Proposal: Utility Building

msimerson commented 4 years ago

Functions

Wood stove in the lodge is a significant fire risk, among our greatest.
New stoves must be EPA 2020 certified
1. Requirements are getting stricter about smoke emissions (now: 20%)
Current stove useful lifetime is about 15 years (3 yo)
proposed wood boilers are 90%+ efficient
1. ~200,000 BTU/hr, huge woodbox reduces reloads to 2-3x per weekend
2. most have built-in propane fueled starter
3. Vedolux Lambda 650, $13k, 220k BTU/hr, 92%, 7.5 cu/ft box, 770 gallon
4. Flöling S3 Turbo Boiler 50, 163k BTU/hr, 7.4 cu/ft box, 600+ gallon
5. Classic Edge 760 Titanium HDX, $13k, 245k BTU/hr, 90%, 23 cu/ft box, 330 gallon
Indoor Air Pollution from existing stove
1. occasionally smokes up the lodge
2. always emits fine particle pollution inside the lodge
3. often creates a stink cloud outside the lodge
it takes up a huge amount of space in the drying room
feeding it is messy and the mess is indoors
being in a commons area, it is "too accessible" and gets tampered with
necessitates a "heat tube" and chimney in the middle of the lodge

house and dry 2+ years of firewood (cure time target: 18+ months)
waste heat from the wood boiler would help dry the stored wood
current wood room
- houses about 1.5 years supply, limited space requires shuffling wood each season
- leaks a lot of heat from the basement
- is a mouse super-highway into the lodge
- could be repurposed

dedicated room for a propane generator
- sufficient to power the Lodge & Zoo
space for an electric main transfer switch (mains <-> generator)
optimal: combine genset with battery. The battery is fantastic for handling startup loads and permits a smaller generator. Combined with battery storage, the generator runs only to charge the battery. The generator runs only at peak efficiency and uses up to 80% less fuel.
lodge electrical feed comes via this building
- moves transformer away from the Lodge
- removes power pole and power line from lodge area

booster pump
- sources of water leaks in the men's room (bleeding, condensation, etc.)
- eyesore
- noisy
- pro: in Men's room, we can hear when it behaves "differently"
sediment filters
water softener (to avoid mineral deposits in water treatment equipment)
UV sterilizers
- in current location, they are difficult to access and maintain
- current location has too little space to put in larger treatment options

present water heaters
- (3) electric in the bathroom/shower area (100+ gallons)
- (2) propane tanks in the kitchen (100 gallons)
- the tanks consume a lot of space and take a long time to fill and empty
proposed water heaters
- use a heat exchanger with the wood boiler to pre-heat potable water for the lodge
  - uses our abundant biofuel (wood) to reduce electric load
- a hybrid heat pump water heater
  - up to 3x more efficient than plain electric
  - dries the air and the stored firewood
  - can be used to warm portions of the lodge when unoccupied
- replace WH tanks in the lodge with mini-tanks or tankless heaters (boosters)
much less water needs to drain for winter shutdown

fireproof design, inside and out
easy to clean up wood mess
efficient heat distribution
- glycol lines carry hot water to zones that demand heat (Lodge, Zoo, Sauna, etc..)
water treatment room can be kept above freezing with minimal expense
waste heat from wood boiler dries stored wood
uses water in distribution pipes and 800 gallon tank for heat storage

frees up the wood room
allows removing existing furnace from Lodge
- doubles the space in the drying room
- removes a fire risk from the lodge
removes the plumbing mess from the men's room
uses wood to preheat water, reducing use of electricity and propane
removes much of the electrical mess in the pantry
right sized generator permits switch to electric ovens and stove, using less propane in the kitchen

msimerson commented 3 years ago

msimerson commented 2 years ago