This project is exceptional in the long-standing energy efficiency and awareness of this couple (~60 years). Their passive solar home is a converted tobacco shed acquired about 50 years ago.
Super insulation is acquired by using batt insulation and 2 layers of well-sealed P2000 insulated board. Principles of passive solar are incorporated throughout the residence with concrete floors (main storey) and brick interior walls that contribute to the heat retaining materials (thermal mass).
The Laforge Holstein plant is a biomass system set on 400 hectares (1000 acres) of land that uses organic materials such as potato peels, fries, pizza dough and tomato sauce, mixed with manure and chicken grease residue for biodigestion (anaerobic decomposition).
The system has 2 mixing tanks that hold the organic material: tank 1 is used as an energy source and tank 2 is used as a protein source. These tanks are linked to the biodigester using a regular feeding schedule run by a computer program that is linked to all the machinery.
The ideal pumping ratio of organic material or feed to capture gas and minimize wastage is 4 m3 every hour for tank 1 and 8 m3 every 2 hours for tank 2. The biodigester has an agitator to encourage movement of materials and the creation of gas. The leftover liquid from the biodigester seeps into a holding tank or lagoon which is later used as fertilizer.
Through the digestion process methane is released by bacteria and captured. The gas is then piped to the generator where it is burned for electricity generation.
This installation makes economic sense because the biomass is obtained free of charge. In the case of McCain’s, the company also saves money in transportation costs for their waste.
At the same time, the dairy cows on the farm provide 2200 L of milk per day, which is sold to the Northumberland and Baxter dairy farms. The cow manure is used to speed up the decomposition process in the biodigester tank due to the presence of bacteria.
They expect the system to pay for itself in 10 years.
The owner has a vision of educating as many people as possible on environmental issues specifically to do with energy issues and energy independence. The owner is demonstrating that comfortable carbon neutral off-grid living is possible.
The owner strongly recommends three things before going off-grid:
The EQuilibrium project is a national sustainable housing demonstration initiative, created and led by the Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation.
One of the winning entries for the Sustainable Housing Demonstration Initiative is the VISION home located in Moncton.
The solar space heating unit comes equipped with a built-in solar electric photovoltaic panel to drive the unit’s circulation. The unit is rated to supply heat for 110 m2 (1200 sq. ft.). The heat generated is presently being blown into the basement area and feels that there should be an additional circulation fan added to the system or … Read more
The Cansolair space heating unit, installed by Grün-sol, is mounted on a wall on the exterior of the house. The unit heats air to temperatures of 71 °C (160 °F) and employs a thermostat and fan unit to push the air into the room through a 13 cm (5″) wall vent near the ceiling. The unit is rated … Read more