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Solar Energy for a cost effective renewable energy solution for your home.

Solar energy is free, clean and safe. It is environmentally friendly and produces no waste or pollution. Using solar energy enables you to reduce your energy bills, provides your family with an abundance of hot water and your carbon footprint as well.
Grants are available through Government schemes (SEAI) - The Sei 'greener homes scheme phase 3'.
Many self builders make the choice for a solar panel system when designing a new home for their family as the plus points described above make it a tried and tested renewable energy source that can add value to a property. The costs involved in the technology have come down considrably in recent years and retro fitting a solar collector to nearly any property type is now possible. Building energy regulations now in place ( BER ) will show exactally how energy efficient your home is with a renewable energy source like a solar panel installed - putting the benefits gained throught the feature on a property of a solar panel up there with double glazing, insulation or solar gain ( natural light ).

The sun radiates enormous amounts of energy to the earth. In Ireland we receive, on average per year, as much as 60% of that received on the equator. This radiation is similar to the output of 1,000 power stations. Why not take advantage of this free abundant power source to arrive home after your days work to a full tank of hot water - no waiting to heat the tank and no switches to flick that cost on your energy bills*

SOLAR PANELS - THE BASICS -

Solar panels or collectors (either tubes or flat plates) are fitted to your roof and piped directly into a heat transfer system, supplying hot water to your hot water cylinder. The cylinder stores water that is heated during the day and keeps it warm for later use.
The reason it works so well in our climate is that the panels collect sun LIGHT, not heat, so even on cloudy days you will have hot water in your tank.

How it works
Solar collectors can provide 50% of the annual hot water demand of a typical home, depending on the orientation, size, mounted angle and efficiency of the collector.
The most common application is for water heating, and correctly matched solar panel system can provide about 80% of hot water needs in summer and 20% in winter (when there is less sun light is available) for your family.
The solar water system needs to be backed up with a conventional heat source to provide the remainder of the hot water needs such as an heat pump, existing electric immersion or your current heating system - any of which are tied into your hot water storage cylinder.

Installation in the Home
Solar water heating systems for homes have two main parts: a solar collector and a hot water storage cylinder. Ideally, panels need to face directly south. However, a good output can still be achieved between south east and south west. A range of fixing kits are available and solutions for a solar panel installation can be found for 99% of homes.

Collectors

Typically there are two types of solar collectors or solar panels that create energy in the form of hot water supply to your home.
- Flat plate [1]
A flat-plate collector (a thin, flat, rectangular box with a transparent - glazed cover) is mounted on the roof, facing the sun. The sun heats an absorber plate (usually a black metal plate) in the collector which, in turn, heats the fluid running through pipes within the collector.

Flat plate solar systems are less efficient at creating hot water supply to your hot water storage tank than the evacuated tube type so a larger collector area would be required depending on the demand. Improvements in flat plate technology have brought prices down for these solar collectors while maximizing the output temperatures for a budget price. A highly rugged and dependable panel, these solar collectors have been placed on roofs of buildings across Europe for more than 40 years.

- Evacuated tube or vacuum tube solar collectors [2]
Evacuated tube collectors (sometimes called vacuum collectors) consist of an array of evacuated glass tubes each containing an absorber tube, which collects solar energy and transfers it to a heat transfer fluid. Each solar collector consists of a highly insulated manifold and a row of solar tubes.

During the manufacturing process, air is evacuated from the space between the two tubes, forming a vacuum. This vacuum provides perfect insulation greatly reducing heat loss from the system because there is no air to conduct the heat away, therefore protecting the system from outside influences such as cold and windy weather or high humidity.
The vacuum technology ensures the most effective transfer of energy into heat, giving extra performance in comparison to traditional flat plate collectors and providing heat not only on warm, sunny days, but also in cooler, windy or humid conditions.

- Hot water
The heat absorbed by the collectors is then transferred to the hot water storage cylinder through a number of heat exchangers. To move the heated fluid between the collector and the storage cylinder, a solar control / pump station uses an electrical pump to circulate the heated fluid to a twin coil storage cylinder. Twin coil hot water storage tanks (pre-insulated copper or steel) are supplied as part of the system.
A typical installation will take 2-3 days and the variety of systems we stock are sold as packages. Installed by SEI approved local plumbing contractors - and with all components required for a 'turn key' solution to free hot water :
Twin coil hot water storage cylinder
Expansion vessel station & controller ancillary pipe work and fittings

Alternatively we can assess the parts required for your property / system and these can be sold separatly and integrated with existing fixtures.

Our surveyors & engineers will provide a quotation based on your family's requirements and the outputs you'll get in real world conditions. All factors will be taken in to consideration when helping you choose the product and solar panel that will best meet you expectations - and provide achievable savings on your current fuel bills.