Energy Costs Hotting Up
04/07/08
Energy costs are hotting up, so the cost of heating our homes and providing hot water is also becoming more expensive. Sustainable energy is becoming a key issue and there are lots of changes we can all make to save cash and create a better world. Solar energy is one option that can do both, and Alternative Energy Ireland (AEI), a firm from Blessington, Co. Wicklow offers practical advice and great value solar heating products. Grant assistance is also available for solar panels bought through AEI and the firm offers advice on how to get started.
The first thing people generally say about solar energy in Ireland is “we don’t have enough sun”; this is far from the truth. The sun provides us with far more energy than we can possibly use. We have enough solar energy in Ireland to provide over 60% of your annual hot water usage. All this from a small, typically 2.5 m² solar collector mounted on your roof as shown in the picture. Payback can be as quick as 4-5 years, but fuel and electrical bills will drop immediately.
Ireland receives as much solar radiation as Paris. Householders and businesses can make significant saving on their fuel bills, and really reduce their “carbon footprint” by installing a solar water heating system. AEI solar collectors generate clean, carbon dioxide free heat for domestic hot water, swimming pools or commercial applications. They also extend your boiler life, protect the environment and enhance property value. Interest in these systems has increased 10 fold over the past 5 years in Ireland and this year alone enquiry’s have risen by 30% compared to last year. This is mainly driven by the new government grants, high energy prices, the Kyoto protocol, and peoples increasing awareness of our environment.
The most widely used solar water heating system consists of a solar collector, an electrical controller, a circulating pump unit and your hot water cylinder. The solar collector is normally installed on a south facing roof to optimise heat output. The system will heat your hot water cylinder to 80(°C) on a normal sunny April to September day. Outside these months, water temps will reach 50(°C), which is bathing temperature in a hot bath. Output is obviously lower on cloudy days, but we get enough radiation over the average year to heat approximately 70% of all your hot water needs for utilities, washing, bathing etc…During the summer months it can be 100% and this is when you do not use your boiler, which normally heats the cylinder.
Even though there is less sun available in the autumn and winter months, the system can still heat water hot enough to bath in. This is because the amount of output from your collector is not directly related to air temperature, which we feel on our skin. It is actually dependant upon the quantity of radiation striking the collector.
Alternative Energy Ireland supply a standard 200 litre domestic kit that costs €2,508, which is only 0.9% of the average house price in Ireland! All systems from Alternative Energy Ireland are virtually maintenance free and come available in kit form for self install, or they can perform the installation for you. These kits are all suitable for new or existing builds.
Reducing our carbon footprint has never made so much sense. Gas costs have risen by 48% in the last 13 months and there in no sign of the rise halting with current global conditions. Solar is the natural choice. Solar is free, and will always be free. Make the move, switch to solar.
For some advice or a quote, visit our website www.aei.ie, or e-mail or phone us at; sales@aei.ie or 01-4433996
Alternative Energy Ireland,
26 Woodleigh Avenue,
Blessington,
Co Wicklow.