transition away from gas

Retrofit and transition for hot water and HVAC, away from gas
The heating and hot water system at the eastern end of The Hub, which was built in 1996, currently relies on two gas boilers. One gas boiler serves the wet radiator heating system and an unused HVAC system with a tube bundle located in the loft space. The second gas boiler provides hot water for the kitchen, cleaners' cupboard, men's toilets, changing room shower, women's toilets, changing room showers, and the disabled toilet sink.
Since our first energy improvements report over two years ago now noboddy has suggested the installation of an electric hot water tank in the boiler room area for future hot water distribution to all sinks. (currenly 6 sinks and two showers for hot water from that gas boiler) We have been advised by installers and engineers that they prefer point-of-use heaters instead of one tank. However, these recommendation contradict our commitment to first consider retrofitting since we have had a high quotes for the decommisioning and removal of the gas boilers without having investigated a retrofit of any of the parts or pipework of the existing system. Additionally, water storage can be considered a form of energy storage. Removal of two gas boilers and associated equipment is also a carbon cost, especially if the pipework is going to be changed to costly new system with equipment that rarely gets used,
The hub will soon be getting solar panels, which are currently being designed to exclude a solar diverter. For that boiler room, this diverter would allow us to use some solar energy to heat a hot-water cylinder and an immersion heater. With this arrangement, we could retain all the ducting for the hot air system in winter and the cold air system in summer. However, the hub is still poorly insulated and extremely drafty. Additionally, groups and individuals often leave doors and windows open as we work towards our decarbonization and net-zero goals. It would be unwise to install an inappropriate system just to meet funding deadlines for this latest round of funding, without thoroughly exploring all possibilities. We need to make sure the system we begin to install now, is upgradeable to incorporate our future growth,
We also need to consider underfloor heating, as all of this must integrate with the smart building technology we humans are the smart meters presently, but this is unsustainable. Our plan includes installing a shelter for battery storage, which will also house our telecommunications for energy management, CCTV, and data storage hardware to enhance resilience and security. Smart building technology security is crucial for sustainability. As we continue our decarbonization program, our future-proofing programme of our asset-based community development will be evidence-based to show what can be achieved towards and above net zero, becoming a true human-centric living system
Three years ago, our sustainability champion faced significant local opposition for trying to achieve net-zero goals and improve the energy performance of our building. Certain political parties claimed these targets were unrealistic, and unfortunately, the great British public believed them and not him. Meanwhile, large industries implemented strategies to maintain their control over our energy resources. As a result, small to medium enterprises, like ours, are now far behind where we could have been if we had embraced the necessary changes to reduce our carbon footprint and manage our resources better sooner.
Currently, it is considered illegal to let out a property that's rated between F and G, and our building falls into this category due to outdated doors, insulation, heating, and water systems. Simply transitioning away from gas will only bring us to an E rating, which is still the legal minimum. By 2030, your SME in Scotland will need to achieve at least an EPC rating of 'B' to comply with the upcoming regulations
To improve our situation, we need to support our sustainability champions, redesigning and reimagining our community assets, energy production, storage, and management systems. This will enable us to move beyond an E rating during the summer months. Once we address insulation, energy management, and waste reduction, we can feasibly achieve our target A rating before 2030.
Another one of the hub's mottos: re`think, re`use, re`purpose, up`cycle and end waste Explains why the hubs retrofit will be a fantastic example of what can be achieve when a community moves away from the current wasteful thinking of demolition or bin, then buy something new from elsewhere, this is not how a sustainable development should think towards ita asset. retrofit is community wealth building and reuse done right,

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