Boilers

Winemakers Pernod Ricard are set to cut their natural gas bill by $21,000 a year thanks to a new hot-water boiler at the company's Auckland wine-bottling plant.

The $55,000 Northvale boiler is used to heat water for cleaning the equipment at the plant. It is almost 12% more efficient than the steam boiler it replaced, and it is expected to reduce the amount of natural gas the company uses by 479,000 kWh a year.

Wood fuel is a clean and renewable energy source. Burning wood fuel has a low net greenhouse effect as the CO2 given off is absorbed by the growth of the next crop. Wood fuel is playing an increasingly important role in
generating energy.

Wood fuel includes any woody biomass suitable for energy production, such as branches, bark and stem wood. The focus of these guidelines is on residues from landings - currently the largest unused source of woody biomass.

After a half-day visit from an energy engineer to test and re-tune the burners on its boilers, Taylors Laundry Christchurch has found itself using 21,643 fewer litres of Light Fuel Oil (LFO) and saving $17,532 annually.

This 5% energy saving is in line with the Energy Efficiency and Conservation Authority's (EECA)estimate of the saving that most businesses using process heat can expect when they improve the efficiency of existing plants.

At Mairehau High School, wellbeing comes first - and that includes providing a healthy and comfortable environment. With clean efficient wood energy delivering heat where it is needed, Mairehau High School students can learn at their best all year round.