Carbon free conference

We're having a language teachers conference in May and a few of us think it would be nice to make it carbon neutral. I think the main carbon emissions are going to come from people flying there. It's at the bottom of Kyushu, in a beautiful city called Miyazaki, and even people from Fukuoka at the top of Kyushu are likely to fly. I'd like to get the train, but it would be a ten-hour journey and cost more than the flight. Probably shouldn't even be going, but, ironically, it's about sustainability in language teaching.

Anyway, there are various sites that will estimate carbon costs of various things from car journeys to weddings in various places around the world. This makes a difference because, for example, using electricity in nuclear-powered France will produce about 20 times more CO2 than in hydro-electric Norway. Electricity from dirty coal in Estonia will produce ten times more than in France. This is just looking at Europe, where comparable data can be easily found.

We used a site called myclimate.org, which has localisations in various countries including Japan. A first rough estimate gave an output of 37 tonnes of CO2, and suggested we offset this with a donation of around 110,000 yen to one of their projects. None of their projects is in Japan, and many, but not all, are in developing countries. Their cost per tonne of carbon works out around 3,000 yen, roughly 30 USD. I'm really not sure whether this is expensive or cheap, but it gave me a first estimate. There are carbon offset projects in Japan, and it seems to me better practice to make a local offset, which may have more tangible benefits to the region that is hosting the conference. Also I have a sense that projects in developing countries could encourage people in richer countries to continue polluting while buying up land in poorer countries to clear their consciences and carbon accounts. 

That site didn't mention any projects in Japan, but luckily another of the conference organisers sent a link to j-ver.go.jp which listed 5 local projects. It even gives some information in an English-language powerpoint file here, mentionig a couple of projects in Japan, one asking for 10,000 yen per tonne of CO2, the other 2,500, so it seems that projects in Japan are not completely different to the international projects. According to the other conference organiser, this is expensive, and this site mentions prices of £7.50, quotes someone saying that the price should be £1 per tonne, and someone else that $11 per tonne is the top price for carbon credits. This site encourages people to spend around $10 per tonne of carbon.

So, it seems there's a mixture of currencies and prices here.The market is likely to drive these costs down, but something makes me feel incredibly wary of that. 

And it make me wonder how much it should cost to get a tonne of carbon dioxide out of the atmosphere, and exactly what that means. For example, in putting solar panels on my roof, I could argue that I've taken carbon out of the atmosphere by reducing demand on thermal power stations. This is the kind of project that may get funding from selling carbon credits. But looking at it objectively, the panels themselves aren't taking any carbon out of anywhere, and in fact produced a fair bit of carbon in their manufacture.

Planting trees seems a more unequivocal way of fixing carbon, but it depends on what was there before. If grey, former industrial land is being re-forested, that should make a genuine difference.

Anyway, these are all things to think about as I'm sitting on the plane...

Advice on dishwasher connection running hot and cold

When we were planning the kitchen, we were advised to plumb cold water into the dishwasher. I think the reason given was that if the dishwasher is in control of its own water heating, then it will be at the right temperature. Domestic hot water was going to start off cold until water from the boiler got through the pipes, and this would upset the wash.

Meanwhile, the Japanese manual we have for the dishwasher announces that you can save energy by connecting hot water rather than cold water, since the dishwasher uses electricity to heat water, and electricity is a very expensive way of producing heat.

At the one (and a half) year inspection last year, one of our questions was about the dishwasher plumbing, and the builder came out with the same story we'd heard at the beginning: that the domestic hot water may be cold when it is first turned on as it goes through the pipes.

Further discussion with the Japanese suppliers of the German-made dishwasher confirmed this. Also, rinsing with cold water first is apparently better for removing proteins, like egg, which can be baked on with hot water and become more difficult to remove. So plumbing cold water allows the dishwasher to use both hot and cold water, but if you plumb in hot water, it can only use hot water.

There is a range of forum discussions online discussing whether to plumb dishwashers with hot or cold water, which seem to veer towards the side of cold water and leaving the dishwasher to deal with the heating, unless you're getting your hot water from a solar thermal system, in which case the hot water is effectively free.

But our hot water is not solar thermal, and even though the domestic hot water would save some electricity, and some cost since it's using night time rates rather than evening rates, so it doesn't represent free heat. The water is still using some electricity, probably more efficiently, but by the time it's lost heat waiting in the boiler to be used, lost heat in the pipes on the way to the dishwasher, been used when the dishwasher would rather have been using cold water, and possibly been further heated, then the saving is really marginal.

So once again, we're counting the number of angels that can dance on a pin head. 

Plus One - Plucky and Simple

I've just discovered a great shop. Plus One is its name and plucky and simple its byline. Plucky, I'm not sure whether applies to a shop. Simple it is not.

The immediate excuse for going there was to get some elastite, which we need for the concrete job. At least we thought we may need it. Actually the lengths of each stretch of concrete are short, and we can put gaps at the end of each one, so the 10 millionths per degree expansion coefficient of concrete, which we would perhaps have needed to take into account over the whole 18 metres of the job, is not going to be a big deal.

The job itself is completing a low wall along our western perimeter. We are putting a fence up there, with aluminium posts sitting in concrete feet spaced at 1.8 metres. We also want to put something in there to keep the perimeter continuous and to avoid mud flowing from the neighbour's land, which is a couple of centimetres higher.

At first I assumed we could easily just get a few breeze blocks or some more fancy blocks and put them along in a row, but this turned out to be difficult. We couldn't find any the right size with the right finish on top. To get them in properly we would have needed to put in something below and fill in the holes on top with mortar. We thought we may be able to get something that looked nice, but since the feet are concrete, the thing that will look nicest next to them is more concrete.

So we thought about curbstones. The problem here is that the curbstones come in 600 mm and 900 mm lengths, but the gap we're trying to fill is 1.6 metres. So we'd need to cut the curbstones into 200 and 400 mm peices and fix them all together. And that's possible, but everyone with the ability to cut curbstones is too busy at the moment. Consumption tax is going up on 1st April, and everyone is frantically getting the work done that was ordered before the tax hike. We could wait, but we need to get this done within the year since we're going to plant a hedge next to it, and we've applied for a grant for that from the city, but it needs to be done by the end of March.

So the best option seems to be pouring concrete. It's certainly not going to be the most expensive option, unless it is a complete disaster and needs redoing, but it may take a bit of time.

I'd more or less decided over the weekend that this was the way to go, but on Monday morning the gardener who is in charge of the fence and hedge project turned up with the curbstone catalogue and set off trying to find cutters for them. It wasn't until Monday evening that he realised it was going to be more difficult. So we set off to Watahan Monday evening to get some concrete and bits of wood to form it.

Watahan is not a bad shop. The people who work there are usually a bit older and know what they're talking about. We were asking the guy in the wood section about building a former, and another customer overheard us and came over to give some advice. About half an hour later, we left the shop, a lot wiser, but not having bought anything. We did hear about Plus One for the second time.

And Plus One was A DIY oasis. I could tell at once that it was going to have good stuff from the people in the carpark. A lot of small trucks with men in work clothes, towels wrapped around their heads and tape measures in their pockets. Inside there were aisles and aisles of tools and parts, bits and bobs, materials hard and soft, long and short and with many shapes, textures and functions.

I looked to see if they had any elbow grease, having heard that was an essential ingredient for mixing concrete, but their stocks didn't quite go that far. I didn't check whether they had any left-handed screwdrivers. 

You've read the blog, now watch the movie

Not my movie, of course. In fact not anything to do with me except that it's part of a building revolution that I like to feel I'm standing on the ramparts of. Well insulated ramparts which have been carefully designed to avoid thermal bridges.
Also it's just a trailer, and I'm not sure when the movie will be showing at a cinema near you.
watch it on youtube

We need to replenish world CO2 sources...

Here's me worrying about global warming, and apparently carbon dioxide levels are really low, and the world is actually in danger. All those poor plants out there need CO2 to survive. We shouldn't be reducing the amount of carbon dioxide we produce, we should be increasing it to help give them more vital food.

That's what CFACT are proposing. And I'd just like to thank their sponsors for generously supporting the good work they do. Exxon Mobile have given them millions in the past, and the heir to the Mellon banking and oil fortunes supports them to this day.

Let's just put aside the fact that plants survived for a couple of billion years before animals evolved, and were doing quite nicely until humans appeared.

And let's ignore the human impacts on deforestation and desertification first as direct results of slash and burn, intensive farming and animal husbandry. And by "husbandry" I mean breeding animals, killing their predators and letting them consume resources over large areas, often running wild in ecosystems where they have never been indigenous. Also let's ignore indirect effects, like Lake Chad drying out and shrinking to the size of a pond, which probably resulted from global warming. Clearly these are not threatening those poor plants that we must protect.

This carbon dioxide is really good for the planet and we need to get it's levels up.

Why look at the world through rose-tinted spectacled when you could look at it through oil-stained ones instead!

---

When I was checking their website, it came up with a "site security not trusted" message, which to be honest is the least of its problems. It led me to the below survey, copied from their site without permission. I may use it in my classes next semester to demonstrate how to make leading questions which combine and confuse multiple issues and skew survey results.

2014 National Global Warming Survey

Instructions: Please answer each question by clicking the box next to the appropriate answer.

Do you believe that human activities are making the weather a threat to mankind’s survival?

Yes, and we must counteract it by any means necessary.No, this issue is over-hyped.Not sure.

Do you believe that the available scientific evidence supports a theory of humans causing global warming?

Yes, the science is settled and the debate is over.No, the science is flimsy and far from settled.Not sure.

Do you believe that the government should impose costly new laws and regulations to try to halt the progression of alleged catastrophic climate change?

Yes, catastrophic climate change is real, and our government must attempt to stop it. If that means imposing new laws and regulations that drastically increase energy prices, then that’s what we must do.No, these new laws and regulations would have a disastrous effect on jobs and our economy, and the notion of “man-made global warming” has never been scientifically proven, nor is it a serious threat.Not sure.

Are you willing to pay dramatically more for everyday expenses like gasoline, electricity, and food to support “Green” energy and the alarmists’ case for global warming?

Yes, paying more for everyday needs is the cost of saving our planet from a climate change catastrophe.No, with current advances in technology, we can responsibly steward our environment while at the same time paying the same or even less for our everyday needs.Not sure.

Do you believe that the United States has an obligation to “lead by example” in combatting climate change by capping industrial emissions of carbon dioxide and “greenhouse gases”?

Yes, we must take the first step and limit carbon dioxide emissions by factories and power plants to head off this planetary emergency.No, especially since nations like China and India aren’t making emissions cuts and such limits will hurt our economy, increase manufacturing and power costs, and kill jobs.Not sure.

Writing a nice letter

It's taken over a month to write to the supplier of heat but not a lot of light.

This is a translation of the first letter I wrote:

==
Dear @?x@*,

Thank you for your visit to our house to look at the third incident of leaking water from the ventilation system you installed. A couple of weeks later I went into the room where it lives, and found an overflowing bucket, which made me realise that the problem had not been fixed. I was shocked to hear that you expected me to pay for you to come again, so I got the manual and looked at it myself, following the clear and straightforward instructions on removing the cover, taking out and cleaning the heat exchange unit. Instructions that would be difficult to miss, unless you did not look at them.

While doing this, I noticed that the water was not draining properly from the pan in the bottom of the machine, even when the drain was clean and water was flowing smoothly through that. Water was collecting at the front of the machine, allowing crap to build up, as you can see in the enclosed photograph. Excuse my use of an engineering term.

Using a spirit level showed that the whole system is not level, and in fact the way it has been installed, hanging from the wall, it was really never likely to be level in the first place.

I'm not sure whether this is a design fault of the system, a flaw in the manufacturer's installation instructions, or if there is any other way of passing the responsibility on to someone else, but there are a couple of ideas you could use.

If you, or other companies, continue installing heat exchange ventilation systems in Japan, it would be nice if you could take problems like this seriously and ensure installation and maintenance that will not lead to leaking. Somewhat counter-intuitively, heat exchangers with better efficiency have bigger temperature drops so more condensation will come out of them. If it does not have a well made path, this water will make a new one, likely through the part of the house where it will do the most damage.

At the moment I'm thinking of the best way to make the system level.

In the mean time, please don't worry about our health. We will clean this regularly to avoid an outbreak of legionnaires disease.

Yours...

==

Of course, I didn't send this. Actually I didn't really write most of that until now, but that's what I wanted to say. I know that at most it would have caused still more heat, and not achieved any of my goals, except for some short-term satisfaction.

Obviously my main priority is to get my system working properly, although I think to do that I'll probably have to learn how it works and do the maintenance myself.

Another very big priority is stopping this happening to other people. These kinds of systems are essential to highly efficient buildings, and if they cannot be installed correctly people will stop using them.

So here's the second letter:

====
Dear @?x@* san,

Thank you for coming to look at our leaking ventilation system. Two weeks afterwards I realised that the system was still leaking, so I followed the manual to clean it, including the heat-exchange element. While doing this, I noticed that water was not draining properly from the bottom of the system because it was not level. You can see in the enclosed photo how dirt has built up at the front of the drainage area. Using a spirit level showed that the system itself is not horizontal.

If you have any suggestions as to how the system can be made level, please let me know.

I hope that you will be able to avoid this kind of problem in future installations of heat exchange ventilations systems.

Yours...

====

Stick to the facts. We need to stick to the facts.

Here's the final version of the letter:

======
Dear @?x@* sama,

Sorry for the delay in contacting you.

Thank you for coming to look at the water leakage from our heat-exchange ventilation system on 17th January. Two weeks later I realised that the leaking had not stop, so I cleaned inside the system and the heat-exchange element, as described in the manual.

At this time, it became clear that the system was not level, and water was not effectively draining from the system. Water was collecting at the front of the draining pan, leading to a build up of dirt, as can be seen in the photo.

Upon measurement, the system was not level, and was out by about 5 mm in 100.

I'm now thinking of a way to make it level.

Yours,

======

The morning after sending this, a reply came back:

==

Long time no see.
I looked at the attached photos.

I can't see whether it's level from the photos, but we will think about this.
==

Three Eco houses

Here is an assortment of houses, each different and all interesting. 

Shiga Eco House project, ecohouse66 is something like what I would have liked to do.

Well insulated and solar powered, but also they did a lot of the building themselves, and were more careful using recycled and sustainable materials.

And here's a house being made of straw.

Seems like a good material to use!

And then there is Tighthouse - a passive house in New York city. I think "tight" refers to the airtightness, not the reticence of the owner to open his wallet. 

This is interesting because it's an urban retrofit, so it doesn't fit the stereotype of the eco house. However, since increasing numbers of the world's billions are going to be living in cities, and using existing buildings will likely use fewer resources, these are the kinds of eco houses we need!