Today, we are going to be looking at eco friendly and sustainable fuel alternatives for your home! It’s only a matter of time before these are common, go to products, so watch this space!
Wood fuelled heating systems generally burn wood pellets, chips or logs to power heating and water boilers, providing a sustainable source of heating. The wood pellets themselves are a by-product of the timber industry, and are therefore otherwise a waste by-product of the sector.
The pellets are created through collection of the sawdust, which is then compressed and processed, thereby giving a solid and pellet like appearance. During the process the friction and pressure used cause the wood to heat up releasing natural lignins within the dust that then act as the glue binding the particles together, and giving the pellets their solid appearance and nature.
The fuel created as a result of burning the pellets, is considered a sustainable alternative, as the sawdust used to form them would otherwise have very little value or practical use. It is essentially turning a waste product into a viable and affordable source of heating, domestic, commercial and otherwise.
The pellets are also totally carbon neutral, in that the CO2 is taken from the atmosphere by trees during the wooden pellets life are then released back into the atmosphere when burned, therefore one offsets the other!
Wooden pellets are closely rivalled by wooden chips; which again are a by-product of the timber industry, however the advantages that the pellets have over the chips is that they are more sustainable and are more energy dense per sq mm than their alternative.
Wood fuel is both a sustainable and affordable option, the pellets themselves will cost in the region of £200 per tonne, they will burn at a slightly faster rate than conventional wood logs, however through the installation of a modern wood pellet burning stove there will be a maximum likelihood of increasing their ‘burn time’.
This isn’t going to work for everyone, as generally speaking you will need a wood burning stove and also space to install the pellets, not to mention the mucky clean up!
If you’re planning on changing your heating system and live in a flat or leasehold property, don’t forget you will need to adhere to Licence for Alterations procedures!
If you’d like to discuss how our Surveyors here at Stokemont can be of assistance to you with your Licence to Alterations procedures, give us a call today, we will be happy to assist.
