https://www.net4energy.com/de-de/heizen/bhkw-selber-bauen
The following article explains the possibility of building a CHP yourself !!!!???
You will find our comments in red letters!
Build a combined heat and power unit yourself: A good idea?
Small combined heat and power units can deliver a lot of energy despite their compact dimensions. But does it make sense to build a CHP yourself? Here you can read what is important.
Content of the blog article
- The self-built CHP
- Building a CHP yourself: Is it worth it?
- What alternatives are there to building your own combined heat and power unit?
- Fazit: Der BHKW Eigenbau ist nichts für Laien
The self-built CHP
There is a new trend among savvy do-it-yourselfers. A small CHP unit can be sensibly integrated into most buildings. Under the right conditions, CHP units can certainly enable the use of combined heat and power in the private sphere. Such units have long been in use in industry and in larger buildings – with the advent of mini, micro and nano CHP units, they can also be used in single-family homes. Especially when a new heating system is to be installed, a CHP unit can often be used sensibly together with renewable energies. In this way, you can secure the heat supply for your house in addition to the electricity supply. Since the purchase of a new CHP unit often proves to be expensive, it makes sense to simply build the system yourself.
Our CHP Home Edition costs you 8500,00 € net!
It is true that currently “exclusively” CHP’s can be bought, which can be used in single-family houses, but from our point of view they are nonsensical!
Nonsensical because industrially manufactured CHPs only produce electricity for the public grid. Moreover, the technology is not new, but it is complicated. In particular, controlling the system for heating and electricity generation is not an easy task for a layman.
It is also not intelligent to burn fuel senselessly to generate energy. Since heating oil will be out by 2023 – no new oil-fired heating systems will be permitted after that date – alternative energy replacement systems will be needed. The only remaining option is to use natural gas or liquid gas as the base energy, since methanol and hydrogen are not available at all.
Due to this medium, gas-fired CHP units must fulfil many safety aspects so that dangerous situations cannot occur. The layman cannot fulfil this!
The output of a CHP unit for the home is based on consumption. With a daily consumption of about 14 KWh of electricity on average, the demand is quickly covered -> from then on, the CHP stands still, because it only produces electricity and heat “simultaneously”!
A CHP system is only expensive to purchase when
We have therefore developed an energy replacement system that has a gas-powered CHP unit at its heart, but only generates as much energy as is needed. In addition, our energy substitution systems cost significantly less than what is currently available on the market, so that the purchase, integration and operation not only save money, but are also efficient, economical and environmentally friendly.
Safety and liability
n combined heat and power unit work reliably to generate electricity. A normal do-it-yourselfer cannot usually guarantee this – exactly!
As the plant operator, you are responsible for safe operation. While a professionally built CHP plant has appropriate warranties and guarantees from manufacturers and specialist contractors, you are completely responsible for the plant and engines yourself and bear full liability if you build a CHP plant yourself. The usual liability insurance only applies if you have the contract adjusted accordingly, which entails additional costs. In addition to the electrical installation that you have to deal with when integrating a CHP unit, the overall operational safety of a small power plant powered by combustion engines should not be underestimated – the subject of operation with gas!
Build your own KW: Is it worth it?
In principle, you can consider a self-build CHP project if you have the necessary technical and craft skills. However, this does not automatically make it practical and economical. This is because state subsidies are generally not paid for self-build CHP units. The project is therefore only worthwhile if building your own CHP is so much cheaper that you can do without the subsidy.
To date, we have invested over € 1.5 million in the development of our CHP system! Just by the way 😉 😉
However, especially with do-it-yourself construction, the actual costs are difficult to calculate in advance. In addition to the purchase costs for the individual parts, additional costs can quickly arise if the system has not been optimally installed from the outset.
The integration of our CHP system requires “no” special knowledge, because it can be installed in the existing old heating system as well as easily in the new building services. Any local electrician or heating specialist can do this. All he has to do is “connect” the system! Therefore, even this circumstance is cost-effective and manageable.
In our own house, the energy replacement system is supplemented with our old heating system and a power storage unit is added to the electrics!
If the liability insurance is to cover possible damages, additional premiums must be expected. In order for the project to be generally worthwhile, high requirements must be met in terms of both quality and safety.
What alternatives are there to building your own combined heat and power unit?
Although there are many instructions on the internet on how to build your own, you are on the safe side with a kit from a renowned manufacturer. You can be sure of a well-engineered product in which everything is coordinated. This guarantees the reliable generation of electricity with the appropriate power.
The subsidy from Bafa (the Federal Office of Economics and Export Control) for CHP units with a capacity of up to 50 KWh electric has been terminated since 2021! Even the CHP subsidy and the EEG levy have been reduced to such an extent that the accounting effort is no longer worthwhile.
From our point of view, you do without state subsidies and grid feed-in anyway! With our energy replacement plant you are free and 100 percent self-sufficient!
Incidentally, our energy replacement system is compatible with solar power!
Buy a new CHP
There are various offers of complete systems where the components of the CHP are delivered ready for installation. You can save a lot of money here if you do the work yourself when setting up your small CHP system. But here too, certain work – especially electrical installations – should only be carried out by professionals.
The purchase of a CHP unit can be quite expensive, depending on the output, manufacturer and design. A mini CHP costs between 10,000 and 20,000 euros. For a micro or nano CHP unit, you can expect prices of up to 30,000 euros.
Once again: Our CHP for the family home costs 8500€!
However, in addition to acquisition and installation costs, these costs also include additional costs for a peak load boiler and the buffer storage tank.
Almost everyone has a buffer tank nowadays, because even oil-fired units have made use of such media for reasons of efficiency!
In addition, combined heat and power units are financially supported under certain conditions by the corresponding programmes of the Kreditanstalt für Wiederaufbau (KfW) and the Federal Office of Economics and Export Control (BAFA) – finished!
For example, there are bonus payments for every kilowatt hour (Kwh) of electricity generated – regardless of whether you consume the electricity yourself or feed it into the grid of the energy supplier.
It makes no sense to produce electricity for the public grid!
With our system, you generate electricity and heat with liquid gas at around 7 cents per kilowatt hour – yourself, at home and self-sufficiently!
Buy used CHP
To save money on the purchase, you can also look around on the second-hand market for CHP units. However, most of the offers are aimed at commercial or industrial customers who have the need for a large CHP unit. Unless you want to supply at least one apartment building with energy, these CHP units are usually too large. But of course there are also CHP units for single-family houses on the second-hand market. Whether the purchase is worthwhile depends, among other things, on how old the power plant is, what efficiency it has and what mileage it has. As with a car, longer idle times can damage the combustion engine, and the same applies to any maintenance backlog. The technical condition of the engine should therefore be impeccable. Also note that many manufacturers of older systems are no longer represented on the market. The supply of spare parts can then become difficult. In general, however, CHP units are very durable, which is why buying second-hand can be profitable under certain circumstances.
Read the experiences of CHP users on the internet – Ouch!
Conclusion: Self-build CHP is not for amateurs
If you have an appropriate professional or technical background, you can of course try to build a CHP yourself. However, building your own is usually only a good idea for very small units (generator or car engine). Even then, there are still immense challenges in integrating the unit into your heating circuit. To save money, you can consider a second-hand CHP unit or a kit that is then built by a specialised company. Liability issues and the lack of subsidies make building your own system largely unprofitable. If you buy a new one, you will benefit from subsidies, for example through bonus payments per Kwh generated. You also receive these if you feed the electricity into the grid of the energy provider.
It’s better to ask the experts right away: www.power4you.net! Our system is inexpensive, economical, environmentally friendly and easy to integrate into your building services! Just not what was usual until now 😉
