Undersoil Heating

Yes, you don’t use the electricity from the panels directly yourself. It just goes into the National Grid and you get a payout from the electric company based on how much energy you’ve generated.

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My old man has them on top of his bungalow and that’s exactly correct.You sort of sell the energy to the grid.It takes a while for them to become profitable after buying them though so I believe.

So it’s sort of like selling chips, Jeff didn’t do it so it’s probably not worth looking into now?

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Tight blighters at Salford aren’t they, could afford it with ease.

I thought Bradford might have it from their premier league days 20 years ago but guess they could’ve just uninstalled it given they had financial troubles.

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I wonder how much you could typically earn from that? And if it could offset your own electricity use?

Realistically there’s a good reason why as far as I know no clubs at our level have undersoil heating, it’s extremely cost ineffective.
From a purely financial perspective a 4g pitch would be the complete opposite, it would actually be a cash generator.
The old arguments regarding 4g pitches no longer apply, the new generation of pitches provide a superb playing surface , to the degree that teams are now allowed to play Champions League games on them , the only game not allowed is the final.
If the elite teams in Europe are allowed to use them, surely there is at least a discussion to be had .

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No thanks . Just needs games like our game today and most others not being called off at 9 in the morning. Sure it would have gone ahead after a 12 inspection. And would have been played not to many years ago .
Guess it’s the over cautious days we live in moan over :pensive:

One of the best posts on here for a long time.

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Since your grouting the bathroom one in my opinion.

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This is one thing the EFL get wrong, making promoted teams with artificial pitches rip them up and replace with grass.

The old arguments about them being in use 7 days a week is true and gives the clubs who have them a great asset for the benefit and growth of their club’s communities, which surely the EFL would want to encourage.

The very thing that enabled clubs like Sutton and Harrogate* to grow enough to be able to be promoted into the EFL then have to be ripped up. *Yes, I know Harrogate had some money threw at them but not anything like in a Salford/Wrexham way.

If they are good enough for the Champions League and International games then surely they are good enough for the EFL.

Small pedantic point here - there is no such thing as a 4G pitch (although I’m sure that there soon will be). The highest grade of artificial pitch, recognised and approved by FIFA, is 3rd Generation (3G). Within that 3G there are a few grades. For example, Rushall’s 3G pitch is FIFA Grade C. If they were to be promoted to the National League, it would have to be rolled up and replaced by the next highest grade B.

As Saddlerone 1 says - international games are now played on them. Indeed, England have played 2 or 3 games on 3G pitch (not friendlies, either).

I was, like AndyWTaylor, very sceptical about artificial pitches. The early ones (1st Generation), such as AstroTurf, were truly awful. However, having seen and used one (FieldTurf) at Rushall over the last 3 years, I have been converted to the cause!

Not only does it make sound economic sense, allowing much more use of it in all weathers, apart from snow, but it improves the quality of football played, without the lottery of mud or an uneven surface. The surface at Rushall, rated as the best artificial surface in the Midlands by the FA Inspector, has received praise from nearly everyone who has played on it. Putting it simply - if you can’t play football on that surface, you can’t play football!

Of course, those dinosaurs of the EFL, made Harrogate and Sutton United take up their recently-laid 3G pitches on being promoted to the EFL. I defy them to say that the new grass pitches at those 2 clubs are as good as, let alone better than, the 3G pitches that they replaced. Even the pitches in the Greedy Pigs (a.k.a. Premier) League are not pure grass. They are hybrid grass and synthetic.

EFL - wake up!!!

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You need to advance it more for me. Its still not the same. It bounces different, the ball runs differently.

Rushalls is a nice pitch and they do well from its investment as well so hats off, but no way should pro football be played on similar. In my opinion.

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Yes, latvian, the ball DOES run differently. It actually runs straight and true - something which is very difficult to achieve on the majority of grass pitches. All clubs with 3G pitches have to have them inspected annually (another excuse for the FA to rip off grass-roots football with exorbitant fees). The height of the bounce and the rolling path of the ball have to conform to very strict limits, so artificial pitches are very consistent unlike grass ones.

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Fair enough. Probably better than your average non league pitch in fairness.

Let’s just take away more of our football as we know it and all get artificial pitches . Fantastic :clap:t2::clap:t2::clap:t2:


Simon Inglis mentions under soil heating amongst other things in this report in August, 1990.

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That’s exactly why I don’t like them. All pitches will be exactly the same with no local quirks to help (or hinder) the home team who know them well. No longer will bottom of the pyramid teams bring the high and mighty down to their level in cup ties by making them play on a bumpy mud bath of a pitch instead of a bowls green.

Plus they hurt a lot more if you fall awkward on them, or go in for a good old fashioned slide tackle.

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PS And goodbye to the honourable occupation of groundsman.

Slide tackle is that even allowed anymore :joy: