Solar Kent

Will Solar Panels work in the winter?

Yes, solar panels do collect heat during the winter months in the UK, but generally speaking, not enough to supply significant amounts of hot water. During the winter months they should be regarded as a system that takes the chill off the water, lessening the amount of work that the boiler has to do and thus saving fuel and money. see february 13th

Genersys quote a saving of about 25% during the winter months.

Can I switch my boiler off during the summer?

I expect to switch my boiler off sometime in April and run all my hot water from the solar panels. This is what is reported by most users of our solar panels.

Will they generate all my hot water?

To get the best out of them, I expect to monitor the temperature of the hot water cylinder to use the heated water at the optimum time, thus allowing the system to re warm so I have hot water during the evening and through to the morning. This might mean running the washing machine to suit the heating from the panels. However, I expect to have more hot water overall from the panels than from running my boiler at set times.

Can I have solar panels with my combi boiler

You must have a hot water cylinder so that the water that has been heated by the sun can be stored for when you need to use it.

Can I use my existing Hot Water Cylinder

No, you need a secondary heating coil or heat exchanger so a new cylinder is necessary. The additional benefit is that you can get rid of what is most likely a cylinder that is full of scale if you live in a hard water area. This scale will make the cylinder very inefficient when being run with your boiler, wasting fuel and putting additional stress on the boiler.

I have a flat roof!

As long as there is a suitable point to mount the panels, there is standard bracketing that allows them to be mounted at teh correct angle. They need to be facing in a general southerly direction without any significant barriers between it and the the sun such as trees or other houses.

Will they warm my swimming pool

Yes, they will certainly help raise the temperature of your pool. Click here for a sample brochure.