Save Money, Save The Environment

How about installing a small program, that can help you better manage your computers power?

According to LocalCooling.com

More than 30 billion kilowatt-hours of energy is wasted because many of us simply forget to shut down our computers when we’re not using them. If we could just improve the efficiency of how we use our PCs, the savings in energy costs would be over $3 billion dollars! The CO2 emissions from just 15 computers are equivalent in energy terms to the gas consumption used by one car.

This has the benefit of saving you money while also saving the environment, so get over there and download it!

Green Roof

I while ago I wrote about green roofs in 'Time to mow the roof', well, totally by chance I stumbled upon this UK company that will supply a sedum planted roof for your garden buildings. They build and supply a whole range of garden buildings, sheds and wooden garages, and will make them with this sedum roof to order, they can also retro fit an existing building if it is suitable.



Sedum is a small succulent plant that can grow in many inhospitable or inaccesable places such as rock faces, ledges or walls and seems to be ideal for this type of application.

Such a roof has many environmental benefits including putting back some of which was removed by installing the building in the first place, removing CO2 from the atmosphere, helping to support local wildlife, as well as providing additional insulation for the building itself.

It's always good to find a company, that goes above and beyond what a similar company may offer, and Taylors Garden Buildings (www.taylorsgardenbuildings.co.uk) is one that certainly appears to do so.

Shedding Some Light!

It had never really occurred to me that the words 'environmentally friendly' could be applied to so many aspects of artificial lighting until I was asked to take a look at the products supplied by a company called Starry Night Lights (http://www.starrynightlights.com/). They specialise in products that reduce light pollution, and are also environmentally friendly.

Now if you are a budding astronomer, then you'll be very familiar with the effects of light pollution on the night sky ... If you're not then, basically it blocks the view of all but the brightest stars, and the nearer you are to a town or city, the worse it gets, until the night sky becomes just a void.

But light pollution is more than occluding our view of the heavens. Bad artificial lighting can cause glare, it can blind passing vehicles and is not only annoying, but down right dangerous, it can interfere with the natural cycles of wildlife, and it has even been proven to be a cancer risk.

Starry Night Lights provide a thoughtfully designed lighting range covering interior and exterior applications which aim to address these issues.

For example they have a range of street lighting that uses LPS (low pressure sodium) bulbs, which less electricity than the high pressure. Using less energy and efficient direction, means that far less electricity is consumed, cutting down the emissions from power stations which pollute the air we breath, as well as conserving our precious earthly resources. It doesn't end there though, the housing has been designed to only direct light where it is required, this stops glare, and eliminates light pollution.

From what I have seen, Starry Night Lights have a product range that can fulfill practically all requirements, from domestic to commercial, inside and out, as well as things like low energy bulbs, and motion detectors - that will only turn lights on only when needed.

So for anyone with an interest in the environment (which should be all of us), and green building techniques, should also become aware of the benefit we can have on our surroundings by just selecting the right type of light fitting for the right application, and to use only what is necessary to accomplish what's needed.

This was a sponsored review, but if you (like I myself have) learned anything from this article, and actually apply it to your next lighting project, then for everyones sake, it was truly worth it!

Slow Down & Green Up

It's now the UK's 3rd National Downshifting Week!

The basic principle of downsizing and sustainable living is this; If you slow down, or downshift your way of life, then you'll automatically be improving the quality of your life, reduce stress, and also benefit the environment.

There's far more to it than my simplistic description, but it is explained far better in this free ebook (PDF) that you can download here (right click and select 'save target as' or similar).

The creator of the scheme was Tracey Smith, and the website can be found at: www.DownshiftingWeek.com if you'd like to know more, or take part.

There are lots of ideas on the site to help you and your family, your school, or even your company get the most from this week, so get on over there, take part, and support it!

The UK Hemp Expo

Well if you know anything about hemp, then you know of its incredible properties, and mutltitude of uses. This is one of the most sustainable crops available, and if laws were relaxed a little could do so much more to help with current environmental issues. Anyway, the biggest UK exhibition is almost upon us:

5th, 6th and 7th of May 2007, at the Telford International Centre.

The UK's biggest and best hemp and accessories exhibition.

Featuring the latest and greatest in new inventions, clothing, bags, food, books, alternative therapies, healing, music, famous names and famous faces, seminars, new seed strains, vaporisers and much, much more.

Exhibitors, inventors, wholesalers and retailers will be coming from all over the world to show the best in hemp and accessories. Everything you could ever need to will be under one roof, including top advice from some of this planets experts.

Tickets are only £5.00 each and can be pre-booked from the website (click on the banner below).

Creative self sufficiency (part 1 - introduction)

Being environmentally conscious, and/or self sufficient is not just about installing solar panels to your roof (although admirable), for those that are serious it also means you can get to try many creative activities too!

It gives you the opportunity of reconditioning items, turning old things into new and prolonging its life, or producing healthier alternatives than bought ones.

Such activities can include weaving, wine/beer or bread making. Making your own jewellery or candles, or even restoring old toys and furniture. There are countless hobbies, pastimes or projects that you can turn your hand to if you look around and put a little thought into it.

The benefits to you, your family, and the environment definitely worthwhile. Producing any of your own food, or wines for example means that you know exactly what you are eating or drinking. From a health perspective this is priceless.

Mass produced foodstuffs including simple things such as bread, not only contain hidden ingredients such as preservatives and other chemicals, they're also less nutritious than what you are able to make for yourself.

You can start small at first such as a simple pot of herbs growing on your kitchen window sill, and progress to having a whole section of your garden dedicated to growing your own fruit and vegetables. The flavours of home grown food can also taste so much better than those bought from your local supermarket.

Once you have grown it .. learn to cook with it (if you can't already!). Remember, start small, start simple, and build up slowly. There is no rush, just take everything one small step at a time and everything will eventually fall into place. Taking on too much in one go is one of the main reasons many people giveup or fail. They are overwhelmed. Yes it will require effort, but the rewards for your effort are so much greater all round.

You can turn old 'rubbish' into something new, restore it which will not only save you money, but also prevent you having to throw it out, adding to the increasing landfill. As well as the environmental benefits, you will become more creative and self sufficient in the process! This is the most creative form of recycling that you can partake in.

Doing any of these activities will give you a real sense of achievment - the satisfaction of producing or creating something for yourself. It will provide you with an interest, a hobby to persue, as well as the opportunity to share ideas with others or just show off your latest project!

This isn't a dated 'hippy' outlook, but a way of living that will help you to survive in this fast paced, modern age of waste, mass production, and disposable everything.

The next three or so articles will show you a few projects I have personally completed lately, including some how to's and photographs. This will hopefully give you some inspiration or ideas that you could try to help yourself and/or the environment.

These include making a 'new' necklace and bracelet from a broken wood bead necklace, breadmaking using a breadmaking machine (keeping it simple see!), to restoring an old footstall.

Polysilicon in short supply

Photovoltaic cells (for soalr panels) are made from a substance called polysilicon. This substance is actually in short supply at the moment which could lead to inferior solar panels using an alternative silicon compound.

More here ...

What's wrong with this picture.

If you have flash installed then take a look at this website, now I understand the sentiment, but using something that does possibly
3 miles to the gallon to promote it!

Does this seem strange to you, or is it just me? That is probably one of the most environmentally 'un-friendly' vehicles I know of, and in their own words to: 'raise awareness of environmental issues'! Can you say the word 'irony' Honda?

Nuclear Plans Ruled Unlawful

The UK Government recently announced their support for continued nuclear development as the way forward for 'greener' energy, including the building of more power stations. This was after 'consultation' (I use that word loosely!) with the appropriate bodies, and looking at relevent 'facts' and figures etc.

This descision was opposed by many groups, including Greenpeace who 
challenged the descision in court and got it overturned.

Sarah North, head of the Greenpeace nuclear campaign, said:

"The government's so-called consultation on nuclear power was obviously a sham,
and we're pleased that the judge has agreed with us."

"The government completely failed to consult adequately and even kept relevant documents to themselves. They've now been forced back to the drawing board to
conduct a proper and lengthy review."

Result! 

Read more here.

Environmental Courses for 2007

As usual, CAT (Centre for Alternative Technologies) have their 2007 course schedule up on their website. I'd urge anyone with an interest in the environment, sustainable builiding and technologies, or green living to go take a look and perhaps sign up for something that interests them. It is a fantastic way to learn something new, help your own understanding and environment, plus help support a great organisation.

Couses this year run from Febuary through to November and include:

• Educating with the Eco-Footprint
• Heating with Wood
• Make your own Biodiesel
• The Whole House
• Wind Power
• Water Treatment, Conservation and Recycling
• Install and Test Domestic Photovoltaic Systems
• Working with Willow
• Solar Water Heating for Installers
• Energy Awareness
• Hemp and Lime Conference
• Convert your Engine to Vegetable Oil
• Solar Electric Systems
• Sewage Solutions
• The Economics of Sustainability
• Community Renewable Energy Schemes
• Biomass Conference
• Renewable Energy Systems
• Building with Straw
• Organic Gardening Weekend
• Plant Identification
• Install and Test Domestic Photovoltaic Systems
• Introduction to Renewables
• Third Sustainable Science Symposium
• Alternative Building Methods
• Earth Building
• Natural rendering - clay plaster
• Freshwater Biology
• Build Your Own Wind Turbine
  

And if that wasn't enough, they offer a lot more ... go check them out!

http://www.cat.org.uk/

Save energy ... change colour!

Earlier in the month I talked about software, and whether it could be environmentally friendly. Well, staying on a techie theme, here is an interesting article from WinBeta that was passed on to me by a friend regarding the colour of web pages of all things!

The example given uses Google, but it applies to all web pages, and to be honest I was amazed!

An all white web page uses about 74 watts to display, while an all black page uses only 59 watts. See what happens when you do the math on Google's home page. Astounding.

So what does happen when you do the math? Click here for the full article.

Now what if all web pages were black or dark in colour ... just think how much energy that could save!

Can software be environmentally friendly?

Well, lets start off with a happy new year to you all!

I work in the IT industry, and have always had more than a passing interest in software ... or more precisely, free software. I think everybody loves something for nothing!

But what has this to do with being green, or environmentally friendly?

The answer to this can easily be seen by just walking around the software department of any large computer store ... PC World in the UK is a good example. You'll see row, upon row of big, bright colourful boxes, excessive plastic wrapping, and other eye catching gimmicks.

These boxes contain nothing more than a single disc, and perhaps a booklet or a manual, and yet most are large enough to hold perhaps 20, 30 discs or more!

It's rather sickening to think that the majority of this packaging will quickly end up in the bin as soon as the software gets into the home or office where it is going to be used. It is a dire waste of resources and materials, and all for the sake of self promotion.

It is intended to be big and brash so that the consumer is attracted to it. Unfortunately, its boldness is just such a waste. Even if you recycled most of the packaging, you still have the energy and resources expended to produce it, and spent again to recycle it.

This is where free software has the advantage. Unless it comes on a disc on the cover of a magazine, then you need to find it and download it from the Internet. The ecological advantage of this is now obvious - no waste from over ambitious packaging!

Now this is also true of commercial software or shareware that you can pay for online and download, but, as with most people, I prefer free when I can get it, and if I want a backup of the install file I just burn it to CD.

This brings us to our next problem - where to download from?

There are thousands of sites that you can download software from, the trouble is much of it is not free. It expires after 30 days, or useful features are crippled after a set length of time, or worse still, your computer gets infected with some malware, spyware or some other nasty! Another thing I have found in the past is that it's not always easy to find what you actually need, or there are a dozen titles that 'appear' to do what you want ... leaving you wondering which one do you download?

A good starting point for downloading safe free software is the Lessfuss Collection. It's free to join and has one perhaps two of any type of program considered to be the best of its kind currently available making your choice a lot easier. All of the programs are free to use forever, and they are also selected because they do not contain any adware, spyware, or malware.

Now, with broadband becoming more prevalent, I urge you all to download your software from now on instead of purchasing overly packaged 'boxed' versions. Yes, software can be green or at the very least 'greener' if you follow this advice. So get downloading, and leave those overly packed puddings on the shelf!

Green TV

green.tv is the first website to bring together films from a whole range of environmental organisations and independent filmmakers and make them available to anyone anywhere.

You'll need a broadband connection to take full advantage of the green.tv website, but if you do have, then it is well worth a visit.

It is currently still in beta, but the film quality is excellent and the information invaluable.

If you want to keep abreast of the environmental news worldwide, and prefer to 'watch' instead of read, then this site is really is the business.

UK company wins award

Press release

Solarcentury's integrated solar photovoltaic tile, C21e wins the coveted 'Best Sustainable Product Award' at Ireland's Construct Building Exhibition.

Last week solarcentury won Best Sustainable Product Award for their C21e solarelectric fully integrated roofing tile at Construct, Northern Ireland's major construction show. Following Secretary of State, Peter Hain's recent
announcementof £59 million for the promotion of renewable energy in Northern
Ireland, this product's accolade will provide the construction market with an
opportunity to embrace Northern Ireland's renewables revolution without
compromising the aesthetics of their development.

This latest award builds on a host of accolades for C21e including Best Exterior Product atInterbuild 2004 and Building Magazine's award for Innovation in their2005 sustainability awards.

C21e is the most efficient (21.5%), easy to install and cost effective solar tile on the market. The latest iteration of the C21e tile blends unnoticeably withconventional concrete tiles. solarcentury's advanced C21e design has been developed with aesthetics and efficiency as the primary concern. The cells are all black incolour with electronic contacts positioned behind a black tedlar backing. This completely eliminates solar reflection, maximising energy production within the given tile area, thereby requiring less than 10 square metres of C21e to generate a quarter of an average 3 bedroom homes electricity requirements. The application of these discrete solar photovoltaic tiles provides all the benefits of a 'bolt-on' solar systems, used in eco-home schemes such as BedZED, without affecting the 'rooflines' or appearance of the development.

Major housing developers including St James and Barratts are now testing
this new technology on their show houses as part of their drive to deliver more
sustainable homes.

Policies such as The Merton Rule (see http://www.themertonrule.org/) are encouraging a massive uptake in renewable technology as over 80 councils are in the process of implementing pro-renewable planning guidelines.

The thermal version of solarcentury's C21 tile (C21t) will make it's debut at Interbuild 2006 (April 23-27th 2006) providing a fully integrated 'Complete SolarRoofTM'. The combination of the two tiles (C21e & C21t) will deliver renewably generated heat and electricity to homeowners at a time when rising fuel prices are causing major panic in the energy industry.

The C21 product range 'future proofs' a home against such rises by fixing the prices that householders will pay for fuel over the 50 year lifetime of the product.

Eco-friendly Electricity

So, you want to do your bit for the environment and use renewable energy, but you can't afford to install solar, wind, or other means of green power in your home - what can you do?

Well, there is something you can do, you can do it right now, and you can make a difference!

With the deregulation of the UK's energy market you can choose who supplies your electricity, and make your voice heard with your money.

"The other thing that not many people realise is that we can now all choose who supplies our electricity, and therefore how it's made, so wherever you live in the country you can actually choose to have your home or business supplied by clean energy. The funny thing is switching takes about five minutes but it's the biggest single step you can take to reduce your emissions and protect the environment."

There are several green suppliers about, but only one that stands out for value AND their future plans, and that company is Ecotricity. Why Ecotricity you may ask?
Well, Ecotricity was formed in 1996, and have so far (Q4 2005) invested in and constructed 11 windfarms with more at planning stage and construction starting on several other projects.
Just click the previous link and take a look! (link opens in new window).

"Wind is an abundant source of energy that will never run out. It's also the world's fastest growing energy source and in the UK we're lucky enough to have around 40%of Europe's wind resource, potentially enough to power the country 3 or 4 times over".

There are other 'green' suppliers including; Green Energy UK, and Good Energy, but both of these companies have 'bought into' the green energy market by purchasing existing renewable sources including wind and hydro (water) from other companies. Their actual investment in new projects has so far been zero. An interesting comparison of green and traditional suppliers (including their 'green' efforts) can be found at www.whichgreen.org.

Ecotricity promise to match the price of every regional supplier, so therefore it should cost you no more than you currently pay, they also promise to invest the profits from you back into renewable resources, therefore increasing the amount of UK energy produced by environmentally friendly means.

So make a difference now - change your electricity supplier to Ecotricity and you know you are not only making a difference, but your money is also being invested in all our futures.

Further interesting facts and figures regarding electricity and wind power can be downloaded from here . ( in PDF format - Free Adobe Acrobat Reader required: www.adobe.com )

Homebuilding & Renovating Show

The Homebuilding and Renovating Show is being held at the National Exhibition Center (NEC), from the 2nd to the 5th March 2006, and includes The Green Village.

In the words of the shows organisers:

"Make your ultimate dream home a reality now. Whether you are building a home from scratch, extending or improving your existing home or taking on a conversion or renovation development - The National Homebuilding & Renovating Show is the perfect place to source the right products, services and advice you’ll need to get your project underway!"

The reason for posting this event is that there are two features that make this event worthy of note - as well as the usual plotfinder
stands, and other useful resources, the one is the range of seminars, which will surely interest anyone thinking or planning to build their
own eco-friendly home, some examples of which are below:

• A beginner’s guide to building your dream home


• Finding and assessing land and renovation opportunities


• Modern heating plumbing and ventilation/climate control


• How to design your dream home - the fundamentals of good house design


• A guide to ecological home design and sustainable construction

The other thing that stood out about this exhibition is an area within the main exhibition called The Green Village:

"Discover how you can create a sustainable and eco-friendly home. See over 30 companies representing eco-friendly and fair traded products and services such as: solar heating, alternative heating systems, wood burning stoves, timber log frame, natural paints, insulation, thatching, recycled materials, UFH, rainwater systems, waste systems, windows, skylights, books and many more. For anyone renovating or building a new home, the Green Village will provide you with all your ecological building solutions."

So, get yourself off to the Homebuilding and Renovating Show at the NEC, Birmingham (UK) and see if there is anything in the Green Village, that you can utilise in your own home to make a more sustainable and/or greener future for yourself - or go the whole hog and build something from scratch!

Tickets are £8.00 each and can be booked in advance from the NEC box office.

Building for a Future

Building for a Future (Winter 2005/6 Edition) is a quarterly magazine that provides information to help you create healthy and ecological homes and buildings, or as the magazine states on its cover, it's:

"the independent journal for 'green building' professionals and
enthusiasts".

I have always had a 'green' outlook and understanding, yet am relatively new to much of this applied specifically to homes and buildings, so this publication was quite an eye opener for me.

First Impressions

The review copy of the magazine arrived in a large brown envelope - but I am assured that the regular subscriptions are mailed wrapped in recycled content film. The publication itself had a heavy matt full colour cover, containing pages of equal quality on a lighter medium, and yes, it is printed on 100% recycled paper by Cambrian Printers - who themselves seem to have a very ethical approach to their trade which is reassuring.

Although the information within would be your reason for acquiring Building for a Future, it's presentation, manufacture and composition are always of interest to me, as this is where some organisations fall over with their use of new paper stocks or choice of packaging.

I can gladly say that Building for a Future came through as a shining light in this regard, with the 'green' attitude maintained throughout. This demonstrates to me a high degree of care and belief in their subject matter, right down to the attention paid to its overall production.

Contents

Obviously, the real interest is the contents, and this too does not disappoint. On first glance I was intrigued by the word 'interactive' on the cover, half expecting a CD ROM or similar to drop from its pages, but on closer inspection the term 'interactive' refers to the fact that every article has a corresponding thread on the Building for a Future forum. This is a fantastic idea, and one that I hadn't encountered before. It gives the readers the opportunity to give feedback to the authors of the various articles, or perhaps ask questions and for the authors to respond. This makes it truly interactive, and in a very useful way.

As stated above, I am reviewing the Winter 2005/6 edition here and the articles themselves cover quite a broad spectrum including:

• Timber build at the Eco Project
• Rooftop wind energy
• Continued existence of asbestos in our homes
• Converting tower blocks to sustainable energy
• Greener Plumbing
• Passivhaus system from Germany
  

There is much more besides, and each subject is given sufficient space to allow for a reasonably in depth analysis or review. I like this, as it means the topics aren't just skimmed over or given a fleeting glance, but have the room to give more information, images, facts, statistics, graphs and illustrations where they apply.

Accompanying the articles within Building For A Future are the website addresses of the various projects or organisations where they are available, giving you the opportunity to further explore or research any particular projects or topics that interest you.

A few of the articles in this edition were accompanied by various performance figures and accompanying graphs or statistics, which in a few cases were over my head. But it does go to show the depth of the magazine, and the scope which it covers. It is very suitable to for a professional in this field, but contained more than enough to interest and teach the casual observer or keen amateur alike. I'd say that I fall into the amateur enthusiast category, but I still thoroughly enjoyed reading it, coming away with a lot of useful and worthwhile information.

I did notice when reading through this issues forum postings, that the article Beware of the Blanket Approach quoted some insulation depths/thicknesses that were questioned by a reader. The author of the piece quickly replied with the fact that this was indeed an error and listed the correct values. This really shows the power and the value of the 'interactive' facet of this magazine. It gives the rare opportunity to question the author, to correct mistakes (which happen to us all on occasion), and to add of further information or links should the need arise - even after it has gone to press! This really adds value to the publication.

Another feature of the website, is being able to purchase back issues of the magazine from Autumn 2000 - as long as an issue still has copies remaining. If not, then no need to worry as you are able to download back issues of the magazine in PDF format (Adobe acrobat reader required). If you really want a taster of what this magazine has to offer, then download a back issue.

The magazine has its fair share of advertisements - as have all magazines, but not in such a way as to degrade or detract from its excellent content. All of the ads are related to the topic of the magazine, so many people will find them useful when the time comes to source materials, services, or contractors.

Conclusion

Overall, I must say it was a pleasure to read Building For A Future - it was clear and beautifully produced, had good editorial, nice imagery, not to mention informative with great web support.

Leading by Example?

David Cameron the new Conservative Party leader has commissioned eco-architect Alex Michaelis to give his new property in Notting Hill, London, an environmental makeover.

The re-design will include photovoltaic panels, solar water heating, additional insulation, rainwater and grey water harvesting, as well as a wind turbine and more efficient glass to be fitted.

This isn't a promotion for any political party, nor an indicator of my own political leanings, just a few thoughts about those that are supposed to be leading us here in the UK.

That aside, I think this is a very positive and encouraging move by David Cameron (such as often riding his bicycle to the House of Commons) which can only be a good thing. Obviously, not all people can afford to have these devices retro-fitted to their properties, but with a prominent politician leading the way, then surely more people will follow which will slowly bring the price of such installations down to a more acceptable level. Click on the title for more information.

What I do find quite refreshing is that instead of our polititions sitting back and telling us what to do, while sitting back in their very large houses or gas guzzling cars (2 jags Prescott?) and doing nothing, is that David Cameron is actually just getting on with it .. I hope this isn't just some kind of PR stunt and that it is a real act of concience.

The Woodland Trust

Happy New Year!

I hope you're all enjoying a happy and enjoyable holiday season.

It'll soon be time to take down those christmas cards and decorations, but what will YOU do with your old cards?

The Woodland Trust is an organisation dedicated to saving our UK woodlands and ancient trees. They are again running a scheme to collect and recycle all our old Christmas cards. Last year, they collected 58 million old cards, which is equal to about 1150 tonnes of rubbish, and approximately 19000 trees saved.

This year they hope to collect 60 million cards before the campaign ends on January 31st 2006.

You can take your cards to any high street branch of W.H.Smith, or to larger branches of Tesco, which means it shouldn't be too hard to find a branch near to you whereever you live.

This isn't generally the type of thing I post on this site, but for such a worthwhile cause I thought I'd let you all know. So, help them achieve this years target, recycle those old cards and save our ancient woodlands.

Solar Power - Part 1

We have all heard of Solar power, but what is it, how does it work, and why use it?

Solar is defined as; derived from or related to the sun or utilizing the energies of the sun. Therefore, anything that manages to harness the power of the sun may be called Solar Power.

The 3 Main Types of Solar Power

There are 3 main types of solar energy systems:

1. Solar Water Heating.
2. Solar Cells (Photovoltaic).
3. Solar Concentrator Systems.

The first two types are commonly used for household and general business installations, whereas the last (Solar Concentrator Systems) is for large industrial, or solar energy farms and solar power station applications. A brief explanation of each:

1. Solar Water Heating.

Solar water heating in its simplist form is a flat coated metal panel, insulated underneath and with pipes containing water lying on the surface. As the panel heats from the sun, so does the water held in the pipes. The water is circulated over the panels, and back into the buildings hot water system.

A more advanced (and therefore more expensive) system uses very well insulated evacuated glass tubes. The collector plate is held within the tubes vaccum, and so heat loss is virtually eliminated due to the vaccum and insulation.

In the UK, it is estimated that you can save about 50% of all water heating bills. Both of these types of panel are suitable for home use, and are also available in the UK. This type of system is also great for underfloor heating, general water heating, or even to heat a swimming pool, which is something to consider.


2. Solar Cells

Usually referred to as Photovoltaic cells/panels (PV), which are composed of specially formulated cells that produce an electric current when light falls upon them. These are the same technology that a solar powered calculator uses for power, only on a larger scale.

The majority of pv solar panels are silicon based, although other materials have or are being used, especially as research and development in this area progresses. Recently scientists have discovered how to acheive similar results using a type of plastic composite which is also able to use the infra-red spectrum, previously not within the ability of existing panels, and thereby making them even more efficient than many current designs.

All of this development means that the overall cost of an installation is rapidly decreasing, especially as demand increases allowing photovoltaic panels to be used for far more projects, including domestic use.


3. Solar Concentrator Systems

Concentrator systems are generally commercial installations or for large solar electrical generators.

This site is primarily concerned with houses and domestic systems, so for anyone interested in what these are, and how they work can follow this link to read all about Concentrating Solar Power.


The UK recieves a vast amount of radiation from the sun over the course of a year, this means that even somewhere as weather challenged as the UK is able to benefit enormously from using either type of solar energy system stated above.

Next ... part 2 - domestic installations, diagrams, selling or storing your excess power.