing these boilers with high efficiency boilers will help to reduce carbon emissions and annual fuel bills for homeowners. Any support that can be provided to accelerate the replacement of these older boilers would be of benefit to the homeowner and the wider economy.

“The construction industry has also been particularly badly hit in this recession and there have been many, many redundancies in manufacturing, distribution, builders and installation companies. This is a double whammy for the government as every redundancy could mean less tax collected and more benefits to pay out.

“This scheme would stimulate demand for gas boilers and help manufacturers, plumbers’ merchants and Gas Safe heating engineers. Millions of these old boilers could be replaced by modern boilers which are more than 90% efficient and, with proper controls on the system, annual savings of more than £200 could be saved on the household gas bill (according to the Energy Saving Trust).”

The brains behind the scheme is plumbers’ merchant Mick Williams, who has identified five main reasons why such an initiative should exist.
Firstly, the economic argument which states that for every household that changes from an old boiler, to a more efficient model, could be in line for savings of over £200 a year in energy bills.

Secondly, the environment argument, which states that replacing just some of the 4.5 million boilers that are less than 70% efficient, thousands of tonnes of carbon dioxide emissions can be saved every year.

Thirdly, and back to economics, the boiler scrappage scheme would support existing jobs for plumbers, builders and suppliers suffering from the recession, and create new green jobs and training places.

Fourthly, and still on economic arguments, British manufacturers would also benefit, since a high proportion of gas boilers are still made here in the UK.

Finally, an overall argument, is the boiler scrappage scheme would actually be far greener than its car equivalent, as building regulations say that by law, all new boilers fitted in homes have to be efficient condensing boilers (in other words, more efficient than the ones they replace).

Guest Article by Neil Camp

The latest trend in domestic heating circles – low-carbon gas absorption technology that heats and cools buildings with claimed significant cost and environmental benefits – has taken a further step forward with the launch of gas absorption heat pump (GAHP) solutions for UK consumers.

ENER-G, a Manchester-based sustainable power business has teamed up with Italian manufacturer Robur, to market GAHP systems. The fans of GAHP systems claim they are far better than traditional boiler technologies, because they offer a significantly improved environmental performance.

The principle behind a GAHP system is simple. It works by removing energy from a low temperature heat source – in this case the outside air – and then upgrading it within the heat pump to either heat, or cool water inside a building. The power to run the whole process comes from natural gas, or LPG.

And ironically, this is not exactly a 21st Century technology, having been pioneered in the late 1700s.

Andrew Hill, ENER-G product manager, said:
“GAHP’s harness the properties of refrigerants to change from liquid to gas and back again in order to transfer heat. The technology provides sustainable solutions for a wide range of businesses and households.”

The benefits in operational terms include security of energy supply because there’s less dependency on electricity, there’s no maintenance, and easy installation.

The Robur manufactured systems work up to 165% efficiency.
“Our heat pump solution, in partnership with Robur, provides a reliable, cost-effective, and constant energy source that is highly effective for industrial, commercial and residential use. This is due to the system’s ability both to save energy and increase the value of the building with its A+++ classification issued by the European Commission.” Added Mr Hill.

And GAHPs are suitable as a direct replacement for gas-fired traditional and condensing boilers. They can reach temperatures over 65C and also produce hot water.

The systems can be purchased outright, or rented.

Guest Article by Neil Camp

Two key environmental agencies have been taken to task for not appreciating the damage done by hard water.

Lime scale is a major factor in increased energy consumption says the Environmental Treatment Concepts (ETC), which is a member of three pivotal organisations: Green Building Council, British Water and the Environmental Industries Commission.

The ETC has pointed an accusatory finger at The Energy Savings Trust and The Carbon Trust for not recognising the negative impact of lime scale.

Although, says the ETC, The Carbon Trust does acknowledge that 1mm of lime scale will cause a near 10% increase in energy consumption as regards low temperature hot water boilers. But ETC say that there is no real guidance on both the agencies’ websites as to how to cope with the problem.

ETC claims that the agencies’ solution is to allow lime scale to develop and then use chemical agents to remove it. This they state is the wrong approach and they highlight the modern, non-chemical ways that lime scale can be prevented from forming in the first place.

They also say that the chemical de-scaling process can lead to the premature failure of sanitary-ware, water-fed equipment and appliances.

Guest Article by Neil Camp

Officials from the Department of Energy and Climate Change (DECC) are keen to see more waste used as a source for low-carbon heat.

The DECC is working on a new Heat and Energy Saving Strategy, which has been involved in an initial consultative period, and should be released in a more detailed version in the autumn. This will follow the government’s Renewable Energy Strategy which outlines the U.K.’s plan to reach its 15% renewable energy target by 2020.

The government is trying to marry the too much waste problem, with too little correct heat problem.

A number of solutions have been put forward, with one of the main contenders being the manufacture of biogas from waste, which is in turn cleaned and converted into biomethane, which can then be fed into the national gas grid. This method is very appealing to experts, as 90% of the country’s current domestic heating is provided by natural gas.

Experts explain that biogas has to be cleaned, because it consists of 65% methane and 35% carbon dioxide. When cleaned up into biomethance, it becomes about 90% methane, together the ethane and various other contaminants.

Cleaning biogas is regularly done in mainland Europe. The carbon dioxide has to be removed, as well as the hydrogen sulphide containments. The process is said to be no more complicated than cleaning natural gas from the North Sea before it enters the national grid.

Guest Article by Neil Camp