Drying Firewood when RHI payments stop.

[gdh]

31 minutes ago, arboriculturist said:

Does the £ 9 cube include electricity for the fans and also the boiler won't last forever, which as you know is a big stack of money to replace.

 

What I like about natural air drying is, although you need to invest in a lot of containers, you are not effected by price rises for electricity and softwood for drying price increases, which really hurt those who have to dry a lot. 

Yes, the electrics in there which is a big cost but you would probably have to add another £3 for the boiler /fans.

 

The cost of softwood is going up now which could push it up but we chip alot of smaller or bent hardwood so it won't be so bad.

 

Air drying I think would realistically cost us £8 if we covered boxes outside without any risk of a cost rise. Unfortunately we don't really have the space and we've just had 6 months of rain which would have slowed the drying and if we ran out we wouldn't be able to cut more this time of year. 

 

I think it depends a lot on location which method works best. 

[SbTVF]

Here's fan details Steve 

Cheers frank.

We have 3 of those running all year so I’ll do some maths on the electric they use!

[Woodwanter]

What makes you think the RHI will be pulled on all installs drying wood?

 

from what I can tell new businesses are in trouble but established ones are are up for debate

[arboriculturist]

26 minutes ago, Woodwanter said:

What makes you think the RHI will be pulled on all installs drying wood?

 

from what I can tell new businesses are in trouble but established ones are are up for debate

RHI on bio-mass boilers is a 20 year term from date of commissioning. Driven by EU and as we are out that is the end of RHI.

[Woodwanter]

13 minutes ago, arboriculturist said:

RHI on bio-mass boilers is a 20 year term from date of commissioning. Driven by EU and as we are out that is the end of RHI.

Ahh, I thought you meant the imminent potential ban on Claiming RHI for log drying...

[SbTVF]

RHI on bio-mass boilers is a 20 year term from date of commissioning. Driven by EU and as we are out that is the end of RHI.

The way I understood it originally was that it had to be for an existing use. So those drying logs had to already be selling firewood previously but I don’t think ofgem give a monkeys. Or maybe I misunderstood it. Certainly lots putting in boilers and starting out with logs from nothing. The company that rhymes with fakeland bogs that sells kiln dried wetter than an otters pocket was doing it purely off the back of the earnings off RHI because he certainly couldn’t give a monkeys about on going trade customer relations for the future!

[gdh]

I was under the impression that RHI was from the UK government not the eu, I could well be wrong but I can't see it stopping anytime soon as it's still available and renewable energy is being pushed more all the time. 

 

I haven't heard anything about it being stopped for drying logs unless that's to do with the issues with no limits in Northern Ireland. I suspect log drying is a major percentage of claimants and they'll also be the people who supply below 20% moisture wood to the other boilers.

[Woodwanter]

It's covered by the uk, contracts should be honoured for the 20 yr period, much like FITS payments.

 

initially no one though it would be used to dry fuel and was supposed to be a substitute for fossils fuel use but the law wasn't tight enough, then. NI took the piss and ministers were slow to shit it down.

 

the UK rules are ever being tweaked as the outcome of them are being seen in reality. There is a very real chance, from what I am told, that new set ups built just for fuel drying will be shut down and even established ones could be in trouble. This is due to enter parliament in the next few weeks, been massive delays.

 

Not sure how much this will affect the supply chain of firewood though?

[ash_smith123]

27 minutes ago, Woodwanter said:

 

the UK rules are ever being tweaked as the outcome of them are being seen in reality. There is a very real chance, from what I am told, that new set ups built just for fuel drying will be shut down and even established ones could be in trouble. This is due to enter parliament in the next few weeks, been massive delays.

 

Not sure how much this will affect the supply chain of firewood though?

Just out of interested, where did you hear that?! 

[Woodwanter]

2 minutes ago, ash_smith123 said:

Just out of interested, where did you hear that?! 

One of the directors of a company that advise OFGEM, spoke to him again last night. The whole Grade A topic has pit more pressure on too.

 

the consultation was due last Autumn but as ever it was delayed.

 

the most interesting unheard fact about the whole RHI scene that I have heard is the MP who thought it up - Chris Huhne who later resigned over his purgery speeding case. Word on the street was that he has shares in some very large timber companies in N America. It's been said that he worked out that in a few years, the UK would be very short of enough timber to chip to fuel the RHI's dash for the ash and result in imports from abroad - all very green!

 

i don't know how true this is but it wouldn't surprise me!