So, you're interested in saving money, doing your bit for the planet and harnessing some free energy? Solar panels are the most common and affordable form of alternative energy available in Ireland.
Solar Panels have a quick payback, are free of running costs and will greatly reduce your homes energy bills. Some people think the only benefit from solar panels is direct financial saving from the fuel saved.
Finances aside; it will reduce the carbon emissions from your home, will ensure you always have hot water on tap, will speed up dishwasher/washing machine cycles if they have a hot feed, as the appliances will use the available hot water and it will raise your BER which can only help matters when it comes to selling the house.
Don't forget convenience also. It's nice to always have hot water on tap when required!
This Month's Special Offer:
* SOLAR HOT WATER PANELS (Next 50 Enquiries)
Grant Value For Solar Hot Water
Here is a list of some of the benefits you get, when you install a solar system with us:
Solar panels operate on the principal, that black surfaces attract heat from the sun. Just like the roof of a black car on a sunny day. The heat is generated in the solar panel, and must be transferred to the hot water cylinder, where it can be used. It is transferred from the panel, to the cylinder with the use of a small pump and insulated pipework.
The pumps we use are low noise and low energy consumption. The pipe comes already insulated from the factory. When the heat reaches the hot water cylinder, we send it through a heat exchanger inside the cylinder. This causes the water inside to heat up, without costing you any money.
There are two different types of solar panels on the market. Read below for info on these.
There are two types of solar collectors available. Evacuated tube and flat plate panels.
Evacuated tube solar panels offer higher efficiencies as they have little or no heat loss. Evacuated tubes have benefits over flat plate panels that are desirable for the Irish climate. There is a never ending debate over which is better, which works best, which last longer, which looks better and so on...Simply put, evacuated tube solar panels out preform flat panels in cloudy or cooler climates. That's the bit most people forget to add onto that statement. It's important to understand it too. Flat plate panels have high thermal losses (they lose heat to the outside air). Evacuated tubes are like thermos flasks and don't lose any heat. Also, because the tube is round, it always has the maximum possible area facing the sun. Evacuated tube panels are, on average 20% more efficient than flat plate panels in Ireland. Here is the proof.
Flat plate panels on the other hand, expose their full face area for a short period of time when the sun is directly overhead. This is because they are, as their name suggests, flat. So when the sun is overhead, they work well, but by 4pm in the afternoon when the sun is facing the side of the flat surface, it produce less energy. When comparing panels, make sure not to only compare "peak output" and to compare the output over the entire day. The two types of solar panels may take in the exact same amount of energy, but the flat panel will lose some of it's energy to the air, before it's able to transfer it to the water. On a sunny day, this doesn't matter, as the panel will lose heat, but it will be replaced immediately by the sun. On an average Irish day, it really does matter as the air temperature might be 10c so the panel at 70 c will lose lots of heat to the outside air.
The south polar base station heats it water by solar panels, as flat plates don't work well in cooler, less sunny climates. We installed solar panels for Siemens Diagnostics in Swords. These guys did their homework and decided on Kingspan Thermomax solar panels. NASA installed evacuated tubes a few years ago. The Pentagon, UCD, Siemens and St. James Hospital to name but a few, all have evacuated tubes installed on their premises. Those clients do their research and purchase the panels that will give them the best performance, without compromise. We actually installed the system for Siemens Ireland in 2011.