I checked-in with the farm manager, Lester James, on day seven of the new crop.
In sheds one and two the old Priva heaters were firing, extract fans were running, air was fumy, humidity was high, it was noisy in there. Just as it has always been.
Sheds three and four, by comparison, with their new biomass boilers running heater coils, were full of warm, dry heat, the fans were off, because the shed was up to temperature and the air quality was so good there was hardly any need to vent. CO2 reading was 1800, whereas the reading in sheds one and two was 2800. Lester was enthusiastic as we walked around shed four. He held his hands up at his sides and said, “You can feel and smell the difference, and it’s quiet in here — we couldn’t give the chicks a better start. The icing on the cake is we’re making money from the RHI, as well as saving money on fuel. We save money on electricity, too, because we only need minimal ventilation. ”