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jabbanobada t1_ixvlw7b wrote

You didn’t mention insulation, but that should come first. Masssave will give you big subsidies for insulation work and zero interest for the rest.

Mini splits can do the job alone. If you already have vents for AC, you can use a central system instead of mini splits. Otherwise, you might as well shell out for mini splits rather than do vent work. You can keep the old system if you want, but I’d rather clear out those radiators for good.

It’s a big expensive job, but it’s the best you can get.

As for hot water, I just got on demand gas. If you have gas lines already, you can kick that down the road a few decades as heat pump hot water is possible, but expensive.

Just say no to pellets. Not environmentally friendly at all and a pain in the ass.

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ErkMcGurk t1_ixvv084 wrote

>Just say no to pellets. Not environmentally friendly at all and a pain in the ass

I'm curious why you say pellets aren't environmentally friendly. They're nearly carbon-neutral, and otherwise would be a waste product. Many wood-burning appliances are highly efficient.

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pencil_2b OP t1_ixwdmdp wrote

From what I understand there are whole forests being razed in eastern Europe and the SE US. I was under the impression that it's possible to buy sustainably produced pellets but that's not across the board.

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BossCrabMeat t1_ixx1m1f wrote

Most of the pellets produced in NE USA is sawmill waste, ie byproduct of hardwood flooring production.

I have a pellet stove and it works great no matter how cold it gets. Your only problem would be storing the pellets.

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jabbanobada t1_ixxi8qh wrote

There’s only so much waste wood and it can also go to particle board. Burning pellets will always pull from a market that also makes pellets out of forests. It’s only carbon neutral on long time frames, if you cut down a tree and plant a new one in its place, it takes a century to catch up.

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ErkMcGurk t1_ixxselm wrote

Ok, wood comes from trees that got cut down, but is it actually a worse energy source environmentally-speaking than photovoltaic? While growing, trees provide food and habitat for wildlife, and require little maintenance to produce. PV solar, besides the environmental costs of producing the panels themselves, also depends typically on lead or lithium-based batteries, and all of the equipment needs to be replaced on a regular basis (5-10 years for batteries, 25 years for panels). Large-scale solar farms often occupy space that trees could instead, and I wonder whether the trees would be more efficient at capturing solar energy.

I'm sure improvements could be made in the forestry industry, but wood burning seems to be less of an environmental concern than burning fossil fuels, and is an economical source of heat in areas where wood is abundant.

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pencil_2b OP t1_ixvnpr9 wrote

>You didn’t mention insulation, but that should come first. Masssave will
give you big subsidies for insulation work and zero interest for the
rest.

Done.

​

>Mini splits can do the job alone. If you already have vents for AC, you
can use a central system instead of mini splits. Otherwise, you might as
well shell out for mini splits rather than do vent work. You can keep
the old system if you want, but I’d rather clear out those radiators for
good.

Unfortunately I don't have AC ducting so it would have to be all mini splits. Good to know they're probably robust enough. I need to find a specialist and not someone who's trying to sell me a new gas boiler lol.

2