tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1542806651392353413.post995515841372455616..comments2024-03-26T00:14:00.509-07:00Comments on Crunchy Chicken: BioHeat versus petroleum heating oilUnknownnoreply@blogger.comBlogger22125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1542806651392353413.post-69869291069110060882009-09-15T10:46:13.436-07:002009-09-15T10:46:13.436-07:00About algae - I've wondered if it wouldn't...About algae - I've wondered if it wouldn't be possible to harvest some of the terribly destructive algae blooms that form at the outlet of major rivers and cause dead zones (like the gulf of mexico). Is it the right kind of algae? As fisheries collapse, won't there be a surplus of boats that could be retrofitted as algae harvesters?Aimeehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06358194304460170717noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1542806651392353413.post-92001774957930915032009-09-14T08:08:16.325-07:002009-09-14T08:08:16.325-07:00Yeah, we looked into geothermal as well- we really...Yeah, we looked into geothermal as well- we really wanted it, but it was way too expensive at the time (around $30,000). We had to replace the furnace, so we ended up getting a hybrid system- an efficient natural gas furnace coupled with an air source heat pump. Basically it's an air conditioner that runs both directions. It can provide heat until it's down to about 16F outside and perrencehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09544857825850678909noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1542806651392353413.post-8120597680558375562009-09-13T16:00:12.687-07:002009-09-13T16:00:12.687-07:00Heather, that's pretty cool about the algae at...Heather, that's pretty cool about the algae at the sewage plant. I'm a student, so no money to invest here (in fact I sort of chuckle at the thought) but it's still a really neat idea.<br /><br />Greenpa, I wonder if "I work in sewage" is better or worse than "I'm a taxonomist and I stare at the genitalia of invertebrates you've never heard of"? I tried to Jordanhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14108673452766592183noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1542806651392353413.post-25328104301832223222009-09-13T11:30:15.723-07:002009-09-13T11:30:15.723-07:00Thanks guys. I think I know what I'm going to ...Thanks guys. I think I know what I'm going to do now. We have a true masonry fireplace and chimney, so I'll look into that. We also talked with our oil heating company a while back about geothermal so we'll revisit that while we are at it.Crunchy Chickenhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10612320939936593420noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1542806651392353413.post-88645603640913450622009-09-13T07:59:24.145-07:002009-09-13T07:59:24.145-07:00Middle kiddo- thanks. :-)
What he doesn't e...Middle kiddo- thanks. :-)<br /><br />What he doesn't exactly say is that their decision was the culmination of a half a year of in depth research (which he is very good at.)<br /><br />Heather- I like it! If I had two cents to rub together, I might invest in that one, myself. No delusions of grandeur; just working on sewage treatment.<br /><br />Which is a big big deal, in fact. FindingGreenpahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17224906349154302210noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1542806651392353413.post-80206794660265443642009-09-12T21:46:09.662-07:002009-09-12T21:46:09.662-07:00Re. the algae question, unlike Greenpa I *have* fo...Re. the algae question, unlike Greenpa I *have* found a company I've been happy to invest in, and I am an industrial chemist... I don't think it's the magic bullet, but the company we have a little money in is a NZ outfit called 'aquaflow'. They grow algae on the local sewage treatment ponds, and use wild algae in a totally open envrionment. So:<br /><br />1. no extra land Heatherhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17588832912375311757noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1542806651392353413.post-30439998071069717132009-09-12T20:46:35.491-07:002009-09-12T20:46:35.491-07:00At the request of greenpa, this is 'Middle Chi...At the request of greenpa, this is 'Middle Child.'. We recently (a year ago or so) replaced our Heatilator wood fireplace with a new airtight fireplace from Quadrafire. The Heatilator was terribly drafty and terribly inefficient. We looked at getting an insert, but those only work if you have a true masonry fireplace to put them in. We wound up with the Quadrafire 7100FP and we have perrencehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09544857825850678909noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1542806651392353413.post-68475429144035280682009-09-12T16:00:46.148-07:002009-09-12T16:00:46.148-07:00Just a thought on the wood burning stove... 'c...Just a thought on the wood burning stove... 'cause I loved growing up with one... it's just *home* in the winter. IF wood is your only source of heat, you are allowed to burn during a burn ban in Washington (in the winter). Now, that brings another question - why we have the burn bans - air quality from stagnant air... but if you build a proper fire, you shouldn't negatively impact Erikahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08273431755984995387noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1542806651392353413.post-39845053338463227152009-09-12T11:49:02.945-07:002009-09-12T11:49:02.945-07:00Aydan- "Open ponds, supposedly with indigenou...Aydan- "Open ponds, supposedly with indigenous algae"<br /><br />ah. Better, yes- but they're still projecting yields on start-up based demos.<br /><br />The reason the rest of the algae researchers seem to be focusing on closed tube systems seem to be:more sun, less evaporation, and more productivity from "domesticated" algae- bred to produce more oil.<br /><br />As theyGreenpahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17224906349154302210noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1542806651392353413.post-65989995957009881712009-09-12T10:05:44.591-07:002009-09-12T10:05:44.591-07:00Greenpa-- sorry to be dense (and, Crunchy, sorry t...Greenpa-- sorry to be dense (and, Crunchy, sorry to derail your comments), but <a href="http://www.floridatoday.com/article/20090824/BREAKINGNEWS/90824006/1006/news01/Fellsmere+company+expects+to+rake+in+green+with+algae+farm" rel="nofollow">this</a> is the sort of thing that I was talking about. Open ponds, <i>supposedly</i> with indigenous algae, not closed loops. Full disclosure-- I don't Jordanhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14108673452766592183noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1542806651392353413.post-31739492975551468472009-09-12T09:57:24.550-07:002009-09-12T09:57:24.550-07:00The wood/oil combo is cool... Unless you're a ...The wood/oil combo is cool... Unless you're a pre-teen or teen who has to stack wood in the basement and often can't take a shower before school and do your hair just so. But hey, you've got the free laborers. When the kiddos complain, you can always just use my dad's line: "Do you like a warm house? Do you like hot baths?"<br /><br />I always vowed I'd never get Farmer's Daughterhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04993260095409544097noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1542806651392353413.post-18333594524728585722009-09-12T09:01:07.191-07:002009-09-12T09:01:07.191-07:00Thanks, Cramps, I look forward to your findings.
...Thanks, Cramps, I look forward to your findings.<br /><br />"corn-ethanol yeast" - sounds like it would make a decent moonshine if things get out of hand.<br /><br />Aimee - I suspect that some day, if demand is there, we'll have a better way of collecting and sourcing waste veggie oil instead of throwing it down the drain. If my oil company got waste veggie oil from all the SeattleCrunchy Chickenhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10612320939936593420noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1542806651392353413.post-83522276721198857152009-09-12T08:45:00.927-07:002009-09-12T08:45:00.927-07:00Oh, yeah; a well kept industry secret; the corn-et...Oh, yeah; a well kept industry secret; the corn-ethanol yeast cultures are being maintained with MASSIVE use of antibiotics, right now. Google "use of antibiotics in meat production" . This is maybe worse, or at least as bad.<br /><br />Shhh. Don't tell!Greenpahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17224906349154302210noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1542806651392353413.post-83289475305316632292009-09-12T08:39:05.524-07:002009-09-12T08:39:05.524-07:00Chewy- working on getting you some sensible info, ...Chewy- working on getting you some sensible info, personally, I'm not familiar-<br /><br />Aydan- alagal biodiesel would be wonderful- IF IF IF it could be made to work as they are promising.<br /><br />I'm afraid I very much doubt it will work. The problems are Scaling Up, and Systems Integration.<br /><br />I do follow the algae guys, partly because they are making the most noise at Greenpahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17224906349154302210noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1542806651392353413.post-70960497523757500092009-09-11T13:14:26.024-07:002009-09-11T13:14:26.024-07:00Sorry, that should have read "net CO2 to the ...Sorry, that should have read "net CO2 to the BIOSPHERE."<br /><br />It's been a long (short) week!Farmer's Daughterhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04993260095409544097noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1542806651392353413.post-25945342799111208272009-09-11T13:09:21.573-07:002009-09-11T13:09:21.573-07:00I guess it all depends on your goal. If bio-oil i...I guess it all depends on your goal. If bio-oil is more fossil fuel consumptive than home heating oil, and your goal is to reduce carbon emissions, then the answer is easy. If your goal is to support the alternative energy industry, then the bio-oil makes sense. If you're worried about supporiting domestic fuels instead of foreign oil, go for bio-fuel. If you don't like genetic Farmer's Daughterhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04993260095409544097noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1542806651392353413.post-5683718242787416052009-09-11T13:05:41.313-07:002009-09-11T13:05:41.313-07:00Greenpa, what's your opinion on biofuel made f...Greenpa, what's your opinion on biofuel made from algae? I don't believe it's being widely marketed yet, but I know of a few companies who are trying to make it profitable. It is being touted as a carbon-neutral fuel, and apparently produces protein feed for livestock/animals as a byproduct. (The protein feed is actually more valuable, so I guess the fuel is the true byproduct.)Jordanhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14108673452766592183noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1542806651392353413.post-31150823622095942222009-09-11T09:38:06.154-07:002009-09-11T09:38:06.154-07:00KMMBQ & Greenpa - Thanks for confirming what I...KMMBQ & Greenpa - Thanks for confirming what I already figured was the case. As much as I love the idea of cleaner burning biodiesel when you look at the entire lifecycle and other impacts, it's just not worth it. <br /><br />So, maybe we'll look into using money saved on biodiesel for improving our fireplace and burning wood when possible (we have a lot of burn bans in the city). It Crunchy Chickenhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10612320939936593420noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1542806651392353413.post-55408644563936484362009-09-11T09:14:51.125-07:002009-09-11T09:14:51.125-07:00Sorry to say, but all biodiesel/bio-oils at the mo...Sorry to say, but all biodiesel/bio-oils at the moment are rather horrifically bad for the environment.<br /><br />It's a very long conversation. I am familiar, I'll just point out that I was one of some 40 scientists personally invited to contribute to a very early by-invitation-only symposium on the potential for cellulosic ethanol. Not bio-oil, but I keep up on both.<br /><br />Greenpahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17224906349154302210noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1542806651392353413.post-83537742179191036392009-09-11T08:09:33.869-07:002009-09-11T08:09:33.869-07:00I would buy 100% conventional heating oil but put ...I would buy 100% conventional heating oil but put the money saved by not purchasing B99 toward purchases that would lower our energy use and/or allow us to switch to more sustainable energy sources. <br /><br />In addition to the petroleum used in the production of biofuels you should also consider other issues associated with the industrial agricultural practices that are part and parcel of the KMMBQnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1542806651392353413.post-70067141168796406622009-09-11T08:06:27.733-07:002009-09-11T08:06:27.733-07:00We run our cars on home-brewed biodiesel made from...We run our cars on home-brewed biodiesel made from waste veggie oil - not an option for most folks I realize. But I do wonder why in the heck there isn't a national oil recycling program to collect every bit of waste veggie oil that currently goes down drains and use it to make truly clean biodiesel. We also got a oil burning furnace and hope to convert to run on straight veggio oil - projectAimeehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06358194304460170717noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1542806651392353413.post-66856576238503066112009-09-11T00:19:46.529-07:002009-09-11T00:19:46.529-07:00LOL these dilemas. I just read Farewell My subaru,...LOL these dilemas. I just read Farewell My subaru, and he bought a big ass Ford Pick up and runs it on Used Vegetable Oil!!! Claims it runs better than on regular diesel as well. Maybe you can go to your local Mickey D's and work out a deal?Robj98168https://www.blogger.com/profile/12449968557883132353noreply@blogger.com