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Wild and woolly

Photo by Andy Dawson Reidwild and woolly

Definitions

a. rough, untamed, barbarous
b. (of theories, plans, etc) not thought out

 

At the top of the New Year it feels as though the weather here in Victoria is determined to blow away utterly any echo of the year that has recently stumbled to a close. The winds over the past few days have truly been ‘rough, untamed and barbarous‘ (not to mention that they add a significant chill factor of anything from -6°C to something considerably worse) and show no signs of abating anytime soon; indeed the half a gale that is blowing as I write is supposed to go the whole hog later tonight.

Photo by Andy Dawson Reid

The sea has taken on a mean look. Protected by the Gulf Islands the Haro Strait never sees more than mild whitecaps but this belies the ferocity with which the winds can whip across its surface.

Though the land temperature merely hovers around zero the wind chill rapidly dissuades one from spending much time outside.

Photo by Andy Dawson ReidPhoto by Andy Dawson ReidIt is at such times that we are grateful to live in a well insulated house equipped with a heat pump, the which does an excellent job of maintaining the internal temperature at a most pleasant 70°C. With our new gas log fire we can face down the external conditions and remain toasty warm inside whilst watching the elements raging outwith our picture windows.

For those unfamiliar with such things the trick – incidentally – with heat pumps (which work in a manner similar to air-conditioning) is to maintain as close as is possible the same temperature at all times. It is considerably more efficient (and cost effective) to run the system constantly than to allow the temperature to drop and for the hear pump then to have to struggle to raise it again. Though this may seem counter-intuitive to those who are familiar with the sort of central heating systems more commonly found in the UK, one rapidly gets used to the idea.

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2 comments

  1. Diana Studer’s avatar

    Our Swiss friends have recently installed a heat pump. Very happy with it.

    Happy New Year!

  2. admin’s avatar

    Hello Diana

    Happy New Year to you also.

    A heat pump works very well in a reasonably temperate environment such as that of the west coast of Canada. In the interior – where the maximum/minimum and day/night temperature ranges are considerably wider – such systems struggle to adapt quickly enough to the changes, and can be particularly non-cost-effective!

    Best wishes

    Andy

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