Gilashot t1_ixn2is5 wrote
Everyone in VT on fuel heat needs to get heat pumps! Seriously. Good ones work down to -22 and cost way less than half as much as oil to heat all winter. Screw the oil companies.
mountainofclay t1_ixngfns wrote
Yeah I hear they work great until the power goes off during a blizzard. Wood is the way.
zarnov t1_ixnjcnw wrote
Definitely wood is great, but if no one is home during the day, a heat pump can keep the temperature reasonable until someone can get the woodstove fired up. This is how we do it, anyway...
mountainofclay t1_ixowbdv wrote
I agree that multiple options are the way to go if possible.
Gilashot t1_ixnrpnp wrote
Wood is the way for some people. It’s also heavy, dirty, and a polluter.
I can run a 1k generator for a few hours to run my heat on the 2 days a year I lose power.
mountainofclay t1_ixovz6f wrote
Yeah if you live in the city it may not be the way but as far as it polluting keep in mind that modern wood stoves burn cleaner and heating with wood is considered carbon neutral, in theory anyway. https://www.chimneysolutions.com/blog/ecofriendly-wood-burning/ Still it is more labor intensive. So is walking or jogging over automobile but people still pay money to run on a treadmill. Crazy.
Gilashot t1_ixowx6s wrote
Ha, true!
teachlikeascientist t1_ixq0jrd wrote
The whole process of wood burning is actually carbon negative.
Gilashot t1_ixq3x0y wrote
It’s not. The EPA wrongly made a narrow statement stating that’s it’s neutral, but everyone from the Smithsonian to the Yale School of Forestry will say otherwise.
Biomass is neutral on a long term scale (millennia) but not in human terms.
I’m an arborist and this year cleared 1/2 an acre for a customers firewood use. He’ll burn it all over the next few winters, and that clearing will just be covered by ferns and brambles for a decade. That’s a huge dump of stored carbon going into the atmosphere. How’s that carbon negative?
mountainofclay t1_ixq8qgi wrote
I’ve read that on average, at least in my climate, that an acre of land will grow a cord of wood per year. I know my land has more trees now than when I bought it. It’s grown faster than I can use it. I realize not everyone has the luxury of owning their own wood lot and not all climates can support that. I also know that if not properly managed it can be depleted. But it seems crazy not to use it though, especially in Vermont which currently has more trees than ever.
Gilashot t1_ixqeo11 wrote
Good point, and we're getting into interesting numbers here. About 46% of VT electricity comes from hydro. Hydro has it's own issues, but keeping it in the carbon conversation, it's pretty low.
At 17 degrees I'm getting about 12K BTU per kW. 6500 of that comes from non-hydro electricity. So...6500 BTU per kW of "carbon producing" electricity.
I have no idea how much carbon is released to create the 1 kw of electricity, to produce my 6500 BTU. I also don't know how much carbon is released while burning wood to create 6500 BTU. Someone should do a thesis on this.
I'm going to go drive my 6 cylinder 4Runner to Home Depot this morning and buy some insulation to help reduce my carbon footprint from heating my home. Now it's really complicated!
mountainofclay t1_ixuiyx4 wrote
The amount of carbon released to burn 6500 btu’s is zero if you consider the other side of the equation which is that the tree will be replaced with another tree. That’s what a renewable resource is. Of course you have the gas in the chainsaw and the trucking you need to consider but nothing is free I guess. Finite resource vs. a renewable resource. It’s not perfect but it’s better than sending dollars to Saudi Arabia I guess.
MrHoonigan802 t1_ixn65rx wrote
I'll have to Google heat pumps
zarnov t1_ixnjxkc wrote
Look into it! They are super efficient and, bonus, you can cool with it in the summer.
carbonpenguin t1_ixnciwt wrote
Second this. The new ones can handle Vermont winters, and there are some big rebates/incentives both from the state and now the feds thanks to the Inflation Reduction Act.
ChallengerShaker2014 t1_ixnz77v wrote
Can't afford 100 gallons of fuel, you want them to buy a heat pump? You must be the type that says if you can't afford $5 a gallon gas, just buy an electric car. Nice fantasy but to most working people, just a pipe dream.
Gilashot t1_ixo887m wrote
Mine was $2k and then I got $1200 in state rebates so $800 total. It’s not a pipe dream to working people it’s just simple math and forethought. They literally pay for themselves in one heating season.
Looking at your Reddit profile, you probably live in Burlington and spend all of your time watching football and playing video games. Stay in your lane and let the Vermonters talk child!
ChallengerShaker2014 t1_ixou9ar wrote
Don't live in Burlington, I like football and video games. I am not gonna be bothered to stalk your post history cuz I could give a fuck less what your hobbies are.
So 2k, what model? Send a link. Be helpful not a douche. You installed it yourself? I know people in the HVAC world and they are booked out pretty far and are having trouble even getting things like heat pumps. Maybe it is just them. Serious, I would love to see your 2k heat pump that will work in VT winters.
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