As Solar Power is vastly becoming the most cost-efficient way to reduce your energy bills and help the carbon footprint, it is clear that many people are seeing the benefits by changing their home energy systems to solar power.

But the question is: do we know the key facts about solar power?

We have previously used the sun to tan ourselves, dry the washing, and to produce food to live and grow, but the sun has only recently been used for solar power as our main energy source.

According to UK energy, enough sunlight falls on the earth every hour to meet the world’s energy demands for an entire year.

This fact alone reveals the huge importance of solar light, which is solely generated from the sun as a completely free energy source.

UK energy has also revealed the impressive statement: “If we covered a small fraction of the Sahara desert with photovoltaic cells, we could generate all the world’s electricity requirements.”

As solar power is frequently being introduced into councils, homes and schools in the UK, it is likely that the trend will multiply, with the possibility that a Desert as vast as the Sahara will one day supply and provide an ever lasting source of energy.

But for this moment in time, perhaps it would be wise to raise the awareness and consider installing solar energy in your own home, before the Sahara Desert catches on!

Solar panel installers, powered by photovoltaics can be costly; however, the installation of these solar systems will undoubtedly produce a substantial return on your investment, at a time when energy bills are rising.

As renewable energy technology continues to develop, Swindon Council has made a decision to efficiently collect their energy supply by installing solar power.

In an attempt to go green by improving the carbon footprint and reducing rising energy bills, Swindon Commercial Services Limited has invested in solar panels to be used on its office, warehouse and bus depot roof, which has been introduced by Swindon Borough Councils Sustainable Energy Framework.

The solar panel installation will provide photovoltaics on council roofs in an investment of £900,000. The SCS depot project is expected to make a saving of £38,503.98 per annum resulting in £33,000 which is to be returned to the Council in order to recoup the initial investment, according to Solar Power Portal UK.

Swindon Council also has plans to work with SCS to install solar panels in other areas, including; Thamesdown Transport’s Bus Depot, Catherine Wayte School and SBC Civic offices in Swindon’s town centre, providing the council with increased savings and a significant return on their investment.

Bill Fisher, SCS Managing Director said: “In the current economic climate there is no greater or safer return in an investment as the ones we will see with photovoltaics”.

As solar power has been proven to provide sustainable and environmentally friendly energy sources, many other councils in the UK are planning to follow Swindon’s lead and are hoping to secure solar power for homes and schools.

Stockport council has also decided to invest in the solar power plan, to reduce electricity bills and service charges for property tenants and the council itself.

The Solar Install company has previously completed installations for: Liverpool City Council, Birmingham City Council, Derby Homes, South Ribble Borough Council and the Wirral Borough Council on inner city projects, creating a range of renewable energy solutions.

Solar Power is vastly becoming the leading way to save energy and money, whilst helping the environment. For more information on professional and reliable solar installation, contact us today.

Solar lighting can lower overall power expenses and cut your carbon footprint on the environment but what actually is it?

Here is a solar lighting help guide from New Energy Futures…

Fundamentally, solar lighting consists of varying forms but ultimately it is just renewable energy that is used for lighting a home.

A solar lamp is an example of solar lighting in which a portable light fixture comprises a photovoltaic solar panel which recharges the battery.

Solar lighting can be used in landscaping for outdoor lamps in gardens and lawns to mark footpaths as well as indoors for garages and rooms. One can install solar wall lights, security lights, solar panels, solar fairy lights, solar street lights and even solar shed lights. One inventor has even created a solar light bulb!

Solar lighting is fantastic in that the lamps recharge during the day and at dusk, they turn on automatically and remain illuminated overnight depending on when the sun sets. In some sunny climates, one can get enough power to run a 100W light bulb from just one square metre of solar panel.

They are mostly used for decorations because they do not provide as much light as a line-powered lighting system but they do come in a wide variety of designs to install some chic décor into the home.

In general, they are easily installed and maintained and they provide a cheaper alternative to wired lamps. What is more though, they are eco-friendly!

For more information on solar lighting and for a free, no obligation quote; ‘get in touch’ today.

A couple from Rochdale, in Greater Manchester have become the very first residents to move into a new ‘green homes’ development scheme.

Jean and Roy Helm, who have been married for 46 years, have moved in to the newly build two-bedroom bungalows on Dover St, as part of The Dover Street Scheme.

The sustainable homes were built by Bright Horizons, the charitable development subsidiary company of Rochdale Boroughwide Housing (RBH); which is a not for profit company which is responsible for managing council homes on behalf of Rochdale Council.

Gareth Swarbick, Chief Executive of RBH, said: “The sustainable features used in these homes will reduce energy bills for the tenants – and with rising utility prices this is becoming an important element of new build.”

The bungalows reap the benefits of solar heating and solar lighting by having solar panels installed on the roof which warm up the hot water system and they have also been fitted with a super-efficient boiler which is used to make the water even hotter for when solar energy is not available.

The property is further ‘green’ as it has a rain water harvesting system that collects rainwater and stores it in the ground then uses it to flush the toilet in the property and to supply the outside tap. Flow-restricted bathroom and shower taps reduce flow rate and the toilet also has a dual flush which typically reduces water usage by up to 30% to save money.

The happy duo has reportedly already noticed they are not using as much energy, despite only living there for a few months.

They told Rochdale Online: “We’ve already noticed that the solar panels are heating up the water and our first gas bill was actually a pleasant surprise.”

The bungalows have installed a unit in the loft which aims to save heat and therefore money too. It ventilates the entire home, extracting moist stale air and at the same time introducing filtered fresh air which provides balanced ventilation so there is no need to open windows; and so reduces noise pollution from outside.

At Solar Install, we pride ourselves on a reputation for quality service and reliability, so to save costs and be more environmentally friendly, contact us today.

Many homes and businesses have started using solar power to cut their electricity bills and help reduce their carbon footprint. In Swansea, an arts charity has taken this one step further and runs a solar powered cinema.

The Sol Cinema is the world’s smallest solar powered micro theatre and offers a unique cinema experience. Accommodating 8 adults or up to 12 young people, the cinema is powered by 120W solar PV panels and uses Lithium ion batteries to store energy.

The cinema also uses a low LED projector to show films and the cinema has a library of comedic and quirky short films and music videos for visitors to watch.

As solar technology gets becomes more sophisticated, solar powered buildings and equipment will become more common place.

Scientists are currently developing solar powered aircraft and Apple are rumoured to be working on a solar powered version of the iPhone, whilst other companies come up with solar powered chargers, keyboards and various other pieces of equipment to help us reduce our dependency on traditional types of energy.

Championship team Barnsley have become one of the first football clubs in the country to install solar panels on their ground.

The Oakwell Stadium is to be fitted with £1million worth of solar PV panels, which are expected to reduce the club’s electricity bills by tens of thousands of pounds.

Any additional energy generated by the panels will be sold back to the National Grid, to help the club increase their income.

The panels will be fitted on the East and South stands, and will be installed in May this year to be completed by June.

Solar panels are a great investment to any property and can be fitted to a range of commercial and residential properties to help property owners save money and reduce their carbon footprint. The Tykes are expecting to slash their electricity bills by 50% with the panels.

Don Rowing, the General Manager of Oakwell said: “With energy costs spiralling and likely to continue that way it makes business sense to use the large amount of roof surface available to us to save the club money and also to reduce our carbon footprint.

“This just shows what a green place Barnsley is and even though we are the Reds we can go green.”