UK energy crunch, solar panels & earth news

Clearly, some of us are waking up to the benefits of making our own electricity at home. Heat my Home, a company promoting solar in the UK, has seen sales to its residential installers – the teams that fit solar panels on homes – double between 2005 and 2006. Stuart Lovatt, who offers “eco audits”, thinks the Cameron effect shouldn’t be ignored.

“He’s definitely made solar sexy. Lately, I’ve had several rich, naturally Tory, clients who want solar, and their genuine motivation is to reduce carbon emissions,” he says. “But there are a host of other reasons. One family was concerned about its lighting going off in the case of an energy emergency or oil crisis.”

There’s also a practical, very British reason for our interest in solar: money. With the average household’s electricity bill above £900 (and set to rise again with British Gas’s latest price rises), solar panels start to make sense at £4,000, after you’ve received a government grant available for installation. They can add value, too. When two new homes in Norfolk sold recently, the one with solar PV roof tiles by Solarcentury sold for 8.6% more than its neighbour. Energy efficiency ratings in next year’s home information packs, grants of up to £3,000 and imminent improved planning laws should help further.

Solar may suddenly be cool, but there are reasons for pause. The recent government energy review contained little concrete promotion of solar, and the scale of what’s been achieved can be overstated. As McCarthy points out, “only 100 solar PV installs have happened in London since 1999, so it’s perhaps a bit early to say it’s truly trendy.” Plus the price of fitting solar on your home is unlikely to drop soon, since silicon – the raw material in solar cells – is currently in high demand. Sharp, however, is working to keep prices down by slicing the silicon used in cells even thinner than today’s 180 microns.

Still, the forecast looks bright for solar. Cameron’s celebrity power shouldn’t be underestimated, our growing gadget energy use – expected to double by 2010 – should ensure cheap green alternatives’ success, and ethical living is in fashion. If you’re making fairtrade, organic and green choices in other areas of your life, solar’s the next obvious step. Besides, as the thronged parks and high streets of summer prove, we Brits love anything to do with the sun.

Solar panels links

Heat my Home Solar Panels UK
Solar Panels and Solar Installers and Installations
Solar Panels in the UK
Green Energy Suppliers, Providers, Schemes and Tariffs
Solar Panels and Evacuated Tubes Forum
Learn about Solar Heating Panels Installations
Learn about Evacuated Tubes Solar Panels Installations
DIY Solar Panels Kits
PV Solar Panels Installations
Learn about Solar Panels Grants and Feed In Tariffs
Learn about Heat Pumps Installations

This entry was posted on Thursday, August 17th, 2006 at 3:52 pm and is filed under Solar Panels UK. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.