Using solar power in your home
When it comes to generating usable power that does no harm to the environment, the answer is all around you - light. The sun provides the earth with vast amounts of energy each and every day, but we have failed to harness it properly for generations - but by doing so., we can not only help to save the environment, we can lower our electricity bills too.
There are two types of solar panel that could be installed in either commercial organisations or private homes, and both have different benefits and purposes - we will introduce them both to you here. They are solar thermal panels and photovoltaic panels.
Solar thermal panels
Put simply, solar thermal panels heat water. Panels attached to a house's roof collect heat from the sun and use it to warm water, which is stored in a hot water cylinder. You may need to heat the water further by using a conventional boiler or immersion heater during the winter months. The benefits of solar thermal panels are:
- Hot water all year round (although you may need to combine it with an immersion heater in the winter)
- Lower bills as part of the energy to heat your water comes from the sun - which is free!
- A smaller carbon footprint - solar energy is renewable, and does not damage the atmosphere.
You'll need space for the solar panels on your roof (around 5m and facing the sun for most of the day) and space for a larger (or extra) hot water cylinder. You may also need planning permission and should certainly check planning regulations before installing solar thermal panels, but if you can do all those things, then you have the potential to heat your own water and cut your hot water bills over the long term!
Photovoltaic panels
Photovoltaic panels have a little bit more to offer - they can actually generate electricity that can be used in your own home to drastically reduce your power bills, and you may even be able to sell any excess back to electricity suppliers.
The systems are not especially cheap, but many governments offer grants to those considering fitting photovoltaic panels, and depending on the amount of power the household uses and the amount that can be sold back to power suppliers, the system should pay for itself within 15 years or so - and that is assuming that the price of electricity remains as it is now! It can also add to the value of your home, and make it far more sellable to boot - even stars like Leonardo DeCaprio and Brad Pitt amongst recent converts to the system.
Lowering electricity bills
If you are interested in exploring the options that are available to you when it comes to using solar energy, then please drop us a line through the contact us page and we will be only too happy to discuss your needs further and offer independent advice that will hopefully see you lower the amount of carbon needed to power your house, AND save you some money in the process.