Had a guy come out from one of the solar panel places. Roof just totally unsuitable for the really quite large panels that are used.

Damn!

Well, next project, a heat pump.

VERY disenchanted with the wood burning heater. Only heats one room, really, and the area in front of the heater always dirty with bits of bark coming off the firewood and always some ash flies up no matter how carefully I scoop up the ashes.

I would like the fire to burn slow overnight, keeping some warmth going and needing just a new log put on to come to life again next morning. Never managed that yet. I may have a new heater installed, one that comes out of the chimney at least partway—get more heat from it that way with conduction/convection adding more heat.

Present woodburning heater fits entirely in the fireplace in the chimney.


Damn, would have been nice with the panels powering the heat pump at least some of the time! Would have tried to get a couple of windpowered generators too.

Back when we had our hot water solar panels installed, we had winters where the sunlight was so little that the panels only gave us about 30 minutes' worth of hot water. Showers were limited to 5 minutes per person at the very most.

I would wonder how you would go with solar panels in the winter that are hot water systems. 9 hours of daylight. We have 10 hours 40 minutes of daylight, and that is not enough.

Well, I had asked about solar hot water system, didn’t think it was economic for one person (Socks uses very little hot water, none actually  :) ) but thought maybe if all installed at the one time might help—Nah.

Plenty of homes here have solar panels. Long days in summer after all, not sure about solar HWS.

Batteries are still very expensive, fine for off grid. LiFePo batteries do not go up in flames like Li batteries do.

Quote:

VERY disenchanted with the wood burning heater. Only heats one room.

Getting a bit cold for you and your dog?

Well it's not winter yet - not for over 6 weeks.

It is cooling down, Booby, just like Melbourne is. Winter and all that jazz.

There are 5 rooms in the house, wood heater heats only the lounge. Can use an oil filled radiator to heat a bedroom in the morning before rising—is that economic use of electrickery?

The house needs a bit of work.

Need any more info, fake christian?

Bobby. wrote on Apr 13^th, 2023 at 12:33am:

Quote: VERY disenchanted with the wood burning heater. Only heats one room. Getting a bit cold for you and your dog? Well it's not winter yet - not for over 6 weeks.

I live in Rockhampton -- and I think I keep making that point about where I live -- and the winters here get pretty cold for a tropical/subtropical region. Dad's two dogs are going to be wearing their coats for May onwards until August. They will also have their tents erected for the winter nights to ward off the cold. If only our last dog could have been as spoiled as these two.

I plan on putting cardboard over the windows of my place to ward off the cold coming off the windows. It worked last year. And blankets are going to cover the rest of the house's windows in rooms that I am not using. It should be pretty toasty in this house.

Jovial Monk wrote on Apr 13^th, 2023 at 12:36am:

There are 5 rooms in the house, wood heater heats only the lounge. Can use an oil filled radiator to heat a bedroom in the morning before rising—is that economic use of electrickery?

If you plan out things right, you should have a toasty warm house by May this year. I hear, from you as a source, that the weather is cold already. I have to wait another month before the cold occurs. I am still having cold showers during the day.

When I get my heater out, I will use it for the cool months. But the really cold nights will have me using the airconditioner heater as well as the little heater in another room to really keep the house war. I might even get the oven going at 80°C to keep the kitchen warm. But, I know that I will have the toilet room with tea light citronella lamps burning to ward off the cold from the only room that has non-closable windows -- save for the door. I figure the mobile heater can be down the end of the hall way. The loungeroom airconditioner can be going for a few hours. The oven can burn for a few hours. Toilet room can have candles. And I can get wrapped up in coat, gloves, beany and long pants for those nights of 5°C or less. Otherwise, I will be warm with the windows covered with blankets and cardboard.

I will start researching heat pumps. I want warmth in winter, don’t really need cooling in summer, ceiling fan will do.

There is the lounge, study and a bedroom to keep warm, two bedrooms when someone stays with me. Kitchen, bath & WC do not need warming. Wood burning heater can supplement heat pump.

Talking and thinking about this—I need to get underfloor insulation put in.

Probably next years project—need some underfloor work any way. Something else to research.

If only the house could be as warm during the winter as it is now with the windows open and the Artic Air unit blowing a cool breeze. 35.5°C top today. It is still about 33°C now.

Have sent of an enquiry to one firm.

See if just one room or lounge/study/2BR can be covered.

Meantime I have hung two doona covers in the place where the wall between lounge and kitchen was removed, plus a sheet, doubled over the doorway to the front passage. Eventually folding doors will go in these spaces but I want the bigger, more important items done first! Fripperies can come later.

Doona covers are good because they are a double layer of fabric, good insulation.

I am in two minds re the windows. During the day the sun does pour in a nice bit of warmth but that leaves PDQ in the later part of the afternoon. Will do these properly with vertical blinds.

Kitchen window has a sheet across it—the sun poured in that window from sunrise to like 1.00pm then the sun got reflected off the walls/roof of the house next to mine: I was doing dishes wearing sunglasses.

In a month or so I will take the sheet down so I can paint the window frame with a nice yellow color. I have painted the architrave around the window with that yellow—really removed the beige from the kitchen! Might paint the sill and the frame along where the sliding window opens—gets some weather on it.

I tried to be a fortune teller. But I could only predict really cold winters. It turns out that the place I bought my crystal ball had sold me a snow globe -- Gary Delaney

LOL