4 ms·

How about making an alternative to natural gas that is cheaper to heat a home instead of making everybody's life worse by forcing your morals into law.

cmrdporcupine 4y ago
Unfortunately what will happen instead is natural gas is going to become just-as or almost-as expensive as oil or electric heat. Honestly if I could go back 10 years when I replaced my oil furnace with gas, I'd definitely attempt to install a ground source heat pump instead. With the gas change it "paid for itself" in about 5 years, and I'd still be waiting for the ground source system, but I'd be frankly more future proof. I can generate my own electricity with solar. I can't make my own natural gas.
- pfdietz 4y ago
  Air source heat pumps have improved to the point that ground source heat pumps are losing out in most places.
  - cmrdporcupine 4y ago
    Even in rural places with more room and potentially cheaper excavation? In my case I'm on 6 acres.
    - pfdietz 4y ago
      Yes, I believe it's the case even there.
      - jabl 4y ago
        Can confirm. Over here 20 years ago you would be laughed out of the room if you suggested to use an air-source heat pump to heat a house. Nowadays they are the norm, and ground source are a minority. It also helps that building insulation standards have crept upwards, so you don't need as much energy to heat a modern building, making it a win for the lower capital cost of an air source system.
- tastyfreeze 4y ago
  I have been thinking a lot about your last statement. An anaerobic septic system would generate natural gas for you. Many less developed parts of the world use such systems to generate cooking and heating fuel. But, if you have modern appliances designed for clean natural gas you will also need a small scale gas cleaning system. There are no off the shelf small scale gas cleaning systems so you have to make your own. Then there is the issue that anaerobic septics a illegal in most areas since they stink when vented to atmosphere.

cmrdporcupine 4y ago

Unfortunately what will happen instead is natural gas is going to become just-as or almost-as expensive as oil or electric heat. Honestly if I could go back 10 years when I replaced my oil furnace with gas, I'd definitely attempt to install a ground source heat pump instead. With the gas change it "paid for itself" in about 5 years, and I'd still be waiting for the ground source system, but I'd be frankly more future proof. I can generate my own electricity with solar. I can't make my own natural gas.

pfdietz 4y ago
Air source heat pumps have improved to the point that ground source heat pumps are losing out in most places.
- cmrdporcupine 4y ago
  Even in rural places with more room and potentially cheaper excavation? In my case I'm on 6 acres.
  - pfdietz 4y ago
    Yes, I believe it's the case even there.
    - jabl 4y ago
      Can confirm. Over here 20 years ago you would be laughed out of the room if you suggested to use an air-source heat pump to heat a house. Nowadays they are the norm, and ground source are a minority. It also helps that building insulation standards have crept upwards, so you don't need as much energy to heat a modern building, making it a win for the lower capital cost of an air source system.
tastyfreeze 4y ago
I have been thinking a lot about your last statement. An anaerobic septic system would generate natural gas for you. Many less developed parts of the world use such systems to generate cooking and heating fuel. But, if you have modern appliances designed for clean natural gas you will also need a small scale gas cleaning system. There are no off the shelf small scale gas cleaning systems so you have to make your own. Then there is the issue that anaerobic septics a illegal in most areas since they stink when vented to atmosphere.