Monday, November 14, 2011

Solar power in the UK


There are different reasons why someone may want to install solar power generation (both thermal and photo-voltaic) on their houses:

  • either you are a "green" kind of person, and you are OK with spending more money than you will ever earn from your panels, as long as you're helping the environment, 
  • OR you decide to INVEST your money, and you try to find some win-win solution for you and the environment.
This second option is actually the only one that can give birth to a sound "green economy", and this is way most of EU countries are subsidizing new solar energy installations.

The UK government is strongly subsidizing solar energy (both thermal and photo-voltaic) since last year, as you can read on this Telegraph's article. On top of that, Renewable Heat Incentives have been introduced this year, as you can read on this Government notice.


This means that, in many cases, the new installation of solar thermal panels or photo-voltaic panels can be considered an extremely interesting option for residential consumers. It is a good investment for your money, and besides that you have a series of benefits:

  • for solar thermal
    • you'll be able to claim the Renewable Heat Incentive from its launch in 2011
    • you can produce up to 1/3 of your hot water
    • you can reduce CO2 emissions by up to 530kg
    • you can reduce heating bills by up to £65 p/a
  • for photo-voltaic panels
    • you'll sell electricity back to the grid via the Feed-In Tariff
    • you reduce CO2 emissions by up to 1 tonne
    • you reduce energy bills by up to £200 p/a
    • you have up to 10% tax-free return-on-investment.
Each house is of course different, and you should definitely get some professional advice before investing your money. As a first step, we suggest you calculate approximate potential profit with the Solar Guide Solar PV Feed-In Tariff Calculator. Notice that you will need to enter some details to have a reliable estimate, even if the default settings will work for most of the cases.

The same website will also provide you with a list of professionals in the field of solar installations .
Important: only MCS certified companies are permitted to quote for Solar PV enquiries to ensure you can access Government’s benefit. All companies listed on http://www.solarguide.co.uk are certified.

Saturday, September 10, 2011

Solar companies in South Africa


We wrote some time ago about the great opportunities of residential solar power in South Africa.

New companies are indeed entering this business, proving that the sector is rapidly growing and profitable.

A new comprehensive web directory has been set up and is worth a visit.


www.solarcompanies.co.za
solar panels, solar geysers, solar lighting, etc. 

Thursday, September 8, 2011

Home Solar Power Systems

Many people believe that home solar power systems will eventually replace fossil-fuel based energy sources as the way that most people power their homes. This free and never-ending way to create energy is a much better way to create power for your home, and is more affordable than ever.

Read more on:
Solar Power for Homes 
Home solar power info. Find out about using solar power in your home.
Reduce energy costs and make your house more eco-friendly.