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Ziggy's conversion
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zigs



Joined: 02 Sep 2005
Posts: 524
Location: Somerset
PostPosted: Tue Apr 20, 10 6:48 pm    Post subject: Ziggy's conversion Reply with quote
    



some of you might remember, we bought an old British legion hall for conversion. We are near completion and i now got a new usb lead so heres some pics.





The solar controler starts the pump when the panel is 10c above the tank temperature.



Thetwin coil tank is tripple insulsated

Last edited by zigs on Tue Apr 20, 10 7:09 pm; edited 1 time in total

zigs



Joined: 02 Sep 2005
Posts: 524
Location: Somerset
PostPosted: Tue Apr 20, 10 7:00 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote
    



Underpinning, very time consuming, expensive, wastefull and totally unnecessary. But who are we to argue with the council.




A few inside pics.

The insulation is above building regs & the windows are double glazed argon filled low e glass

zigs



Joined: 02 Sep 2005
Posts: 524
Location: Somerset
PostPosted: Tue Apr 20, 10 7:08 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote
    

And finally, a pic of daughter willow, before we started.




sean
Downsizer Moderator


Joined: 28 Oct 2004
Posts: 42207
Location: North Devon
PostPosted: Tue Apr 20, 10 7:33 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote
    

Nice work.

maryf



Joined: 25 Oct 2009
Posts: 341
Location: suffolk
PostPosted: Tue Apr 20, 10 9:59 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote
    

Well done Ziggy! Can I have the plastic lobster please?

jamanda
Downsizer Moderator


Joined: 22 Oct 2006
Posts: 35056
Location: Devon
PostPosted: Tue Apr 20, 10 10:08 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote
    

I thought we were going to see Willow again so we could really see how long it all took. It looks great

zigs



Joined: 02 Sep 2005
Posts: 524
Location: Somerset
PostPosted: Tue Apr 20, 10 10:32 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote
    

The lobster is investigating 2 ceramic dolls legs i found under the hall.

Willow is now 38 and a high court judge.

zigs



Joined: 02 Sep 2005
Posts: 524
Location: Somerset
PostPosted: Wed May 12, 10 7:59 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote
    

I'm having problems with the solar water heating, the hot water in the top of the system is telling the sensor in the panel that it is still 54c after the sun has gone down, so it still keeps pumping around.

This cools the water in the tank by radiating it back into the night sky.

It's ok if i'm there to turn it off, but what do i do when i'm not ?

Anyone else with a navitron system got this problem ?

RichardW



Joined: 24 Aug 2006
Posts: 8443
Location: Llyn Peninsular North Wales
PostPosted: Wed May 12, 10 9:19 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote
    

You could plumb / wire / plug it all into a timer switch?

Not a fix but a good work around.

My controller has had to go back (not a Navitron one) as a wrong part was fitted when it was made causing it to shut down when the tank got to 55c Grr. So we have the pump on cont but as it has a very low 5w (or might be 15W) level I am leaving it on that over night loosing about 20c (70-50). If its hot I ramp the speed up during the day. We have been getting 80+c this week.

gardening-girl



Joined: 25 Feb 2009
Posts: 6024
Location: Somerset.
PostPosted: Thu May 13, 10 7:27 am    Post subject: Reply with quote
    

Hey, you are about 4 miles away from us.Have gone past your building loads of times!

zigs



Joined: 02 Sep 2005
Posts: 524
Location: Somerset
PostPosted: Thu May 13, 10 12:47 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote
    

RichardW wrote:
You could plumb / wire / plug it all into a timer switch?

Not a fix but a good work around.

My controller has had to go back (not a Navitron one) as a wrong part was fitted when it was made causing it to shut down when the tank got to 55c Grr. So we have the pump on cont but as it has a very low 5w (or might be 15W) level I am leaving it on that over night loosing about 20c (70-50). If its hot I ramp the speed up during the day. We have been getting 80+c this week.


Nice one Richard, i've got a timer, i was thinking of alsorts of things to do with temp sensors, i just needed you to point out the obvious to me. I skipped thru the setup wizard on ours, it now thinks its heating a swimming pool & flashes when it gets over 60c, still keeps working though.

zigs



Joined: 02 Sep 2005
Posts: 524
Location: Somerset
PostPosted: Thu May 13, 10 12:50 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote
    

gardening-girl wrote:
Hey, you are about 4 miles away from us.Have gone past your building loads of times!


Oh, it was you was it

I fixed your church about 10 years ago.

I'm shortly going to put some plants for sale out the front, say hi if you stop to have a look at them.

gardening-girl



Joined: 25 Feb 2009
Posts: 6024
Location: Somerset.
PostPosted: Thu May 13, 10 5:17 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote
    

Will do !

zigs



Joined: 02 Sep 2005
Posts: 524
Location: Somerset
PostPosted: Sat May 22, 10 7:20 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote
    

Jamanda wrote:
I thought we were going to see Willow again so we could really see how long it all took. It looks great


Finally got a pic of willow using a power sander (with circuit breaker i hasten to add) to finish off the guard rail on the new steps.



Got loads of veg planted in the newly leveled garden and have been selling some on roadside stall.

Solar water is now getting up to 47c in the tank, 64c in the panel.

Should complete in a few weeks & then try to get the £10,000 vat back before the emergency budget cancels it all out.

zigs



Joined: 02 Sep 2005
Posts: 524
Location: Somerset
PostPosted: Mon Dec 03, 12 6:54 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote
    

Hi Guys,

Sorry, not been around much recently.

Business has folded due to lack of work, wife has gone, leaving just Willow & I.

Can't afford to stay here so we are planning on moving to Spain.

Just stuck the house on the market, so if you know of anyone looking for an eco house in Somerset, give them a nod in this direction.

Shame after all the blood sweat & tears, but its time to move on.

Looking at places in Southern spain, probably just rental unless something really tempting comes up. Seen a few plots of land for reasonable money, would love to get a smallholding together out there.

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