The use of biomass in heating systems is
beneficial because it uses agricultural, forest,
urban and industrial residues and waste to
produce heat and electricity with less effect on the
environment than fossil fuels. This type of energy
production has a limited long term effect on the
environment because the carbon in biomass is
part of the natural carbon cycle; while the carbon
in fossil fuels is not, and permanently adds carbon
to the environment when burned for fuel.
Biomass Boilers are very environmentally friendly,
they burn wood pellets made from compressed
waste sawdust or from raw materials sourced from
sustainably managed forests in the UK. The
sawdust is a waste product from sawmills and
classed as a renewable, carbon neutral fuel
source because trees absorb as much CO2 when
they are growing as they emit when they burn.
Biomass Pellets
Pellets are made from a wood material which is
dried and compressed to a low moisture level with
no additives. The resulting fuel has a high calorific
value or heat content and is clean, burning easily
and efficiently to give a constant heat. Biomass
boilers differ from solid fuel boilers as they are
fully automatic, using advanced controls to
regulate the amount of fuel being delivered to the
boiler to match the heat demand. The process
produces ash, so most Biomass boilers require
regular cleaning and maintenance, however the
boilers installed by Reliable Renewables are self-
cleaning and only need a manual clean once a
year.
Costs, savings and financial support
Costs
For boilers, an automatically fed pellet boiler for
an average home costs between £9,000 and
£21,000, including installation, flue, fuel store and
VAT at 5%. Manually fed log boiler systems can
be slightly cheaper.
Pellet costs depend mainly on the size and
method of delivery. If you have room for a large
fuel store that will accept several tonnes of
pellets at a time, delivered in bulk by tanker, you
can keep the cost down to around £220 per
tonne in most parts of the UK.
Logs can be cheaper than pellets, but costs
depend on the wood suppliers in your local area,
as they cost a lot to transport.If you have room to
store more than a year’s worth of logs you can
save money by buying unseasoned logs and
letting them season for a year. Search for wood
fuel suppliers in your area on the Biomass
Suppliers List.
Savings
Savings in carbon dioxide emissions are very
significant - up to 15.7 tonnes a year - when a
wood-fuelled boiler replaces a solid (coal) fired
system. Financial savings are more variable - if
you replace an older gas heating system with a
wood-burning system you might save up to £225
a year, but if you are replacing an old electric
heating system you could save as much as £990
per year.
About Biomass Boilers