At Skanda Vale, a multi-faith ashram in Wales, an unusual resident – Valli the elephant – is enjoying toasty new accommodation thanks to a wood burning boiler from Euroheat. An unusual biomass beneficiary, Valli’s enclosure has recently been upgraded to include a heated waterfall, plunge pool and wall, courtesy of a HDG Navora 30kW log burning boiler.
Skanda Vale, ‘The Community of the Many Names of God’, resides near Carmarthen in Wales. Animal care (as well as human care) is an important area of work for the ashram, which is home to a large number of creaturesmany of whom have been rescued from slaughter or neglect. Vallicame from an elephant orphanage in Sri Lanka.
Biomass heating was chosen for Valli’s newly renovated home due to the large amount of trees grown on Skanda Vale’s land. Its green credentials also fitted with the ethos of Skanda Vale and once the domestic Renewable Heat Incentive (RHI) kicks off, the scheme will be eligible for RHI returns.
“Euroheat have been great all the way from design to installation and commissioning of our Navora 30kW boiler,” said Brother Stefan from Skanda Vale.“The boiler is easy to use, highly efficient and the boiler controller gives us an incredible amount of information on the state of the boiler and buffer tank.”
The HDG Navora is a down firing gasification split-log boiler, with a front loading fuel chamber. The large refuelling and cleaning doors have an opening angle of over 100 degrees which makes for simple operation. An ingenious rear ventilation feature has been integrated, resulting in low surface temperatures, keeping the heat where it belongs; in the heating system.
HDG boilers feature Lambda controls to ensure efficiency, as much as 90%. The controller optimises combustion and emissions levels by using information provided by a sensor. Flue gas is continually sampledallowing precise primary and secondary air actuator adjustments, resulting in low fuel consumption and maximum efficiency. Put simply, as wood burns its composition changes; Lambda adjusts the airflow to meet its changing requirements.
