CULTIVATIONTIPS DLV PLANT MUSHROOMS A window on progress
Quickly checking progress in a several rooms is always easier said than done. Installing windows looking into the rooms in the corridor allows you to see if fi lling or ruffl ing have already been fi nished without opening the doors- with all the inherent risks of infection. The same applies to checking whether the sprayers are working properly – at least, switching on and off - without opening the doors. And you can estimate the progress of harvesting, and see which grades are being picked.
The risk of pickers entering the wrong room is also reduced, as once the lights have been switched on, they can see at once whether the time is right to start picking or not. Speaking of lights, a window allows you to check whether the lights have been switched off again. This avoids all the lights being forgotten at the end of the day – that helps save energy.
By Erik Polman, DLV Plant Mushrooms
e.polman@dlvplant.nl
Visitors on a brief tour can be shown an impression of the activities without the risk of introducing infections, and without interrupting the people at work in the rooms. Do make sure that after spraying crop protection agents you display a ‘No Entry’ sign on the door’. After all, this is one thing you can’t see through the window.
The advantages of renewable energy
The - preliminary- results of the various projects were presented at the recently organised Knowledge Day (see article elsewhere in this publication). One of the subjects discussed was energy.
Provisional project results and general calculations indicate that the big energy consumers are the cooling unit and the steam boiler (if cook out is done, that is), and that major savings on energy are possible if PV solar panels and wood-fuelled boilers are used. The beauty of this technology is that no special modifi cations are required on the farm, so they can easily be applied on each site. Obviously, for the solar panels to be eff ective, the roof orientation must be suitable. Another advantage of this technology is that it falls into the ‘renewable energy’ category, and as such is eligible for funding in the context of the Dutch SDE programme (Encouraging Sustainable Energy Production). SDE is an operating grant for sustainably produced and useful energy use, i.e. all the kWh generated by the PV panels and the useful energy from the wood-burner. In addition, investments in renewable energy can also be eligible for the Energy Investment Allowance.
By Jan Gielen, DLV Plant Mushrooms Manager / Specialist Klimaat & Energie
j.gielen@
dlvplant.nl
Photos: DLV
Based on the roof surface area that can be utilised for PV panels, practical trials have shown that it is possible to generate 25-35 % of the energy required for on-site use. The electricity generated by the PV panels parallels the extra power required by the cooling units in summer. If the farm has a cooling unit with a heat recovery system (or a heat pump), the heat produced by the cooling unit can be recovered and used in a low-temperature heating circuit. As well as being used for (extra) heating, the new models of wood-burners can also generate steam, doing away with the need for a gas connection.
The currently available information on energy saving and sustainable technical developments is being presented to growers in a series of eight articles and tips. This project has been commissioned and funded by the Steering Committee Clean & Effi cient Mushroom Growing (LTO Vakgroep Paddenstoelen, PT, Ministry of Economic Aff airs,
RVO.nl and mushroom growers). This is the seventh tip in the series.
38 MUSHROOM BUSINESS
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