Flogas helps provide the solution to the Ferris' hot water needs

Billy and Harry used three electric immersion heaters to heat hot water on the farm. But with plans to increase the herd size to 100 and hopefully add additional milking capacity over the next few years, they were increasingly concerned that the existing electric-based hot water system would not be able to cope with the increased demand for heating water to wash down the milking parlour and storage tank.

Ultimately, a reliable hot water supply is vital for the effective cleaning of milk lines and storage tanks as well as controlling the Bactocount of the milk produced. With very low Bactoscan scores on the farm at the minute, Billy and Harry wanted to ensure their milk quality wasn’t compromised with expansion.

The Flogas Solution

Having spoken to Tankcare and Flogas at the Balmoral Show and learnt about Flogas’ on-demand Hot Water solutions for the dairy market, a farm visit was arranged with local Flogas area sales executive, Craig Johnston.

The farm survey revealed that with three immersion heaters running every other night to heat hot water and one of them running every night, the potential was there to offer a solution that would both save money while being able to cope with future expansion plans.

The solution was simple. A Greenspring Water heater from Worcester Bosch was installed at the farm and then piped to a Flogas LPG tank. The new heating system provides on demand hot water at whatever temperature is required, determined by an easy to use temperature controller that allows the water to be heated from anywhere between 37oC to 84oC. The water heater is designed to heat up to a maximum of 84oC, effectively killing any bacteria.

With the new hot water system installed, Billy and Harry continue with two hot washes per day. However, they now only need to use detergent every other day after the morning milking to maintain their low TBC count. Therefore, as well as savings on electric, they have also cut their usage of detergent-steriliser.

Additional savings are made through an innovative heat recovery system which draws heat from the milk produced to pre-heat the water entering the Greenspring Water heater. With the water entering the Greenspring Water Heater already anywhere between 25oC and 45oC depending on the time of the day and when milking has occurred, the heater uses less energy to bring the water up to temperature.

Finally, while one heater can produce up to 140 litres of hot water in 10 minutes, the Greenspring Water heater can be installed in multiple cascades of up to 12 units to deliver higher volumes of hot water where required. So, when Billy and Harry are ready to expand the herd and milking points, another heater can simply be added to the system to cope with any increased hot water demand.

Harry Ferris commented: “We are very pleased with the new system - our Bactoscan figures remain very low and the system is a lot more efficient as we aren’t heating hot water that we don’t need. Plus, the system can be easily expanded to meet the growing demands of our farm.”

Want to find out more?

If your current system is not providing you with the level of service you require and contributing to high bills, call Tankcare on 028 9037 2099 for your free on-site survey and quotation for a new system tailored to your farm. They will analyse your existing energy costs and outline the savings and benefits you’ll enjoy by converting to Flogas LPG.

Results

On demand hot water FAST – up to 140 litres of hot water at 84°C in ten minutes.

Increased control over water temperatures – from 37°C to 84°C via a controller.

Increased efficiency and significantly reduced running costs.

No hot water storage costs throughout the day and night.

Reduced carbon footprint and full control of the amount of hot water that is used.