Greenhouse and Nursery - Evaluating Alternative Fuels

Many greenhouse and nursery growers are interested in exploring alternative fuel sources and alternative heating systems. Although propane prices are reasonable now, the price spike in 2008 showed what could happen if world demand for natural gas increases again as we come out of recession. It is often challenging to evaluate alternative heating systems. Below are some tables comparing fuel sources and efficiencies from Auburn University. While the information came from the poultry industry, it is very applicable to greenhouse heating.

Tables from the Auburn poultry newsletter. See the link below.

Greenhouse growers can learn a lot from the poultry industry and visa versa. The following are two good articles on evaluating alternative heating systems for poultry houses that can also be used by greenhouse growers.
Newsletter 61 - Alternate Fuel Systems Simple Economics from Auburn University
http://www.aces.edu/poultryventilation/documents/Nwsltr-61AlternativeFuels.pdf

Biomass Heating Systems...Do They Make Economic Sense? from the University of Georgia
http://poultryventilation.engr.uga.edu/tips/2009/vol21n11.pdf