Biomass

Windhager log, pellet and wood chip boilers — designed into the whole system.

Biomass is the right answer in the right place — rural properties with a fuel source on hand, off-gas sites with high winter demand, community buildings where automatic operation matters. Windhager UK is our preferred manufacturer and the technology we know best.

What we install

Three boiler types, sized to the property.

Log gasification. Twin-stage combustion that fully gasifies the wood for very high efficiency — typical for rural properties with a long-standing log supply, or owners who prefer the hands-on element of a daily fire-up. Often paired with a thermal store so the boiler runs hard for a short window and the store carries the house through the rest of the day.

Pellet. Fully automatic — the boiler feeds itself from a hopper. Best fit for owners who want renewable heat without the daily input log boilers ask for, and for community / commercial sites where automatic operation is a hard requirement.

Wood chip. Larger commercial and agricultural scale. Fuel cost can be lowest of the three where chip supply is local, but the plant room footprint, fuel storage and delivery logistics all need designing in from the start.

How biomass fits the system

We routinely combine biomass with other technologies.

Biomass works best as part of a designed system. A pellet or log boiler paired with solar PV and battery covers a property's heat and electrical demand year-round; solar thermal pairs naturally too, taking over the summer hot-water load so the boiler can rest entirely between heating seasons. Pairing biomass with an air source heat pump gives a hybrid set-up where the heat pump handles shoulder-season demand efficiently and the biomass takes over for the cold weeks — with the control system switching between them automatically.

Our Fortrose case study is the live example: a Windhager log gasification boiler installed first, then a year later an air source heat pump bolted into the existing Windhager MES control manifold via direct collaboration with Windhager UK. Automatic switchover. Remote access. One control story.

A Windhager pellet boiler and buffer tank installed in a customer's plant room

Costs & grants

Funding routes, explained.

Biomass costs vary widely with boiler type, fuel store size and the plant room work needed. Domestic log/pellet installs typically sit in the mid-five to low-six figure range; commercial wood-chip projects are quoted per project. Every survey lays the numbers out clearly before you commit.

On the funding side: Home Energy Scotland covers domestic biomass via its renewable heat loan; commercial / community projects often qualify under CARES, the SME Loan + Cashback, or Public Sector Energy Efficiency Loans. We coordinate the technical documentation those bids need.

Get in touch

Tell us about your project.

We'll be in touch within one working day. No call-out fee, no obligation.

Prefer to talk? Call 01463 231 423 or email info@mcinnesgroup.co.uk.