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Power Saving Tips


NB Alnwick

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I buy organic chooks and they have very beefy legs though and they don't come small. I've tried shorter times and it was improperly cooked. I'm willing to bet it's better insulated than your Tesco cheapy, so overall there's not much difference, don't forget the wattage rating is the maximum, not the general running value over time.

 

Doorman, your first and second points (CH and SFS) use heat that would have been lost, or spread the heat around from it's source - they don't create any or burn much extra. Just saving waste in the case of the CH. Heat recovery is a valuable energy saving. Back boilers downrate stoves, there must be an energy payoff to heating water, those energetically wiggling atoms need energy to get them going. It might not be such that you notice, though but it is there. I don't suppose your solenoid costs much to run, either it's open or it's shut. Milliamps? It's not single energy uses that run the costs up, it's the long-term ones.

 

I used to turn my fridge off all winter when I lived in the last house - I could leave the milk out (a 4pt jug) all the time from November to around April when I'd get up and it'd be lumpy so back in the fridge the milk would go. I used to put the Christmas meat outside, and had to defrost stuff in the living room, the kitchen was frequently so cold the freezer would switch off and so the fridge interior would be warmer than the kitchen itself! Thus the perils of single thermostat fridge/freezers.

 

Turning off at night is indeed a good idea. In fact, turning all the electrics off at night is a good idea. If you had a house the fire service would be very happy if you did this. Why would boats be any different? I turn everything off at the wall when not using it. Some appliances have a power draw even when on standby with no lights on.

 

How many boats I've looked at though, with the fridge next to the cooker ...

 

Your point about fuel saving by driving sensibly is also a good one - small throttle openings on any engine reduce wasted fuel and if you have to select reverse you should be at a standstill or will have to overcome momentum as well as mass. Besides, what's the hurry?

 

Small gains matter over time. In a three bed house, turning off all the stuff unless it was being used saved 1/3 off our lekky bill over a year, which is a significant saving.

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I buy organic chooks and they have very beefy legs though and they don't come small. I've tried shorter times and it was improperly cooked. I'm willing to bet it's better insulated than your Tesco cheapy, so overall there's not much difference, don't forget the wattage rating is the maximum, not the general running value over time.

 

Doorman, your first and second points (CH and SFS) use heat that would have been lost, or spread the heat around from it's source - they don't create any or burn much extra. Just saving waste in the case of the CH. Heat recovery is a valuable energy saving. Back boilers downrate stoves, there must be an energy payoff to heating water, those energetically wiggling atoms need energy to get them going. It might not be such that you notice, though but it is there. I don't suppose your solenoid costs much to run, either it's open or it's shut. Milliamps? It's not single energy uses that run the costs up, it's the long-term ones.

 

I used to turn my fridge off all winter when I lived in the last house - I could leave the milk out (a 4pt jug) all the time from November to around April when I'd get up and it'd be lumpy so back in the fridge the milk would go. I used to put the Christmas meat outside, and had to defrost stuff in the living room, the kitchen was frequently so cold the freezer would switch off and so the fridge interior would be warmer than the kitchen itself! Thus the perils of single thermostat fridge/freezers.

 

Turning off at night is indeed a good idea. In fact, turning all the electrics off at night is a good idea. If you had a house the fire service would be very happy if you did this. Why would boats be any different? I turn everything off at the wall when not using it. Some appliances have a power draw even when on standby with no lights on.

 

How many boats I've looked at though, with the fridge next to the cooker ...

 

Your point about fuel saving by driving sensibly is also a good one - small throttle openings on any engine reduce wasted fuel and if you have to select reverse you should be at a standstill or will have to overcome momentum as well as mass. Besides, what's the hurry?

 

Small gains matter over time. In a three bed house, turning off all the stuff unless it was being used saved 1/3 off our lekky bill over a year, which is a significant saving.

 

It's a great pity that many householders and moreover factories are not as frugal in their fuel use as you and many other sensible boaters. I used to work for a multi-national car manufacturer and their energy wastage was criminal!

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That sounds like quite a lot of power for a slow cooker!!

 

We have a cheap Tesco branded slow cooker and on high power it is only 120W! (3 litre pot)

 

We use it pretty much every weekend on the boat and dont find it uses much power even when we are moored up. Although by the time we are moored up it is usually switched to low power.

7 hours on high for a chicken!

 

We find that an hour on high at the start and beginning of the cooking process and the rest on low is more than ample to cook a medium sized bird.

Its on the boat at the moment so I can't be 100% sure. I must admit I didn't shop around when buying it. It came from one of the big supermarkets but not Tesco, I may have bought a bad one. It draws 8+ amp at 27 volts so that is over 200 watts. Its not the power cooking, its the need to eat as soon as you stop and not 3 hrs later.

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Me too, if I can stand there and do it but the slow cooker means I do it in the morning and it matters not (if you use low or auto) what time you get back to it, it'll not spoil, most times, for hours and hours.

 

I wouldn't do a stew in the slow cooker. Pressure cooker gives more flavour (and is very very economical to run).

 

I know someone who swears by their Remoska too but I never could see how I'd use it.

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Personally I find my pressure cooker is by far the most efficient and economical way of cooking stews, soups, casseroles and indeed many other kinds of meals.

 

 

Personally I find that Mrs Doorman is by far the most efficient and economical way of cooking, full stop.

 

I'm ashamed to say that I'm absolutely useless at cooking, other than when it's BBQ time of course where I suddenly become a gourmet chef capable of cooking culinary delights and fight for the right to burn everthing within minutes, even the salad!

Edited by Doorman
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Personally I find that Mrs Doorman is by far the most efficient and economical way of cooking, full stop.

 

I'm ashamed to say that I'm absolutely useless at cooking, other than when it's BBQ time of course where I suddenly become a gourmet chef capable of cooking culinary delights and fight for the right to burn everthing within minutes, even the salad!

clapping.gif

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Personally I find that Mrs Doorman is by far the most efficient and economical way of cooking, full stop.

 

I'm ashamed to say that I'm absolutely useless at cooking, other than when it's BBQ time of course where I suddenly become a gourmet chef capable of cooking culinary delights and fight for the right to burn everthing within minutes, even the salad!

Personally I think the use of BBQ's on hot summer days is an extraordinarily bonkers behavior, the heat, the stink, stifling especially for the poor devil that operates it who ends up stinking of burnt meat, fat splattered clothes, smarting bloodshot watery eyes, greasy itchy face, burnt fingers. You can never seem to keep upwind of the dam things for long either, wherever the cook and diners stand or sit the bloomin wind keeps changing direction and everyone ends up in the same dreadful state as the cook, awful. May have been ok for the Australian aborigiknees who had nothing else to cook on in the outback but light fires in holes dug in the ground.. Not so bad during the winter though or Guy Fawkes night as the bit of warmth is welcome all round then despite the stink and the wind tends to be more reliable in direction enabling folk to keep upwind of it easier. In summertime I much prefer a lovely cool traditional picnic, table clothe spread upon the grass, egg and cress, salmon and cucumber sandwiches, salads, bits of cake, tea made on a Primus stove ect, much more civilized I reckon. mellow.png

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Personally I think the use of BBQ's on hot summer days is an extraordinarily bonkers behavior, the heat, the stink, stifling especially for the poor devil that operates it who ends up stinking of burnt meat, fat splattered clothes, smarting bloodshot watery eyes, greasy itchy face, burnt fingers. You can never seem to keep upwind of the dam things for long either, wherever the cook and diners stand or sit the bloomin wind keeps changing direction and everyone ends up in the same dreadful state as the cook, awful. May have been ok for the Australian aborigiknees who had nothing else to cook on in the outback but light fires in holes dug in the ground.. Not so bad during the winter though or Guy Fawkes night as the bit of warmth is welcome all round then despite the stink and the wind tends to be more reliable in direction enabling folk to keep upwind of it easier. In summertime I much prefer a lovely cool traditional picnic, table clothe spread upon the grass, egg and cress, salmon and cucumber sandwiches, salads, bits of cake, tea made on a Primus stove ect, much more civilized I reckon. mellow.png

 

How very observational.

 

Your description of BBQ's and their woes is spot on, in fact i'm still wiping my eyes from smoke inhilation to this day, not to mention my nostrils having their pupils dilated too! The greatest concern is the wield marks on my back from one of those cheap Tesco spatulas, where Mrs Doorman took control and whipped me into submission before finally taking over at the Aboriginal grill.

 

I was so hurt and confused by her insistence to cook that I didn't know what to didgeridoo!

Edited by Doorman
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How very observational.

 

Your description of BBQ's and their woes is spot on, in fact i'm still wiping my eyes from smoke inhilation to this day, not to mention my nostrils having their pupils dilated too! The greatest concern is the wield marks on my back from one of those cheap Tesco spatulas, where Mrs Doorman took control and whipped me into submission before finally taking over at the Aboriginal grill.

 

I was so hurt and confused by her insistance to cook that I didn't know what to didgeridoo!

Well I've observed this outdoor pack congregating en-masse BBQ catering behavior in picnic areas many times from afar and upwind of it where the whole area and atmosphere is enshrouded in a heavy lingering stinky smoking murk with the bloodshot eyes of the partakers gleaming through the fuggy murk all coughing, sneezing and spluttering. Mrs Doorman is a very brave lady to have taken over the operation of the dam thing and was probably justified in spanking you with a spatula, that'll larn yer, you should have hopped and dodged it like a Kangaroo,

Hope your hooter, eyes and back soon get better.

The best plan maybe to have made extra super long utensils and litter pickers to manipulate the burnt offerings, Utensils of around 60ft in length but would need considerable practice to become adept with and stop the bloomin sausages from keep rolling off into the red hot coals and having to fish em out, dusting off the soot when no ones looking and all that.

All sympathy Bizzard.

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Well I've observed this outdoor pack congregating en-masse BBQ catering behavior in picnic areas many times from afar and upwind of it where the whole area and atmosphere is enshrouded in a heavy lingering stinky smoking murk with the bloodshot eyes of the partakers gleaming through the fuggy murk all coughing, sneezing and spluttering. Mrs Doorman is a very brave lady to have taken over the operation of the dam thing and was probably justified in spanking you with a spatula, that'll larn yer, you should have hopped and dodged it like a Kangaroo,

Hope your hooter, eyes and back soon get better.

The best plan maybe to have made extra super long utensils and litter pickers to manipulate the burnt offerings, Utensils of around 60ft in length but would need considerable practice to become adept with and stop the bloomin sausages from keep rolling off into the red hot coals and having to fish em out, dusting off the soot when no ones looking and all that.

All sympathy Bizzard.

Without wishing to undermine your erudite offerings, I telephoned Sydney, in Australia. He is an authority on Barbies and also energy saving techniques.

 

In order to fully qualify his outpourings, he enlisted the help of his friend Alan Fresco. Al is a renowned author on all things outdoor, including BBQ's. His tip for energy savings was to ensure that he remained comfortably perched upon his chair, whilst his wife Sheila walked to the supermarket for his tinnies and when she returned, set up the barbie for their evening meal and cooked all of their food. He assured me that this technique saves him loads of energy and I must admit, if it weren't for that blasted spatula, I'd try this out at home too!

 

Sydney concurred with Al's theory and confirmed that he also employed this system with his wife (also called Sheila). Before hanging up, I asked both of them about when the barbie is finished with, what to do about the ashes.

 

"Don't be such a smart arsed pommie barstard" came the sharp reply, "We'll win them next time!"

Edited by Doorman
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BTW, pasta - and I have Delia to thank for this: Bring water to the boil, drop the pasta in, bring back to the boil and put the lid on. Turn the gas off. 20 mins later your pasta will be al dente. Saved energy.

Some good tips there. smile.png

 

Tried the above the other night but wrapped the pasta pot in an old duvet, after 15 mins it was still at 75°C and the pasta was more or less done.

 

Then last night tried no insulation instead, after 15 mins surprisingly it was 70°C, the shiny stainless saucepan must have helped reduce heat loss more than I thought it would.

 

Did find though the pasta was soft enough it tasted a little undercooked, bringing it back to the boil while sorting out other stuff finished it off nicely. cheers.gif

 

cheers, Pete.

~smpt~

Edited by smileypete
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Without wishing to undermine your erudite offerings, I telephoned Sydney, in Australia. He is an authority on Barbies and also energy saving techniques.

 

In order to fully qualify his outpourings, he enlisted the help of his friend Alan Fresco. Al is a renowned author on all things outdoor, including BBQ's. His tip for energy savings was to ensure that he remained comfortably perched upon his chair, whilst his wife Sheila walked to the supermarket for his tinnies and when she returned, set up the barbie for their evening meal and cooked all of their food. He assured me that this technique saves him loads of energy and I must admit, if it weren't for that blasted spatula, I'd try this out at home too!

 

Sydney concurred with Al's theory and confirmed that he also employed this system with his wife (also called Sheila). Before hanging up, I asked both of them about when the barbie is finished with, what to do about the ashes.

 

"Don't be such a smart arsed pommie barstard" came the sharp reply, "We'll win them next time!"

Not at all. I think Sydney is a very lucky man to have his Sheila and the services of his friend the great Al Fresco to keep him fed. But I've a sneaking suspicion that there might be a little erm, kink, being a long long way from Ausie can we be sure that its really BBQ's that Syd and Al are interested in and not , well, there is a rumour spreading up through Queensland that they're both founder members of the ''Woolywapwongbong and district Barbie doll collectors, admirers and cuddlers association '' B,D.C.A,A,C,A which is apparently affiliated to the ''Stuffed Cuckaburra and Rupert Bear club'' of Victoria, the president of which is the famous or infamous Mel Bourne. So it sounds like they're all a bit of a dodgy bunch to say the least. They may know a certain lady up north of them though.

A certain lady called Alice Springs to my mind, her name is Alice Supial and all her associates affectionately call her Ma or Mar. She runs a large mud hut complex for delinquent and distressed daredevil Wallabies and Kangaroos, her main roll being to teach them fine dining table manners, vegitarian cooking, foreign lingo's, toenail manicuring, chiropardy and needlework for the making of tobacco and Kebab pouches at which they're very adept, which she sells and exports all over the world to Kebab takeaways and tobacconists.

Mar's main goal in life with the help of Crocodile Dundee with his whopping great Bowie knife to train up to Olympic standard a Wallaby or Kangaroo to enter for the Triple jump event, once known as 'Hop, skip and jump', she has no trouble with teaching them the hopping bit which of course is natural to them, one hop and they easily clear the entire sandpit and indeed her mud hut also. Its when they try to skip they just trip themselves up with those enormous floppy feet and just plummet down into the sandpit and roll about in happy glee. But there yer go Mar is a very determined lady whom I'm sure will produce an Olympic gold medalist one day.

Edited by bizzard
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Alice? Who the f**k's Alice!

Goodness gracious!! you've not heard of Alice Supial, 'Mar' the wonder woman from the Springs! that has tremendous and uncanny abilities and powers to teach all known marsupials the doings of humans, why they end up more human than humans. At this very moment shes instructing her favourite Wallaby 'Matilda Tootsie' ballroom dancing, the Waltz to be exact, under the shade of her big Koolibar tree, she has to keep her own feet out of the way a bit of course though Whilst in the distance two Kangaroos, 'Jumpin Jack Flash' and 'Daisy Roots' now shes a looker I can tell you, are hopping about practicing for the three legged race and are also Olympic contenders. So all is going like Billabongs up at the Springs. smile.png

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That sounds like quite a lot of power for a slow cooker!!

 

We have a cheap Tesco branded slow cooker and on high power it is only 120W! (3 litre pot)

 

Looked in Tesco today and theirs is 180 Watt which is still better than the Sainsbury's one we have

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  • 3 weeks later...

<rant>

 

Oh how i detest those lights with a passion. It is only by a thin thread of civilisation that I resist throwing every single one into the canal.

 

Are you scared of the dark? One of the loveliest things about the towpath at night is its true dark.

 

And then people stick these silly useless led lights outside their boats, no use to them but true pollution to me.

 

</rant>

 

 

Well that's done it now ! someone will go and invent one !

The older we get the more light the human eye needs to work. So what seems like a bright night in your twenties is a dark night in your sixties. Having fell over a tree root carrying two full buckets of water down to our horses on a the dark winter's night in my 30s, I will definitely be putting a few very low level lights by the boat - dousing myself in cold water was shocking enough then, falling into the canal in my sixties is not something I aspire to. Please be careful as you whisk past our boat on the footpath - we may live in the country, but we don't live in the middle ages (sadly in neither in terms of history or age).

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The older we get the more light the human eye needs to work. So what seems like a bright night in your twenties is a dark night in your sixties. Having fell over a tree root carrying two full buckets of water down to our horses on a the dark winter's night in my 30s, I will definitely be putting a few very low level lights by the boat - dousing myself in cold water was shocking enough then, falling into the canal in my sixties is not something I aspire to. Please be careful as you whisk past our boat on the footpath - we may live in the country, but we don't live in the middle ages (sadly in neither in terms of history or age).

 

 

Welcome to the forum.

 

Here you will find a wealth of information, some of it very useful some not, but overall a good place to be. But prepare to meet some characters along the way with fixed and rigid thought patterns. Some of them would you believe, still measure in inches!

 

Mike

Edited by Doorman
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  • 1 month later...

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/The-Wizard-drop-in-fount-vintage-duplex-oil-lamp-Working-order-Chimney-needed-/141081349159?pt=UK_Antiques_AntiqueFurniture_SM&hash=item20d91a8c27

 

I highly recommend one of these, with the glass chimney removed and both wicks lit on a low setting it will take the chill off the boat for a tiny amount of oil thus saving the fire being lit through the day...and no I'am NOT the seller, just being helpful is all :)

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http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/The-Wizard-drop-in-fount-vintage-duplex-oil-lamp-Working-order-Chimney-needed-/141081349159?pt=UK_Antiques_AntiqueFurniture_SM&hash=item20d91a8c27

 

I highly recommend one of these, with the glass chimney removed and both wicks lit on a low setting it will take the chill off the boat for a tiny amount of oil thus saving the fire being lit through the day...and no I'am NOT the seller, just being helpful is all smile.png

If one does decide to have oil lamps on yer boat - I suggest the glass chimney IS required purely for safety's sake.

A flame tipped over with a supply of paraffin could be rather naughty

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