The dairy energy efficiency webinar kicked off the QBEST energy series with some good advice about cost saving energy opportunities at dairies.

Six QBEST Energy Audits have been done at Queensland Dairy farms in 2024. Ryan Dillon from Webster’s Group has conducted a number of on-farm energy efficiency audits during QBEST and in other QFF Energy Audit programs.

In this webinar, Ryan gives a summary of some key findings of some recent Dairy energy efficiency audits.

The auditor used different devices to develop a good understanding of energy use patterns in the dairies and identify low-cost energy efficiency opportunities. These included run-time counters and thermal imaging.

• Run-time counters attach temporarily to motors and record in detail when the motors are operating. Using run time sensors, the auditor was able to identify that a small bore pump was turning on every 30 seconds due to a leak in the supply pipework.
• Thermal imaging cameras use infrared sensors to allow the auditor to see hot and cold in real time so it’s possible to see whether heat or cool is being lost from systems.

Thermal Imaging was used to show that the placement of refrigeration condensers under a low roof was causing re-circulation of hot air and effectively increasing the ambient temperature for the equipment by over 10 degrees. By raising the roof to improve airflow, the farm would save $3,200 per year in energy costs.

The audit also recommended how dividing a comfort shed’s ventilation fan layout into zones with separate switches and turning them off during milking, would enable the farm to use fans only in areas of the shed where the cattle are, rather than operating all the fans in the shed. This upgrade could save around $11,500 in electricity costs.

Prior to the energy audit, one of the farms had paid a deposit for a 200kW Solar PV system at a cost of $330,000 which would deliver estimated energy cost savings of around $31,000 per year. The detailed assessment identified a number of energy efficiency opportunities for the site and recommended a 100kW Solar PV system. The efficiencies and smaller PV system would cost an estimated $200,500 and result in energy savings of nearly $47,000 per year.

QFF delivered Type 2 and 3 energy audits at 35 large electricity users throughout Queensland as part of the The Queensland Business Energy Savers Transformation (QBEST) initiative. QFF delivered the QBEST Program with funding from the Queensland Government.

There are over 100 energy efficiency case studies from recent energy audits on the ag energy hub Ag Energy Hub - An energy resource hub for Queensland farmers and landholders.