Wood stoves equipped with thermoelectric generators can produce electricity that is more sustainable, more reliable, and less costly than power from solar PV panels.
Found this on the lowtech magazine. What are your toughts?
If you’re using electricity for that climate control, then that would be a waste of energy. I think the main appeal here is for places where wood is already burned for cooking and water heating. I imagine it could be a nice way to generate a bit of electricity during cold and dark winters when the sun isn’t shining all that much.
The article mentioned designs that negate the need for chimneys but I wonder if that’s a place where mounting it (sort of) through a wall could work - the flue/exhaust in a chimney is generally extremely hot (likely too hot?) and any heat in the chimney is just waste about to escape through the top anyways. If you could mount one of these through an exterior part of a chimney you’d have below freezing winter air on one side and like 400 degree heat on the other. I suspect that’s the sort of thing you’d have to build in from the start as conventional chimneys probably don’t like the kind of uneven heat a hole through the side would produce.
Edit: haven’t gotten to read in depth yet but it looks like there’s a bunch of research papers on thermoelectric generator chimneys
If you’re using electricity for that climate control, then that would be a waste of energy. I think the main appeal here is for places where wood is already burned for cooking and water heating. I imagine it could be a nice way to generate a bit of electricity during cold and dark winters when the sun isn’t shining all that much.
The article mentioned designs that negate the need for chimneys but I wonder if that’s a place where mounting it (sort of) through a wall could work - the flue/exhaust in a chimney is generally extremely hot (likely too hot?) and any heat in the chimney is just waste about to escape through the top anyways. If you could mount one of these through an exterior part of a chimney you’d have below freezing winter air on one side and like 400 degree heat on the other. I suspect that’s the sort of thing you’d have to build in from the start as conventional chimneys probably don’t like the kind of uneven heat a hole through the side would produce.
Edit: haven’t gotten to read in depth yet but it looks like there’s a bunch of research papers on thermoelectric generator chimneys
Only places I have seen TEGs really used in a useful sense is stove fans. They blow air around the stove to move warm air around the room.