iiinova — where your digital self keeps evolving

Alex Braun @elbraunio.bsky.social · 18/02/2026

Is there any data on the increase in chemicals used to rear thay massive number of chickens we consume? Would be interesting to understand any link between this and the health conditions we experience today.

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Nick Pettigrew @nick-pettigrew.bsky.social · 11/02/2026

For anyone unsure whether Jim Ratcliffe saying the UK has been 'colonised' by immigrants in that interview was being a full-on racist, he goes on to imply that they all scrounge benefits without looking for work. *This* Jim Ratcliffe, in case you were wondering:

Jim Ratcliffe has had £70m of state money in the last four years, which would pay for a lot of fictitious dole scroungers.

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LilGemGem @lilgemgem.bsky.social · 07/02/2026

This amused me greatly 😂 especially the fox painting 😂 Thank yoooo @cheekybudgie.bsky.social

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Alex Braun @elbraunio.bsky.social · 05/02/2026

And the US chose to "Drill baby, drill"!

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Jan Rosenow @janrosenow.bsky.social · 27/01/2026

Big moment for Europe: in December, fully electric cars outsold petrol-only cars in the EU for the first time. This shows that clear, consistent policy works. Which is exactly why backtracking now would be a mistake. Rolling back targets or creating uncertainty would slow investment and innovation.

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Alex Braun @elbraunio.bsky.social · 26/01/2026

Hey Glyn I watched your install video. Great work. Wish I'd gone for a low modulation machine! I heard your wife joke about a hot tub. My wife made a similar suggestion but I was always uncomfortable with the energy use so this is what I did ... youtube.com/shorts/AghPF...

youtube.com

Hot tub enclosure - fully insulated with ufh & automatic lid. #hottubs #hottubcoverlifter #heatpump

YouTube video by Alex Braun

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The Green Party of England & Wales @greenparty.org.uk · 19/01/2026

In 2025, billionaire wealth grew 3x faster than the average of the previous five years, while public services crumbled and living costs soared. This is a political choice- putting the richest first. We are the only party demanding a wealth tax to reverse this extreme inequality.

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Zack Polanski @zackpolanski.bsky.social · 18/12/2025

This is obscene. Why can't other politicians say that? The 25 richest families are collectively $358.7 billion richer than a year ago, with a combined fortune totaling $2.9 trillion.

Worlds richest families have never been richer - Walton's lead with net worth of $513bn

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Alex Braun @elbraunio.bsky.social · 15/12/2025

Thanks for that. Great to have clarification. I will say though that so far I have relied only on the Octopus API indicating that 'off peak energy is on' and it's consistently triggered the battery charge. Really appreciate your videos. Super helpful and easy to follow for a novice.

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Alex Braun @elbraunio.bsky.social · 12/12/2025

Charge state to the automation to go belt and braces however surely if the API indicates that off peak rates apply then this is what you should be charged? I've asked octopus to confirm but as yet they have been unable to. Do you have any thoughts?

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Alex Braun @elbraunio.bsky.social · 12/12/2025

Can I ask a question? I'm running my own version of this automation but I've set the trigger to charge my batteries based on when the Octopus API indicates off peak energy only. However it seems that this can trigger even at times when the vehicle isn't charging. I know I could add the vehicle

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Glyn Hudson @glynhudson.bsky.social · 19/06/2025

We now have a map view on heatpumpmonitor.org/map 🥳 📌 Find some of the best heat pump installers in your area, based on real world performance data 🌎 Explore examples of real-world heat pump performance data in many countries worldwide @openenergymon.bsky.social

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Jan Rosenow @janrosenow.bsky.social · 11/06/2025

Finally! Nearly a quarter of new UK homes now have heat pumps—big progress since we highlighted the fossil fuel problem with Ben Webster at openDemocracy in 2022. Next step: fully implement the Future Homes Standard and end fossil fuels in new builds.

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Anna Clarke @annaclarke.bsky.social · 04/06/2025

Good article here on how Scandinavian countries have embraced heat pumps moving almost entirely off fossil fuel heating. In short: - grants - lower electricity price - carbon tax making other options expensive - a ban on fossil fuel heating. If this worked for them, it could work in the UK too.

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Chris Baraniuk @handle.invalid · 08/05/2025

NEW: A UK firm intends to start making this new form of "thin" triple glazing with a 0.5mm centre pane of super strong glass developed by Corning. It could let people to swap out their double glazing for triple glazing - without changing their window frames. www.thereengineer.pro/p/can-this-t...

thereengineer.pro

Can this tech solve triple glazing's biggest problems?

Triple glazing doesn't have to be excessively heavy and thick

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Jan Rosenow @janrosenow.bsky.social · 29/04/2025

If Western nations want to keep pace with China in the clean energy race, many well-meaning regulations and legacy approval processes will need to be streamlined or reimagined. Speed and scale are critical. Graphic by Insider.

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Alex Braun @elbraunio.bsky.social · 27/04/2025

My gut feeling is to check the system pressure and clean the strainer. Check there's no debris build up around the outlet and inlet and jobs a goodun.

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Alex Braun @elbraunio.bsky.social · 25/04/2025

If they want to start a discussion about how to stop global child labour then please, let's have that. But don't use it only as an argument in one political subject which just happens to be their latest tool to appeal to Reform voters.

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Alex Braun @elbraunio.bsky.social · 25/04/2025

Oh crikey. Now they've found a new angle on why to avoid net zero - child labour! Would be interesting to see some stats but really, do we have to do this silly dance where they make up an argument and 'we' have to do loads of work to disprove it.

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Jan Rosenow @janrosenow.bsky.social · 16/04/2025

🚗💨 EVs are holding up better than combustion cars, says ADAC. In 2024, ICE cars aged 2–4 years were 2.5x more likely to break down than EVs. EVs on the road ↑ 97% EV breakdowns ↑ only 46%

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Jan Rosenow @janrosenow.bsky.social · 02/04/2025

It's a myth that "hydrogen combustion produces only water vapour". Burning hydrogen results in harmful NOx emissions. In urban areas this becomes the dominant source of NOx pollution if we switched to hydrogen for heating. Shocking to see H2Heat project financed by the EU peddling such untruths 👇

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Alex Braun @elbraunio.bsky.social · 01/04/2025

The question I still haven't answered is - what to do with the old boiler? Recycle (scrap) or resell?

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Alex Braun @elbraunio.bsky.social · 01/04/2025

People often take the view of 'waiting until the boiler packs in' but this demonstrates that the best time to swap is when it's financially and practically convenient for the end user. Plus, you'll maximise the savings the sooner you do it.

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Jan Rosenow @janrosenow.bsky.social · 31/03/2025

Does it make sense to rip out a new gas boiler and replace it with a heat pump? From carbon perspective yes: Replacing a new gas boiler with a heat pump in the UK cuts emissions by 77-86%. This includes embodied emissions from manufacturing. A heat pump offset its embodied carbon after 13 months.

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Alex Braun @elbraunio.bsky.social · 23/03/2025

It would be interesting to know (but incredibly hard to find out) how much increased gas prices impacted the uptake in renewable technologies. It feels like for many, the figures suddenly began to stack up.

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Robert Llewellyn @bobbyllew.bsky.social · 19/03/2025

This, it needs repeating aggressively and repeatedly. Gas drove up electricity prices in UK, not renewables or wretched Net Zero.

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Timbones @timbones.bsky.social · 20/03/2025

Renew your EV vehicle tax before next month, while it's still free.

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Alex Braun @elbraunio.bsky.social · 18/03/2025

It's insane that politicians will actively try to spoil progressive developments which will benefit the whole world just for the sake of a bit of political gain. Pathetic. When will we embrace a political system which seeks to benefit the masses rather than just tribal point scoring?

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Jan Rosenow @janrosenow.bsky.social · 15/03/2025

Electrification is efficiency. With clean electricity, we cut major inefficiencies, lowering overall energy demand in a decarbonized world. 🔗 sustainabilitybynumbers.com/p/electrification-energy-efficiency

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Alex Braun @elbraunio.bsky.social · 14/03/2025

This is remarkable. The change in attitude from the media in the last 6 months is night and day. Hopefully we'll see the same sort of change with heat pumps soon.

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Alex Braun @elbraunio.bsky.social · 14/03/2025

Hi Micheal. The link doesn't work so I can't see the article to evaluate further. However I thought you may like to know that I've made significant savings by moving to Tomato energy. 5p over night with two half peak periods throughout the day. Great for EV and a heat pump

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Alex Braun @elbraunio.bsky.social · 12/03/2025

This is fantastic news! The problem is if we tell too many people, they may assume it's job done and down tools!

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Alex Braun @elbraunio.bsky.social · 08/03/2025

I suppose it depends how a homeowner heats their house with a gas boiler beforehand. If their use of gas has been economical then I would suggest that they will find a significant increase in their heat usage with a heat pump. I should add. I've cut my heating bills in half.

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Alex Braun @elbraunio.bsky.social · 08/03/2025

Heating water with a cylinder rather than a combi will impact it. I was less comfortable during the day with the gas and there was some log burner use which has now been removed. Perhaps this isn't common for everyone but I think it's worth factoring in for some people.

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Alex Braun @elbraunio.bsky.social · 08/03/2025

Complete nonsense is probably a little harsh. It's what the figures are when comparing my heat meter with billed gas readings. Now I do agree there's some nuance which produces these figures.... The external weather conditions during the two periods were different with this year being colder.

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Alex Braun @elbraunio.bsky.social · 08/03/2025

Brilliant. I shall take a read. Out of interest I looked further back at my figures... Dec 23 to Jan 24 =100% more with hp Dec 22 to Jan 23 = 30% more with hp. Hard to compare apples with apples but I think there's definitely an increase in heat used with a heat pump.

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Alex Braun @elbraunio.bsky.social · 08/03/2025

Additional to comfort improvement there is also the impact of a colder winter here during the same period and hot water heating via cylinder storage compared direct water heating via a combi boiler (my figures include water heating).

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Alex Braun @elbraunio.bsky.social · 08/03/2025

Out of interest, do you have figures on your own home in terms of additional heating?

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Alex Braun @elbraunio.bsky.social · 08/03/2025

There's no doubt my home is far more comfortable all of the time but we were by no means cold before. I do wonder if cost estimates for heat pumps need to include an additional 'comfort uplift' factor. I think it's important to project the reality to new adopters to prevent future disappointment.

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Alex Braun @elbraunio.bsky.social · 08/03/2025

Love the analysis. I do wonder if we need to discuss the overlooked impact of the continuous nature of heat pump heating compared to typical 'on/off' nature of gas heating. I operated my gas boiler efficiently and so comparing like for like months I end up using 50-100% more heat with my heat pump

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Alex Braun @elbraunio.bsky.social · 08/03/2025

As part of the @nestauk.bsky.social visit a heat pump scheme I have an appointment next week with a lady in a similar position. She has a new install but is disappointed at increased running cost. It's a shame that the installer hasn't supported her to achieve best efficiency and operating costs.

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Alex Braun @elbraunio.bsky.social · 08/03/2025

2 points from this. 1. I presume that heat pumps often lead to greater levels of heating power because of their always on nature (but increased comfort levels) 2. Finding a tariff to suit your needs is key

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Alex Braun @elbraunio.bsky.social · 08/03/2025

I've been monitoring my system recently. I've found that in February I'm providing 50% more heat into my home with a heat pump compared to a gas boiler. Therefore like for like costs result in £95 for gas v £110 for heat pump (based on 24p/kWh). However I have a home battery so it's actually £45

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