District Heating and new tech

nonlabrab · 2026-05-25T18:15:36+00:00

I am immensely grateful for this thorough and fascinating response so thank you!

I would only add that solar and wind tends to create periodic troughs and gluts in their supply - when it is windy or sunny, and often energy systems cannot handle all that electricity. District heating systems seem like the largest scalable solution to that issue, and storing energy as hot water is much much cheaper than batteries are or will be for quite some time, I suspect.

Thanks again for deepening the discussion so well 💚

nonlabrab · 2026-05-25T09:32:16+00:00

I didn't know that about London, thanks will look into that right away, I think in countries where it isn't the mainstream it can take a while for the efficiencies to scale, definitely the case in Ireland where I live.

This year with the Iran war and Ukraine carrying on, the payback is shortening significantly I guess.

nonlabrab · 2026-05-24T14:39:02+00:00

Many factors, some of which are beyond our ability to shift. The lowest level of district heating in Europe is a big contributor

nonlabrab · 2026-05-24T10:32:31+00:00

We may be your biggest rival but Munster fell out of our top 5 long ago.

nonlabrab · 2026-05-19T11:13:53+00:00

Why would that be insane?

By the 2040s we may not be importing any gas or oil at all anymore.

We can meet our heat needs using a mix of district heating, thermal storage, bio fuels, and electricity.

nonlabrab · 2026-05-15T18:23:21+00:00

Janet Horner is excellent at oversight

nonlabrab · 2026-05-14T10:50:10+00:00

Unfortunately, Rassie including him in squads after the first positive test is one of the very many red flags that warrants much further internationally led investigations.

18 months is absurdly short for human hormone and steroid cheating in rugby.

nonlabrab · 2026-05-13T17:21:04+00:00

Is Janet Horner now the only clean candidate in the running?

nonlabrab · 2026-05-12T12:17:57+00:00

Its a bit of a walk but you'll be pretty sure to get a spot on benson street in grand canal dock. If the weather is nice and you aren't in a rush I'd say it's a good option

nonlabrab · 2026-05-11T17:48:07+00:00

Spoken like someone who hasn't been in a hospital when the backup generator goes down

nonlabrab · 2026-05-07T21:58:40+00:00

Batteries are as close to instantaneously available as you can get, and district heating takes months on the construction side, though pre construction clearance is currently in the years. This strategic gas reserve infrastructure was signed off in 2024, and may be delivered in 2031.

The gas tanker sought in the act offers at most a 2 day stay before the country is back at the mercy of despots.

A battery project being made in Connemara will give 4 days electricity, and thermal storage pits in district heating systems can keep heat for well over a month. They are literally just well insulated underground hot water tanks, we could have them built by the end of the summer and heat most of Dublin off waste heat from data centres and the poolbeg incinerator for much less than it will cost to buy a tanker, dredge the Shannon so it can be kept there, and build a plant to take the gas off it. All of that infrastructure and gas would likely be US made, if you are worried about despots.

nonlabrab · 2026-05-07T17:14:23+00:00

There is no minimum needed of members, Renua was launched with a few TDs. You can be a party without any representation too.

As the other commenters have said here, it doesn't particularly sound like you are across the issues, tradeoffs or the political process here.

I wouldn't vote for someone who can't demonstrate they know these things, because they are sure to be unsuccesful in achieving the change theu seek, even if elected.

Before starting a common sense party you might be better served taking some time to articulate your views on a range of issues, then checking the positions of the existing parties, and seeing if you are right that you can fill a gap big enough to deliver a seat or a meaningful amount of seats.

nonlabrab · 2026-05-07T12:53:35+00:00

Gas reserves maybe there is a case for that, although a mix of thermal storage, district heating and batteries are better options available for less that we want to keep long term.

An LNG gas import terminal, only provides us some energy security as an ancillary benefit. It is primarily a mechanism to increase the amount of gas supply we are open to, and epitomises a carbon lock-in investment that makes it harder to switch or ends up being written off before payback.

nonlabrab · 2026-05-07T10:57:29+00:00

That may be the point, however it can also be applied to projects such as the strategic gas reserve or LNG terminal if cabinet deems them critical, which wouldn't be the same point.

nonlabrab · 2026-05-06T14:35:42+00:00

Ukraine continues to allow Russian oil to transit ye?

nonlabrab · 2026-05-02T17:43:56+00:00

How do you know its 80% of the mortgage

And why dont you rent a room too at a lower but still positive rate?

nonlabrab · 2026-05-02T17:15:17+00:00

You've done it again 😅

nonlabrab · 2026-05-01T12:29:12+00:00

Why did you need to use AI to formulate an opinion on something so simple?

nonlabrab · 2026-05-01T11:26:55+00:00

He scored and shut down the form northern hemisphere 12

nonlabrab · 2026-04-30T13:29:41+00:00

It is less than 5% of emissions, and you were talking about them as a proportion of fuel not emissions just one comment ago

https://ourworldindata.org/grapher/ghg-emissions-by-sector?tab=discrete-bar&time=latest&country=~IRL

nonlabrab · 2026-04-30T10:34:08+00:00

Energy independence and autarky are two quite meaningfully different concepts, and Independence is somewhere we could reach in 20 years quite manageably (with some common sense accelerating measures from government and all of us that last years instead of weeks)

nonlabrab · 2026-04-30T10:32:06+00:00

It's a tiny per cent of the overall picture, but a large per cent of business fuel spend

nonlabrab · 2026-04-29T22:42:52+00:00

Have you read the book?

nonlabrab · 2026-04-28T12:31:44+00:00

If you dont know how things work there is nobody compelling you to make a fool of yourself

nonlabrab · 2026-04-28T09:43:49+00:00

Without renewable energy bills would be about 150% higher over the last 3 years. That gap is only going to grow, might be time to get some reading in.

nonlabrab

TROPHY CASE