ps, another caveat - this time about batteries
We get used to "use 'em up, and chuck 'em".........rather like a bottle of milk, unfortunately, the most widely used storage batteries are lead/acid of some sort or another, and they don't take kindly to being completely emptied - and when designing a system it is usual to aim to never take them below 50% of their capacity to ensure a long life, and design for "no more than 10% discharge per day" for the same reasons - hence "using batteries until empty" will kill them stone dead very fast!
http://solarwind.org.uk - a small company in Sussex sourcing, supplying, and fitting alternative energy products.
Amateurs encouraged - very keen prices and friendly helpful service!
Excuse me for butting in, but wouldn't a small wind turbine and/or PV panel combination be a good option given what you say about them being elderly and not wanting the hassle of a solid fuel heating system?
They could have a grid connect system, using the electricity they generate for heating/hot water in the winter months and meeting their other needs in the summer. Strictly speaking, it's not the most efficient solution (although a well-designed house with oodles of insulation wouldn't need much heating) but it's probably more convenient for people who need something that's non-labour intensive.
Or use the electricity to run an automated pellet fed boiler, as has been suggested earlier in this thread.
butt in all you like!
I'd be all for it, except for the trees in the way of the prevailing wind.........it really can decimate performance - if they do want to go that way, I'd certainly advise at least 6 months of data collection at proposed hub height and position first - then they'd have a much more accurate idea of how good/bad it's going to be.............
There are times nowadays that I get very torn - I love trees, particularly nice native mature ones, but often you could do without the blessed things because they're stuffing turbine performance!
http://solarwind.org.uk - a small company in Sussex sourcing, supplying, and fitting alternative energy products.
Amateurs encouraged - very keen prices and friendly helpful service!
Parents have sacked the architect. Poor at returning calls and very late for a site meeting with no apology or explanation, cut the meeting short and never discussed what he came to! Aggressive and to really up to taking their ideas on board. They agreed that they could not continue with him if this was how he worked.
They are in early discussions with a young practice Mum is keen, but Dad aint. Their practice is about 2 hours drive away and he is of the school where local is best.
Got to agree with Dad that local is best - a distant architect is not a happy prospect when it comes to unplanned site visits when managing those little things that crop up.
Where in the country are you? I know of a few 'eco' architects in my part of the world...
They are in the Scottish Borders. The Planning Officer has pretty much told them that they are really looking forward to an application for such a house, but there are no architects locally who are capable of producing something other than a standard 3 bed box.
Local may be best for some things, but where they are, there's probably only a very few architects practices and we can rule out two for being unprofessional.
As a surveyor, I never see distance (within reason) as a barrier to an instruction. I think that more particularly the most important thing about employing an architect (for bye his experience) is getting on with him/her. My Mum is getting on well with the possible replacement. My Dad won't even speak to him because he is too far away. They are probably only 80 miles away.
My Dad is an old school tradesman (which might actually count against him...creeping about at night once the contractor has gone home checking their work!) and will know when things are not right. I would be recommending to them to do the following:
Employ the architect to design the building, apply for planning and building warrant, tender the build contract, produce a tender report to my parents with a recommendation. Thereafter instruct the contractor who would actually have day to day control over the build, overseeing his subcontractors for work he could not do his self. There would be staged payments at say foundations/wind and water tight/first fix/second fix/completion. The contractor submits a valuation to the architect at each stage and the architect visits and ensures the work is carried out to a. the proper specification and b. in a satisfactory manner. Only at this point does the architect tell my parents to release the staged payment. It is therefore in the contractors best interest to manage the site according to the programme and building warrant otherwise he loses money.
I might be mildly naive about this as I have never employed an architect and main contractor in this way, but get the right architect and main contractor (my Dad knows lots of local ones!) and it should be a reasonably safe way to do the build? Surely 80 miles is not a reason not to instruct and architect you get on with and can work with? (Or at least let him come to see the site and have a chat!)
