New housing development leads the way for solar PV
The development at Hutton Mews
We have just supplied PV units to a new six house development in Putney, south-west London. In the Hutton Mews development, each home is fitted with 36 of our C21e PV tiles. The 36 solar electric roof tiles, a 1.8 kWp system, will generate 1,500 kWh of electricity each year and are capable of providing more than 50% of each household's electricity. This is expected to save over a tonne of CO˛ emissions each year per house, amounting to six tonnes across the development.
The occupants are firmly in favour of the developers's decision to install the PV units, as homeowner Mrs. Haines explains: "When we saw the property, the solar tiles weren't especially used as a selling point by the developer but as soon as we saw them I realised that they had great potential to not only generate free, clean electricity but also add value to our home. The kids and I think they're great."
The PV installation at Hutton Mews
Mr. Bernard Page, Mrs Haines' neighbour, agrees: "We're very happy with the solar panels. While it wasn't a deciding factor in our decision to buy here, it was seen as a major advantage and influenced our offer price. We believe it's important to conserve our environment as much as possible, and this technology really lets us do that. The energy costs we're saving are also naturally a bonus."
"Our energy supplier reimburses us annually for the energy our tiles supply to the grid, so when we're out of the house during the day, none of the energy generated is wasted. Also, the electricity the panels generate mean that we're protected against future energy prices rises; there have been absolutely no drawbacks to the system."
Solar photovoltaics create electricity from daylight, so as long as the sun rises in the morning, a PV system will generate clean renewable electricity for use in the home or office building. For optimal C21e performance, the ideal roof would have a predominantly south facing aspect: a roof pitch of between 30 and 40 degrees and a minimum of 10m˛ unshaded roof space. Although the system for the Hutton Mews homes was integrated into the development's build process, Solarcentury PV systems can easy be retrofitted to existing properties. Installation is extremely simple, and homeowners converting to solar PV can begin generating their own electricity on the day of installation.
