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BG teams up with Windsave
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nathanbriggs



Joined: 23 Mar 2005
Posts: 35
Location: Chester
PostPosted: Fri Sep 23, 05 1:22 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote
    

Stonehead wrote:
Even if they do work, I agree that planning permission is going to be a major issue. I checked with my council (Aberdeenshire) and was referred to their draft supplementary guidance for wind generation of electricity - and found that the council will not permit any wind turbines within 400m of a dwelling.


Windsave under the auspices of the Micropower Council is currently sponsoring a bill through parliament to try and get blanket approval for all renewable energy planning on a domestic level.

Similar to what is in effect for sky dishes the result would be you only need to apply in areas where specific restrictions apply eg listed buildings etc.

The good news sis that some councils have already given blanket approval for these units

nathanbriggs



Joined: 23 Mar 2005
Posts: 35
Location: Chester
PostPosted: Fri Sep 23, 05 1:39 pm    Post subject: Death and Taxes Reply with quote
    

My Father says expect nothing but death and taxes and I'm not even sure anymore about the first...

Windsave trails are progressing at the moment we will have 10 more sites in 4 weeks and a further 25 in 8-12 weeks.

The National Engineering Laboratory is currently giving us an independant power curve to windspeed, although they seem to be having mild winds at the moment!

The system at Advance is working well, although we have realised the furling is occuring too early which is one explanation for our lower than expected energy output, we plan to stiffen the furling spring monday

dougal



Joined: 15 Jan 2005
Posts: 7184
Location: South Kent
PostPosted: Fri Sep 23, 05 1:45 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote
    

Thanks Nathan. Look forward to hearing more news as it becomes available.

Mr Solar



Joined: 23 Oct 2005
Posts: 10

PostPosted: Sun Oct 30, 05 5:07 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote
    

Having read through all the comments on the Windsave turbine as a possible answer to our home energy problems, with the price installed by BG somewhere between 1,500 and 2,000 to genarate around 15% of a homes electricty, but if and when we have a power cut, their is no electricty for the central heating boilers pump or lighting.
As for the comments on the Micro CHP unit at 3,000 pounds, it uses 12kw of gas to produce this 1kwh of electricity and into the grid for further losses.

One technology, proven sold across the world with the biggest user and proucer in the world, China, has yet to be grasped for the heat energy it gurantees to produce, thats the modern day state of the art solar hot water heater, also now proven to support space heating, yes only 6,000 are sold installed a year becouse of the type of companies involved in this business.

This company i know, but not known to the public, offers a self install vacuum tube heat pipe system, ideal for 120-150 litre tanks, as the tank does not need to be changed, takes a day to install by 2 people and for every 22 tubes placed on the roof, around 1/2 ton of Co2 is cut from the home.
Prices for complete systems around 1,200 pounds + VAT and installation if you are not DIY minded.
Not wanting anything on your roof? then look at the latest in air source heat pumps, converting your waste heat in the loft to hot water for CH up to 55c. Uses 1 unit of power for every 3 units of heat.

This company is about to launch its own 400 watt turbine, but with a battery bank and inverter at around 1,300 pounds + installation DIY. The power then used for when the lights and boiler go out.

dougal



Joined: 15 Jan 2005
Posts: 7184
Location: South Kent
PostPosted: Sun Oct 30, 05 10:57 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote
    

Mr Solar, you raise a number of points which deserve straightening out, however since they, mainly, do not relate to Windsave, perhaps this thread - originally on Windsave's financial dealings, is maybe not the best place for that.


A piece of Windsave news that doesn't seem to have attracted an awful lot of publicity is that the company is taking about a Sock Market listing...[quote='The Scotsman']A Glasgow-based company, which offers homeowners the opportunity to install electricity-saving wind turbines on their roofs, is to float on the Aim next year in a bid to raise about £10 million in new capital (Financial Times). Windsave is about to appoint advisors for the float - expected to give the company a market value of about £50 million.[/quote] I must say, the use of the present tense - stating that they *currently* offer turbines to homeowners, does not exactly match my understanding of the project's status.

There is a slightly longer news item here
https://edinburghnews.scotsman.com/business.cfm?id=2107132005
repeating the same story, while still claiming to save households "up to a third" of their electricity bill. Hmmm.

So, let me see, Mr Gordon owns 60%, and thinks that the business is worth £50million - which values his own stake at over £30million.
That sounds to me as though Mr Gordon might be putting rather a high value on a company that doesn't seem to have made any proper sales yet, let alone had its performace claims for its (future) product independently verified.
And whose website seems, at this point, to have gone AWOL... https://www.windsave.com/


bigben



Joined: 20 Jan 2006
Posts: 1

PostPosted: Fri Jan 20, 06 1:22 am    Post subject: Reply with quote
    

I work within the industry and I have a few observations to make. They have been marketing a product heavily that does not exist. THey had been marketing directly and through their dealers that their products attracted both Clear Skies and SCHRI funding well before they even did. Likewise they are also offering a system that can be connected to the grid that meets G-83/1 engineering recommendation which is nonsense. THEY DO NOT HAVE G-83/1 approval!!!!! Therefore, all their test sites do not comply and would therefore be deemed illegal connections. I know that several DNO's are keen to know the exact whereabouts of installations in order to take action.

Furthermore, raise a company profile so high, generate a demand in the market and fill order books, cook up a product that bobs around in R&D and look to float on the AIM for £50M...... smells like a good recepie for selling the company to someone and getting a lot of cash for a half-baked product that is far from complete and that might not even work to someone who gets. The md has done it before!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

I hope no-one gets killed in the process as I have seen several of these first hand and feel very worried when they talk of installations in schools and in back gardens where there are kids playing. It only takes one accident and then its the whole industry and not just Windshark that gets bad publicity.

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