Case Histories

Woodland Holiday Haven Goes Green

A green vision is paying off for the owner of eight holiday cottages surrounded by woodlands.

Braddon Cottages at Ashwater in Devon now offer the ultimate low carbon solution for reducing holidaymakers’ energy consumption. Guests’ heating and hot water needs are met by wood chipped from the 150-acre estate and neighbouring Forestry Commission woodlands.

Estate Manager Derek Griffiths, says biomass had been on their radar for a while, even before they installed the system at the end of 2007.

“We started looking into biomass about four years ago when the industry was embryonic. It was obvious there were a lot of people looking to make money but it was also clear that there were also very few that were prepared to offer an after sales service, which I knew was crucial to the success of the venture. It was very important to sort out the professionals from the rest.”

It was Forest Fuels’ knowledge, expertise and commitment to establishing a long-term fuel supply relationship and contract chipping service, which impressed Derek Griffiths, who says his previous career in manufacturing had made him very focused on bringing on board the best supplier.

“As well as helping us organise our own timber supply, Sam Whatmore from Forest Fuels advised us on the location for the building to house the boiler and chip store,” says Derek.  “The building is 300 metres away from the properties so it does not impinge on the stunning views and also means any noise is kept well away from the houses. As you can imagine this meant a lot of trench work to lay the pipes.”

Because of the financial implications of closing down the business while the work was carried out a tight schedule was set for installation of the system and commissioning.

The cottages were closed for October, November and the beginning of December 2007 to enable the switch to be made from propane gas to biomass.  The work was successfully completed on the properties in time to fulfil the fully booked Christmas and New Year period.

Although the capital costs were high, the estate successfully applied for a government grant to help towards the cost of the 110kW Fröling Austrian boiler, which was supplied and installed by Econergy. “It was a complete turn-key operation which was what we were looking for,” says Derek.

“Now that we have the timber supply issues resolved, ordering fuel conversion simply means a phone call to Forest Fuels who visit approximately every eight weeks with their chipper to fill our barn with fuel,” he adds.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Savings of more than 50% have already been logged for the electricity bills, mainly because the immersion heaters are things of the past. Monitoring of the other heating costs is still ongoing but similar substantial savings are predicted.

“We are extremely happy with the system but we would advise anyone else interested in biomass that it does take more time to manage and we are still fine tuning certain technical issues,” admits Derek. “This is where the after-sales support is proving invaluable and we are still working hard on reducing the time we need to spend on moving the chipped wood to the augur, without the need for some manual support at certain times.”

“Ultimately we aim to be able to supply the cottages completely with wood from the Braddon Estate thereby becoming completely self-sufficient for our fuel needs. The reliable and efficient fuel conversion service from Forest Fuels will enable us to achieve this goal, without the need for investing in expensive chipping technology which is only needed six days each year.”