Baxi Ecogen cuts fuel poverty for A1 Housing

A Baxi Ecogen micro-combined heat and power (micro-CHP) appliance is being trialled by A1 Housing to reduce fuel poverty and to lower carbon emissions.

A1 Housing, the Nottinghamshire-based ALMO (Arms Length Management Organisation), manages 7,000 properties for Bassetlaw District Council across North Nottinghamshire.

The organisation has objectives to upgrade all its housing stock to Decent Homes standards by 2013 and to reduce carbon emissions by 20 per cent by 2020.

In line with these targets, A1 Housing is trialling the Baxi Ecogen micro-CHP in a four bedroom family home in the village of Misterton, South East of Doncaster.

Constructed in the 1950s, the semi-detached property is home to a large family with four children.

Both Baxi and A1 Housing will be monitoring the results of the trial closely, with the unit expected to generate hundreds of kilowatts of electricity to power services in the home and enabling any surplus to be exported back to the grid.

Baxi Ecogen is the first commercially available micro-CHP unit for the home.

The appliance is designed around a Free Piston Stirling Engine (FPSE) which provides central heating and domestic hot water and up to 1kWh of electricity.

The intelligent controls within the Baxi Ecogen constantly adjust the engine to ensure maximum electrical generation and user comfort while minimising fuel costs.

Extensive field trials have shown that Baxi Ecogen units can reliably satisfy up to two thirds of a typical household's electrical requirements.

Around one third of this energy can be used in the home and another third exported back to the grid at a price of 10pkWh, using the Government Feed-In Tariffs (FIT) scheme.

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