Landhotel Untere Kapfenhardter Mühle | D-75399 Unterreichenbach | Zu den Mühlen 5 | Tel. (+49) 07235-9320-0 | Fax (+49) 07235-7180 | info@untere-kapfenhardter-muehle.de

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,,s’Wasser darf net ungenutzt d’Bach nalaufe’’ Meaning in High-German: Water cannot be wasted by running down the stream unused! Since generations, this primary instinct is part of every miller’s daily life.Without water the miller was not able to start his waterwheel and hence not grind his grain. Allthough this knowledge is ancient, it is more than ever current in nowaday times.

Following this primary instinct we, from the Lower Kapfenhardter Mühle, have ever since planned and realized our energy concept involving sustainablility and environmental protection. The oldest energy carrier in the Lower Kapfenhardter Mühle is its wooden waterwheel with a diameter of 22 feet. To supply our turbines with a higher water flow, we have renounced the use of the waterwheel as an energy carrier, as the degree of efficiency is about 70 % and with a turbine it is 90%.

The water flows from the Reichenbach (stream) through an automatic rake purifier into the weir. The purifier seperates the water from coarse objects, for example, stones, wood, leaves etc. inorder to avoid the damaging of the waterwheel and turbines.

Our two in-house turbines navigate a part of the electricity, which we require in the mill and our hotel. The oldest turbine (Family Ossberger-built in 1930) is producing a maximum of 5 KW/h and is located directly behind the waterwheel in the main building. In the year 1992, the country Baden-Württemberg released a country furtherance program for small power plants. Through this developement, we installed another turbine with hillside situation, about 200 meters away from the hotel, producing a maximum of 25 KW/h.

In 1979 we installed a plate evaporator into the outlet area of the old turbine, inorder to detract heat energy up to 4 degrees celcius from the water. Through two heat pumps a maximum heat of 50 degrees celcius is reached in the housing area.

 

After our property got seized by a high-water in 1999 (19.07.) and all our facilities and technical equipement in the lower ground level got damaged or even became useless, we had to completely invest anew. One of our investments was the installation of a solid-waste incinerator, which in contrast to the old wood-incinerator, has a bigger opening inorder to burn compact wood pieces. In winter we heat with wood aswell, as we try to use our oil-fired central heating as seldom as possible.

Solid waste incinerator

Starting in the year 2004 we made a big step towards alternative energy generation or energy supply. In the basement of our flourmill we have installed two rape oil compacters inorder to produce cold-pressed rape oil and rape cake. To enable the purity of our rape oil, we have installed four filter mechanisms. These are candle filters, bag filters and chamber filters.

The rape-oil is being used as cooking oil aswell as fuel for diesel vehicles and block heat and power plants.
The rape-cake; a byproduct of the pressing process - is being sold to farmers in the region as an albuminous animal feed.

For further marketing of our rape oil we established a filling station on the property of the Unteren Kapfenhardter Mühle.

Furthermore, we provide a fillingstation in Calw. This fillingstation is part of a public project of the Agenda 21. It got awarded with the environmental sponsorship award of the country Baden-Württemberg by environment minister Tanja Gönner.

To constantly keep improving the energy balance in the Unteren Kapfenhardter Mühle, we installed a block heat and power plant, therefore, we have a so called power-heat-coupling. Initiated by a compression ignition engine, running with rape oil, electricity is produced and on the other hand a heat output of about 41 KW/h is enabled.

With the created heat, we provide for our hotel. From may until september we don’t use any other energy source for heat production except for the block heat and power plant. The produced electricity amount directly gets fed into the electricity network, adhereing to the act on the scale of electricity to the grid of 1999, concerning alternative energies. The use of rape-oil is CO2 neutral, as during combustion arising Co2 amounts are completely absorbed by plants in the nature.

Block heat and power plant

In our gastronomy area we have linked all our coldstorage and deep freeze constructions with a waste heat recovery station. On the one hand to minimize the energy consumption of the cooling devices, hence to enhance their life span and on the other hand, to decrease the heating of the basement floors.

The springs close to our property, provide oxygen-rich spring water for our troutponds, where we raise our rainbow and salmon trout.

Our facilities for hydropathic treatment, with arm and foot baths, are also being provided by subsequently running springwater.