Mind the biogas service gap
2 Sep 2010
Biogas plant operators in the UK should be wary of the lack of back-up services for much of the equipment being specified, according to pumps manufacturer Landia. This, it said, can be a particular problem for those investing in a complete plant, where pumps and mixers are included as part of the package.
Buyers should assess the potential costs and problems of having to wait weeks for spares, or paying premiums for temporary replacements, said Hugh Vaughan, UK and Eire director, Landia.
“Downtime means no [energy] being generated and no money,” said Vaughan, adding that many pumps and mixers out there just aren’t up to the job.
“Some forms of feedstock inevitably cause breakdowns to inadequate equipment that’s been incorrectly specified by some so-called ’biogas consultant’,” he commented.
Landia cites how an end-user recently experienced the failure of two effluent pumps in quick succession - only to be told by the supplier that the parts needed for repair would take at least six weeks to arrive. It had to bring in two tankers per day to remove the high solids content waste - at a cost of well over £600 per load.
Landia installed a 5.5kW MPTK cutter pump with external knife system to effectively handle the waste. As well as designing-in the interface for retrofit to the existing pumping system, it also fitted a submersible well pump for the client to keep an associated dry-well clear of water.
