Your solar panels will still work come Winter

Despite the UK averaging around 48% overcast days in the year, solar panels, both the electricity generating kind (or photovoltaic to give them their proper name) and solar hot water panels continue to operate.

But what about the Winter?

Surprisingly, solar panels work even better - especially after a fall of snow. Providing the panel itself isn't covered, the amount of light produced by reflecting snow makes it ideal generating weather.

Solar panels also operate more efficiently in the cold - something to do with the cooling effect allowing for higher voltages being produced which results in higher wattage.

Providing the panels are clear of snow themselves, which might sound like a chore but given they should be south facing, then they'll melt off pretty quickly.

Some owners have gone to ingenious lengths, constructing extendable brushes to clear the snow off. Be careful though that you don't scratch the panel surface or put your safety at risk by over-reaching or using ladders etc to gain access.

Most owners just wait for the sun to melt any accumulation naturally.

One other thing you might be able to enquire about is solar panels that may have an additional coating which aids dirt and deposit washing off through natural rainfall.

A bit like the coatings you can now get on self-cleaning glass - very popular with glass roof conservatories - helping your panels maximise your return.

photo credit: david wiley

Insulation companies urge us to act now.

With media warnings that our energy bills could rise by around £200 this year, insulation companies are urging homeowners to seek out any Government or local authority grants that they can use to insulate their homes.

They're warning that in the future, inefficient homes may even be penalised as the Government acts to meet it's CO2 reduction targets. Currently, british homes account for over 25% of total carbon emissions, due mostly to heating usage.

Even simple steps like fitting energy saving lightbulbs is a start. You'd have thought everyone had got the message about loft insulation but according to sources, many homes still lack this important energy saver, or at least the recommended level of insulation. Straightforward and easy to fit (typically in a single day), loft insulation cane save you around £145 a year off your heating bills.

The Governments "Green Deal' is pipped to be focusing heavily on loft and wall insulation. Whilst many properties are solid walled, they can still be insulated and the savings? Well, potential fuel savings are considerable. Cavity wall insulation can cut your energy bill by 15% a year and usually pay for itself inside 2 years.

With over 7 million homes currently not having any wall insulation, there's a very large area of emission and energy savings to be encouraged.

If you're considering exterior work to your home's walls - rendering or pointing, then it may be a great time to look into exterior wall insulation. Similarly, carrying our any major internal refurbishments? Getting a quote for internal wall insulation will save you undoing all your renovation and decorating afterwards.

Last but not least, insulation companies are encouraging even simpler energy saving steps like draught proofing. It's inexpensive but stopping heat escaping from your home should be a priority they say.

And that doesn't necessarily mean replacing windows and doors with energy efficient double glazed units (although this is the ultimate energy saver), try inexpensive sealing strips which you can fit yourself. Choosing heavier curtains and using curtains over doors in older properties will all help, as well as making your home 'feel' warmer, which will encourage you to turn down your heating a notch, saving even more energy.

If the draughts really are too much to bear but you're on a budget, why not think about just replacing the worst windows or doors and then completing the rest of the windows at a later date? Be sure to get comparison replacement window quotes from reputable companies.

This article first appeared in our weekly homeowner newsletter dated 20th June 2011 - click here to read our full homeowner newsletter.

photo credit: lululemon

New premises incorporate green energy features

Price Engines Ltd, the company behind the 'Quoter family of online home improvement quoting websites have been moving premises over the weekend.

From our old offices on Pride Park, Derby, we've moved to a brand new office in the slightly more rural setting of Stenson Marina on the outskirts of Derby.

Our new home incorporates some pretty nifty technology which will help us reduce our energy usage, whilst being kinder to the environment.

And as we're now sited beside the Trent and Mersey Canal, if ever an environment was worth saving... let's just say we feel very lucky to be here.

For starters, the hot water and underfloor downstairs heating is powered by an air-source heat pump. The upstairs heating/whole building cooling is powered by a set up of air-con units that reduce power consumption via a clever arrangement of one generator allowing different individual units to blow hot or cold.

And we understand from the buildings owners that there are plans for a photovoltaic solar panel installation in the very near future.

photo credit: gavin stewart

Will you look for green features in your next house purchase?

When you're thinking of moving house, how important will green features be in your decision making, as to which new home you buy?

Will green / renewable features figure at all in your choice? Or will the energy efficiency of your intended new home sway your decision?

They say you very often instinctively know when you've found THE home for you, but hold on to your heart just a few moments and stop to consider the properties green credentials.

We're talking insulation - roof and walls, energy efficiency of any built in appliances, the control you'll have over the heating system and hot water, draught exclusion (including double glazing) and finally, the condition of any renewables systems like solar panels (or the potential for having solar panels etc. fitted when you own the property).

Does it face South, are there any overhanging trees or other obstructions that might interfere with a solar panel installation? Is there enough garden/grounds to install a ground source heat pump?

I know it's easy to get carried away but a few moments considering all your options and the opportunities for installing / increasing renewable energy sources, could well pay you dividends in the long term.

It's easy enough to change light fittings and bulbs to energy efficient ones and add extra insulation to lofts, walls and water tanks.

Double glazing isn't usually a problem (unless the property is listed) and heating systems can be upgraded or replaced.

Larger projects like solar panels will require certain criteria to be a success - location, roof direction and roof space. Ground source heat pumps require fairly large gardens / plots of land to be of any benefit.

And if your intended purchase already has solar panels fitted, check whether they were fitted as part of a free-installation type deal. Who gets the Government's feed-in tariff money? Is it you (as the new owner) or some investment company to whom you only rent the roof out to.

Check the age and condition of the panels and be prepared to call in an expert if you don't think they're generating the levels of energy they should be. In such cases, a proper survey is probably a very good idea before you part with your money.

photo credit: diana parkhouse

How the Green Deal will work

Reuters ran a very good article on how the UK's Green Deal will work, though an interview between the Energy Minister Greg Barker and Yale Environment 360.

Click here to read the full article for yourself.

I did just want to quote one answer from it though - once the politician had actually stopped spouting 'political speak' and answered the question put to him - namely, how will the Green Deal work?

Here's his answer:

"What we're going to do is go away from the stop-go, government-funded programs, and through using smart regulation, open up this market to the private sector. We believe we can create a market that will bring in billions of pounds of investment into energy efficiency for homes and businesses. We're going to create a mechanism whereby the cost of making these [energy-efficiency] measures can all be financed through pay-as-you-save models, with the finance being repaid over a period of 20 years through the bill on each individual property. Now, that's a big change. To date it had to be paid upfront, either by the individual homeowner or through a grant. By pinning the repayments to the bill of the property, it means it's not a debt. It's not even a mortgage. It doesn't need to be credit-scored, because if the individual living in that particular home moves, dies, ownership changes, or they cease to rent, it stays on the bill of that property, just like the conventional energy bill.

But there's one golden rule: The cost of financing the measures, which would be anything up to 6,000 pounds, must always be less than the savings anticipated from the installations [of energy-efficiency measures]."

So one 'golden rule' and upfront costs paid by private sector finance.

Sounding almost too good to be true.

photo credit: conor lawless

Federation of Small Businesses calls on Government for energy efficiency acknowledgemnt

Business Green reports how the Federation of Small Businesses is calling on the Government to include measures to help the UK's 4.8 million small businesses contribute to the UK's carbon reduction targets.

It claims "harnessing the potential" is essential to cutting carbon emissions - a study by the Carbon Trust showed that if all UK businesses and public sector organisations undertook efficiency measures, they could cut emissions by 29 million tons and save £3.6 billion in the process.

"loan scheme for businesses"

The Federation would like to see a loan scheme for businesses, funded by banks and energy & construction firms to pay the up front costs of major energy saving upgrades to buildings and a waiving of planned increases to business rates for those companies that improve their buildings efficiency.

If you're a small business enterprise, you may be especially interested in reading the full article at Business Green by clicking here.

photo credit: SMN

What's hogging the energy in your house?

Very often, one of the first things you should do to prepare your home for a renewable energy installation like solar panels is work out exactly how much power you're using, and if you're thinking of using renewable energy to replace your existing energy supply, then you'll want to slim down your energy usage as much as possible so that you only pay for an installation that meets your requirements.

It's not always an easy task finding out what's 'hogging' the power in your home though - there are obvious things like making sure your home is well insulated - loft and cavity wall insulation, double glazing and energy efficient appliances etc can all play a big part.

I'm indebted to Cool Planet's Nate Law for posting this recent guide to what to look out for around your home. The site may be american and references to appliances are obviously to american lifestyle kitchen / laundry appliances but much of the information is still relevant and it's an excellent place to start.

For example, did you know even small items like digital photo frames. mobile phone charges and laptop power supplies left plugged in - even when unconnected from the device - draw power?

Thanks Nate.

photo credit: noahg

Energy saving - Green lessons for all...

Spotted in an American online community news service website - a presentation to homeowners put across the message - Turn it off, turn it down, tune it up and buy smart.

The presenter went on to explain to residents how just switching off all those appliances and electronics that normally get left on standby could save you 8% of your annual energy bills - the so called 'Phantom Load'. Unplugging computers and home entertainment systems etc or investing in power strips where by you can turn off a group of appliances with one switch makes an instant difference.

Turning down room and hot water tank thermometers by a couple of degrees is another way to save, whilst buying wisely when choosing new appliances or perhaps replacing old boilers or heating tanks with new efficient ones will save more money in the long run - especially when there are various grants to be had like the recent Boiler Scrappage Scheme in England or the Warm Front Scheme currently running.

Whilst installing solar panels etc may be a greater financial undertaking, with feed-in tariffs about to be introduced later this year in the UK, it's something that homeowners shouldn't rule out altogether.

You can read more of the report as it appeared on Foster's Daily Herald by clicking here.

If you'd like to find out how much a solar panel installation might cost you, then visit Solar Panel Quoter by clicking here.

photo credit: wwarby

Central Heating Boiler Scrappage Scheme in England announced

Today, the Government has launched a new £400 grant for those replacing old and inefficient boilers with modern or carbon efficient models.

Under the Boiler Scrappage Scheme, if you are a homeowner or private tenant replacing a G-Rated or equivalent boiler you could be eligible for a grant of up to £400 to aid with the cost of having it replaced. The Government believe around 125,000 households will initially stand to benefit from the new scheme.

This £400 saving is in addition to efficiency savings which can reduce your heating costs and fuel bill by an average of around £235 a year, according to the Energy Saving Trust.

You can get a quote for a replacement boiler at our brand new Quoter site, HeatingQuoter.co.uk.

Announcing the scheme earlier today, Energy and Climate Change Secretary Ed Miliband said “The boiler scrappage scheme will save around £200 off heating bills per year for families that are replacing their old boilers, and in total will save the same amount of carbon equivalent to taking around 45,000 cars off the road.”

You can find out more information on the scheme, and of course get quotes for a replacement boiler, at HeatingQuoter.co.uk. Even if your boiler isn’t eligible for the scrappage scheme we can help you with a rough guide price, and help you find local registered boiler suppliers and installers to carry out the work for you.

So head over to HeatingQuoter.co.uk today and check out the latest addition to the Home Improvement Quotes family.

Bike shed roof provides solar power for Scottish School

Green Building Press reports on a new Highlands Primary School which will be Scotland's first wholly sustainable school.

Features include a structure made from 'Brettstapel - a form of glue-free massive timber construction - one tonne of which when used instead of concrete saves as much CO2 as taking a car off the road for nearly 5 months.

The building is so well insulated and draught-proof that the heat from the pupils, staff and computers will be enough to heat the building.

A new £20,000 bike shed is also capable of generating power from the solar panels fitted to it.

The bike shed is just one of 32 solar schemes Highland Council is putting in place, mainly at schools, before next April at a total cost of £450,000.

Read the full article at Green Building Press by clicking here - which details all the amazing energy saving features being built into this fantastic school.

photo credit: sarcozona

Solar Panel Installation - Quick Top Tip

Thinking of getting solar panels installed on your property?

Todays top tip comes from Sue Kateley, executive director of the California Solar Energy Industries Association.

"Energy efficiency first. Get rid of the old refrigerator in your garage etc. Energy efficiency will reduce the size of solar system you need, which will save you money".

Thanks Sue - We'll be hearing more from Sue later.

photo credit: stpeterscommunitynews.

Boosting your Energy Efficiency Rating

In July 2008, the Government put energy efficiency at the top of the home moving agenda - basically to put a house on the market you’ve had to arrange for a Home Information Pack (HIP), containing assorted details about the house, it’s construction, boundary details and planning permission. From April of this year, the HIP must be ready and available by the first day your property goes on the market.

Contained in the HIP is an Energy Performance Certificate (EPC), which potential buyers can use to assess your home’s energy efficiency. Today, we’re giving you some excellent tips on how to give your EPC an adrenalin shot and boost your home’s energy efficiency, and so boost its value.

Even if you aren’t selling your home, improving your home’s energy efficiency makes sense: by combining these tips you could reduce your energy bill by over £300 a year!

read more of this energy efficiency article here...

photo credit - seemodernbritain