Alternative heating: variations and their advantages

Today, space heating is one of the most expensive items of utility bills. This is not surprising because of the constant increase in gas prices. And that is why many today refuse from centralized heating systems and prefer to look for some kind of alternative independent heating.

Of course, the installation of an alternative heating system can mainly be carried out only by residents of private houses.As an alternative to gas, a water heating system is most often used. And there are other solutions that will be discussed below. In any case, it should be noted that any alternative system will cost the owner is still more profitable than the centralized option. Of course, at first serious resources will be spent on installation and installation, but over time this system will definitely pay for itself.

Heating mechanisms, depending on how they join the devices, are divided into two categories.

• Two-pipe. The peculiarity lies in the fact that it is connected separately to the supply and separately to the return line, and all radiators are connected to the pipes in a sequential scheme, which allows supplying thermal media through one pipe, and carrying out its output, after it has given off heat - through another one.
• Single tube This option involves the connection of devices of a sequential nature, so that the supply and output of thermal media is carried out from one pipe.

It should be noted that the listed types of heating mechanisms can be both with top, and with the lower option of distributing.In the second case, the laying of the pipe along which the flow will go will be located on the upper side of the receiving devices, and in the first - on the bottom.

The most common alternative heating mechanism is a water based system. But this does not mean at all that you can choose only such an option for a private wooden house or a frame cottage. There are a large number of alternatives to water and gas.

The fuel for a country house and cottage can be as follows:

• wood and coal for stoves;
• liquid fuel;
• energy of sun;
• wind energy;
• various geothermal solutions;
• electricity.

It is worth looking in more detail at various systems of alternative heating.

If we talk about heating rooms and buildings with the help of a stove, then this option is extremely interesting in our time. After all, the furnace operates without electricity, liquid fuel, gas. It is not a problem to buy firewood today, especially in villages, because they are inexpensive. Allocating space for storage is also easy. If we are talking about using a stove, then this is done for two things - to heat the house at any time of the year and prepare food. To do the last, the stove is usually slightly re-equipped.

If we talk about the advantages of this type of heating, then the following should be noted:

• the stove is very simple in its operation, it is easy to take care of it - just clean the ash pan and chimney;
• if you wish, you can use not only firewood, but also coal;
• fuel for the furnace is not too expensive and quite affordable.

But there is a way and disadvantages. For example, constantly need to load firewood. The same applies to coal, although it should be loaded less frequently. Constantly you need to clean up the space around the furnace, since ash and garbage are mandatory attributes of the work of such an element. Another disadvantage is the high fire risk, as well as the risk of poisoning by combustion products and carbon monoxide. Such a furnace can take up a lot of space.

Coal and firewood are used as fuel in order to heat a house in winter not only in furnaces, but also in special boilers that work on solid fuel solutions. You can purchase models of boilers running on straw, pallets, chips, sawdust and others. There are even boilers running on diesel fuel, but the high efficiency of the boiler depends on the high cost of this type of fuel.The principle is quite simple - after the combustion of the fuel, the water that is already in the heating system is heated, which allows you to transfer heat directly to the rooms themselves. This system is quite effective and is an excellent solution in terms of security. True, its operation is difficult.

In addition, the following deficiencies should be mentioned:

• constant need for fuel loading;
• carrying out permanent cleaning of the combustion chamber.

At the same time, this segment of heating devices is seriously developing. Now you can find models in which the fuel supply is carried out automatically. That is, it is enough to load the fuel once every few days, and the device itself will add it to the fire as needed. Now the direction of pyrolysis boilers is actively developing.

But there are options that allow you to optimally heat a room without firewood, for example, we are talking about the energy of the sun, as well as wind. Solar panels or wind turbines will accumulate energy, and collectors will provide heat inside the building. Then neither gas, nor wood, nor liquid fuel is needed.It is enough to have cloudless weather, the sun and the wind. Electric energy and heat carrier can be used to heat your own house, if you make it a heating system with various electric heaters and radiators.

This could include solar power plants. They are devices that generate electrical and thermal energy. And the heating of rooms will still be carried out with the help of various kinds of heating devices that need to be connected to such thermal devices. And if we talk about wind turbines, then the essence will be the same - just wind energy will be transformed into electrical energy. After that, heaters are connected to the electrical supply.

Despite all the obvious advantages, alternative energy has its drawbacks. The main one is the need for one-time serious costs for the purchase of equipment. As well as a serious drawback will be complete dependence on external factors. The lack of wind and the presence of cloudy weather make such systems completely ineffective.They can be used as an additional variant of the heat supply at home without the use of gas, but to create a fully system built on this type of heating should not be.

Another interesting alternative solution for heating your own home is a geothermal option. It is based on the use of heat pumps that take heat from the ground. If you speak a very simple language, this option will work on the principle of air conditioning, just the opposite. All the necessary energy for heating, as a rule, is taken from the ground - this is the so-called non-freezing heating. It should be noted that such heating will be very economical. Unfortunately, in our climatic conditions, this option can only be auxiliary, but not the main one.

The disadvantage of this type of heating system is that the pumps are completely dependent on the availability of electricity in the outlet. If frost is too severe, their effectiveness drops. In relatively warm regions, they will be a great solution. And if we talk about the same Siberia, then there will be little sense from them.In general, such pumps can collect heat from the air or pipe systems that are located in the ground, as well as water, if there is a reservoir nearby.

Electricity is a pretty good alternative to gas. It is possible to use boilers for electricity not only as a backup source of heat, but also as the main one. True, electricity is a fairly expensive resource. Under certain circumstances, it may happen that this option will even outperform gas at a cost.

If we talk about the merits of such boilers, then the following should be mentioned:

• environmental friendliness and safety;
• can be installed directly in the living room;
• small dimensions and weight;
• Easy to install and maintain.

This option can be used only in cases where the electrical network in the house is good and reliable, and there is also a good supply of dedicated electrical power in the house. For example, to heat a house of 100 square meters, you need a unit with a power of 10 kilowatts.In addition, the installation of a powerful model will require permission from the authorities of Energonadzor. Modern models of this type make it possible to make truly efficient heating systems for wooden houses and completely abandon the use of gas. If the house is brick, then you should find something better.

If we consider the cost of fuel materials, then the best economical solution after ordinary gas is to name the options that run on wood. A cheaper solution for stoves and fireplaces is simply not to be found. The next position is coal, after it is electricity and diesel will be the least efficient. If we talk about alternative energy, then the cost of this article will be minimal, if, in general, not zero. But the price of equipment in this case will be significantly higher than that of other heating systems.

If we take the criterion of initial costs, the most economical is the equipment for electric heating. If we take the totality of all expenses, then it is best to heat the house where there is no gas supply, with the help of electricity. The difference will be about 3 times between the most economical and the most expensive option. But it is necessary to clarify that this option would be an excellent solution only for houses where there is high-quality insulation, as well as for the option when the capacity of the existing electrical network allows you to connect similar electrical equipment.

In general, for each heating system must have its own scheme of the device, as well as a list of elements. It is worth considering how to make such a mechanism with your own hand using the example of several options.

It is based on a regular collector, easily assembled from scrap materials. Usually for such a purpose are taken coils, which are behind on the refrigerators. That is why you first need to find a coil. In addition, you should have on hand a few strips of wood. They will be used to assemble the frame.It is necessary to prepare a rubber mat, as well as glass.

Step-by-step instructions for creating a heating system using sunlight include the following steps:

• You must first disassemble the coil from the old refrigerator, then wash it thoroughly. From the coil, you must completely remove the old freon;
• it is necessary to assemble a frame of wooden slats. Its dimensions should be selected based on the dimensions of the coil. It should fit easily between the rails;
• need to apply markup. To do this, it is necessary to attach the rack frame to the coil and apply labels in the places where the pipes will exit;
• now it is necessary to put a leaflet of foil between the rug and the finished frame;

• the next step is to increase the rigidity of the system. You should stuff the slats on the back of the structure, glue the parts between the lower part of the installation and the foil that was laid earlier, using adhesive tape, which will not allow cold air masses from outside to get into the system;
• Now it is necessary to mount the supply pipes. You can use the most common pipes for water from plastic.It is necessary to seal the joints of the coil and plastic pipes with adhesive tape;
• It is necessary to attach the coil to the base with clamps and screws. And get a small solar collector;
• it is necessary to fix the supports and put the collector so that the sun's rays fall on a certain area of ​​the collector at an angle of 90 degrees;
• From the bottom of the frame you need to fasten a few screws. They will not allow the glass to move when heated;
• It is necessary to connect this construction to the water tank, which will be connected to the heating pipes or water supply.

If we talk about the popularity of alternative energy sources, then the second position in this list will definitely be the wind. Small home-made wind generators make it possible to provide a small house with heat with minimal energy and material costs. At the first stage, it is necessary to choose a suitable design capacity and its type. It is best to do the usual vertical wind generators. Power should be selected individually.To increase it, it is necessary to increase the size of the impeller and add more blades. It should be remembered - the more power the device will have, the harder it will be to balance it.

At the next stage, it is necessary to prepare the foundation for the wind generator. You can make a simple three-point base. The area of ​​the structure and its depth can be determined individually, taking into account the climate in the place where the construction will be carried out, as well as the characteristics of the soil. Installation of the mast should be performed only after the base has completely hardened (in 1.5–2 weeks). If desired, stretch marks can be used instead of the foundation - this is a simpler option for installing the mast. It is necessary to make a small ditch about 50–60 cm deep, put the mast of the wind generator in it and fix the whole structure well with the help of stretch marks.

Now you should make the blades. If you make them at home, then for this you can use a barrel made of metal. It is necessary to divide the container into several equal parts.If we talk about the number, there should be as many of them as the blades. Pre-mark should be applied. By the way, all the blades must be the same size. It remains only to cut the blades with the help of an ordinary grinder. If not, you can take the scissors for the metal.

Now the workpiece is fixed on the wind generator with bolts, after which it is necessary to bend the blades. From how much they bend will depend on many characteristics of the wind generator. A suitable angle can only be determined empirically. In the next step, you must connect the wiring to the mast and pass the generator and the battery parts of the circuit. Load is given using wires. To make the heat supply, you can connect it to the mechanism of water heating with storage tanks. If necessary, you can assemble and install several wind generators, if one device is not enough to provide the house with heat.

The use of alternative energy in our day is a great solution for heating private houses and cottages. It is a good solution for apartments where there is a technical possibility of installation for such a heating system.You can find quite economical solutions for the house, which will allow you to pay significantly less, and at the same time get really high efficiency from an alternative heating system for a private house.

You can find out how to make fuel briquettes for the furnace with your own hands from the video below.