“Tiro forzado” isn’t really “green” (low energy consumption) except in the minds of the unschooled burro-cracy. It is arguably a bit safer since it discourages the flow of exhaust gases back into a structure. But in most residences and atmospheric conditions it isn’t necessary. And it consumes more electricity than alternatives.
For those just joining the program, there are two types of calefonts tipo tiro forzado.
There is a tiro forzado camara abierta which is supposed to be restricted to installations open to the atmosphere, or a room separated from the living space. Of course most Chilean installations around the country fail to meet the installation restrictions, this being, after all, the Toy Country. The advantage of this type is that an electric fan expels combustion exhaust gases that might otherwise backflow to the calefont, possibly extinguishing a gas flame.
The second common type is “tiro forzado cámara estanca” as labeled in the illustration. As the figure indicates, this type not only uses the fan to exhaust combustion gases but also draws outside (“makeup”) air for combustion, while other types use local air intake for combustion. This second type is normally approved for use inside living spaces such as kitchens.
If you don’t have this second type but your calefont is installed in a kitchen or other living space, then you might be violating the national safety standard (this can be done legally but the other requirements for distancing and so on are rarely met).
With some tiro forzado types. The “D” vent is theoretically not required with the newest designs with outside makeup air, but it seems that the presumably SEC-trained “personas autorizadas” have not yet understood this.
Returning to the “green” concept — the “hydropower” was the true “green” or energy efficient version. The battery (pilas) version was close but included batteries in the waste stream.
¡ojo! – there are still accommodations in Chile that use the old chispero type that lacks a thermocouple safety device to shut off the gas if the pilot light fails.
Good points.
Yes, a quake could knock a normal dish out of alignment, but marine vessels maintain sat connections under even more unstable conditions by using a stabilized antenna platform.
Obviously, that’s not so much a problem with Starlink.
FO would be completely ruled out due to, as you mention, its vulnerability.
As to feasibility, I was actually involved with a similar, smaller setup in the Sahara desert, where we provided voice and internet for six construction camps spread out over 500+Km. It was the main comms for the project. The ground station was located in Aberdeen, Scotland. an area not prone to seismic disturbances. Managing it, as opposed to maintaining it, was the biggest headache.
So it can be done, but maybe without Starlink, or using it as a backup only, given Musks increasing involvement in global politics.
Como consecuencia de dicha maniobra realizada por ISA InterChile, sin permiso y sin aviso, ambos circuitos de la línea 2×500 kV Nueva Maitencillo – Nueva Pan de Azúcar, desatando un efecto dominó que se prpagó hacia el sistema de transmisión paralelo de 220 kV “por la magnitud del aumento intempestivo del nivel de transferencia de carga, provocando la apertura por protecciones de los circuitos de 220 kV que operaban en paralelo con el sistema de 500kV”.*
En efecto, añade el CEN, el Sistema Eléctrico Nacional **“quedó separado en dos subsistemas eléctricos.
They were frigging with the line protection monitoring circuits at the time, that’s the ANSI87L reference further up in the text. That’s what tripped the protections, in a classic “Oh, shit” moment for those involved.
The loss of the 500kV lines threw the demand onto the older 220kV line, which couldn’t cope and tripped as well, effectively cutting the national grid into two segments.
Then everything else went down in cascade, as the southern section of the grid was unable to handle the sudden demand.
With all the hours of sunshine Chile receives, I am astounded solar energy is not the norm. Are the electric companies that powerful that they can suppress the obvious?
Yes, of course. but the topic here was the national grid. It’s fine if you can remember to keep the panels clean, don’t use anything that draws more current than a fridge, and are prepared to “renew” the batteries and panels every few years.
I’ve worked with several people here in the XII region who thought that a passive solar electric system would be great for their semi-remote parcelas. Too many people see the cost of just a couple of panels and think oh boy. Many of those semi-remote folks have to run water well pumps. By the time they saw the numbers for full system life cycle costs, and the RMA (reliability-maintainability-availability) the concept was abandoned rather quickly. The days of playing stalwart colonist with no array of electrodomesticos are fading.
Of course XII region isn’t like VII region. But still. Current (no pun) costs around 5 million CLP for first year system cost for a low-end installation suitable for most residences in VII region. Lithium battery life maybe 5-6 years so there are recurring costs. And for safety, you need to have a fire-resistant structure for the batteries, inverter, and controller. How long before such a thing “pays for itself”? And who ya gonna call when it needs help? In the regions it’s tough finding a chispas who adequately understands a PV system and the safety hazards.
thanks eeuu will start new post called GOING SOLAR, hope you will contribute. We have 7 large dogs, 3 mean cats and a few aggresive chickens. Always someone here. Also saw a crime graph recently, naturally cannot find it even though I took a screen shot, and the 7th region scored the lowest on crimes.
thanks Findes, pretty sure it was a violent crimes of homocide chart. Have no idea where I filed it, actually found it here or on another forum. Will look again. Definitely not filed under any of the obvious search terms, one of the joys of multi-tasking,
Not sure if this is a logical attachment for the subject of response to apagones but here is some idle talk concerning potential differences in the regions for response to outages.
As mentioned earlier, a good UPS, Uninterruptible Power Supply, should be an item just about anywhere. Of course, if the disaster takes down cell phone and internet circuits, then trying to figure out what is happening may be more challenging.
If the cell phone infrastructure does remain operable, then in theory you might be able to get ONEMI alerts through the SAE ==> Sistema de Alertas de Emergencias. Used sparingly, you may be able to get days of modem and cell phone connectivity from a good UPS.
Here in Magallanes our energy situation differs from the rest of the country. The most significant feature is the natural gas pipeline that serves the larger communities. So if electrical power goes down, that natural gas can be used to power a genset ( generator).
Most central heating here won’t work during an apagón since the pump requires electricity, but we have …. lanzallamas !! That’s a flame-thrower. In reality it’s an old style coal-burning heater which some shade-tree mechanic has modified with a simple gas burner array lacking in any sort of safety feature, such as a thermocouple gas cutoff if the flame goes out. Still, having such primordial gas heating can be very welcome during a Magallanes winter. Or spring. or fall. Or “summer.”
Old stoves and salamandras like these get converted to lanzallamas. Fortunately, there are more modern gas-fired heaters which don’t require mains electricity.
