Renewable Energy - Solar heating recommended by expert

08/04/2008

Energy efficiency expert Dr Michael Lamperth has highlighted the use of solar heating in his home, following on from his revelations about Honeywell heating controls.

Dr Lamperth, who is a lecturer with the Department of Mechanical Engineering at Imperial College London, uses solar panels on his home's roof to heat water for domestic use.

"We get 250 litres of hot water at 40 Celsius, even on cloudy day[s]," he revealed.

The water tank is also linked to the home's gas boiler, Dr Lamperth explained, allowing the water to be heated even if it is too cloudy for the solar heating panels to work.

He concluded: "The hot water may need topping up from the gas boiler to meet family needs for half the year, but we reduce gas consumption even at these times."

The use of the solar heating unit meant that the family did not use any gas from April to October last year to heat their hot water.

Other energy saving features installed at Dr Lamperth's home include a Vaillant ecoTEC plus 428 condensing boiler, double glazing and cavity wall insulation.

Figures from the Energy Saving Trust suggest that each UK home creates around six tonnes of carbon emissions each year - two tonnes of which could be cut if more efficient practices were adopted.