Well following almost a full month of blazing hot, dry and sunny July weather, and then a generally warm and sunny August it seems the UK has had a traditional summer. A heat wave indeed during July.
That has been very good for the solar PV electricity we are generating from the house and the cottage, and on the house we have had more hot water than we knew what to do with. I started watching the record temperatures in the heat store tank with a little apprehension, the bulk of the tank was getting to around 05 deg C. I even got out the manuals to know what happens if it gets hotter and hotter (but it seems safety design always saves the day).
The more visual impact of this hot dry weather was the Mendips turning a distinct gold as the grasslands dried out to a brown that I remember always seeing in Northern California during the summer. See the picture. Well the recent rain, has helped it return to green-ish but the ground remains very dry and Mary has been using every last drop of our many 1000's of litres of harvested rainwater to keep the veg happy (if a little wilty).
That has been very good for the solar PV electricity we are generating from the house and the cottage, and on the house we have had more hot water than we knew what to do with. I started watching the record temperatures in the heat store tank with a little apprehension, the bulk of the tank was getting to around 05 deg C. I even got out the manuals to know what happens if it gets hotter and hotter (but it seems safety design always saves the day).
The more visual impact of this hot dry weather was the Mendips turning a distinct gold as the grasslands dried out to a brown that I remember always seeing in Northern California during the summer. See the picture. Well the recent rain, has helped it return to green-ish but the ground remains very dry and Mary has been using every last drop of our many 1000's of litres of harvested rainwater to keep the veg happy (if a little wilty).
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