Home Electricity Generation - Home Energy Solutions

Energy Generation

The third and final step in becoming truly self-sufficient and eco-friendly is to produce your own energy. There are many effective alternatives to fossil fuels that will help you to meet your energy requirements and reduce your home's carbon dioxide emissions, and there are thousands of pounds in grants available for every household installing some form of renewable energy. Browse the unbiased overviews below and contact us for quotes and grant assistance on any of our guaranteed certified products.

Solar Thermal - Back to top

Learn More	Cost	Yearly Saving	CO₂ Saved	Feasability
£2500	£40	300kg	-Planning permission may be required, particularly if your property is listed or in a conservation area. - You will need 4 square metres of southeast to southwest facing roof receiving direct sunlight for the main part of the day with no buildings or trees casting a shadow on the panels. - There needs to be space for a pre-heat cylinder in or close to the roof space. - Combination boiler will have to be of the type designed to accept preheated water.
Pros / Cons
PROS - Zero emissions. - Grants available. - Easy to install. - Little maintenance. - Fitting low-flow showers and taps can further reduce energy and water consumption and CO2 produced. CONS - Roof must be strong enough to support the weight of the system. - May require planning permission, particularly if your house is listed or in a conservation area.

Solar Thermal

Learn More

Cost

Yearly Saving

CO₂ Saved

Feasability

£2500

£40

300kg

-Planning permission may be required, particularly if your property is listed or in a conservation area.
- You will need 4 square metres of southeast to southwest facing roof receiving direct sunlight for the main part of the day with no buildings or trees casting a shadow on the panels.
- There needs to be space for a pre-heat cylinder in or close to the roof space.
- Combination boiler will have to be of the type designed to accept preheated water.

Pros / Cons

PROS
- Zero emissions.
- Grants available.
- Easy to install.
- Little maintenance.
- Fitting low-flow showers and taps can further reduce energy and water consumption and CO2 produced.
CONS
- Roof must be strong enough to support the weight of the system.
- May require planning permission, particularly if your house is listed or in a conservation area.

Solar Photo-Voltaics (PV) - Back to top

Learn More	Cost	Yearly Saving	CO₂ Saved	Feasability
£13,000	£200	600kg	- Planning permission may be required, particularly if your property is listed or in a conservation area. - You will need 16 square metres of southeast to southwest facing roof receiving direct sunlight for the main part of the day. Alternatively, a large area of unobstructed land would enable the panels to be fitted on A-frames. - There must be nothing casting a shadow, however small, on the panels at any time as a drop in performance in one area affects the whole panel.
Pros / Cons
Pros - Zero emissions. - Grants available. - Requires only daylight, not direct sunlight, although the more light it receives, the more electricity it produces. - Guaranteed for 20-25 years but expected to last longer. - Excess energy can be sold back to the grid. - PV arrays now come in a variety of shapes and colours, ranging from grey 'solar tiles' that look like roof tiles to panels and transparent cells that you can use on conservatories and glass to provide shading as well as generating electricity. Cons - Roof must be strong enough to support the weight of the systemMay require planning permission, particularly if your house is listed or in a conservation area.

Solar Panels

Learn More

Cost

Yearly Saving

CO₂ Saved

Feasability

£13,000

£200

600kg

- Planning permission may be required, particularly if your property is listed or in a conservation area.
- You will need 16 square metres of southeast to southwest facing roof receiving direct sunlight for the main part of the day. Alternatively, a large area of unobstructed land would enable the panels to be fitted on A-frames.
- There must be nothing casting a shadow, however small, on the panels at any time as a drop in performance in one area affects the whole panel.

Pros / Cons

Pros
- Zero emissions.
- Grants available.
- Requires only daylight, not direct sunlight, although the more light it receives, the more electricity it produces.
- Guaranteed for 20-25 years but expected to last longer.
- Excess energy can be sold back to the grid.
- PV arrays now come in a variety of shapes and colours, ranging from grey 'solar tiles' that look like roof tiles to panels and transparent cells that you can use on conservatories and glass to provide shading as well as generating electricity.
Cons
- Roof must be strong enough to support the weight of the systemMay require planning permission, particularly if your house is listed or in a conservation area.

Wind Turbines - Back to top

Learn More	Cost	Yearly Saving	CO₂ Saved	Feasability
£18,000	£300	900kg	-Planning permission is required. - Your property is preferably not in a highly built up area. The turbine blades must be five meters above anything within a 30m radius.
Pros / Cons
Pros - Zero emissions. - Grants available. - Vertical axis turbines are also available. These can cope much better with turbulent air currents found in urban/suburban areas. Cons - Obviously, if there’s no wind, there is no power. You can expect a wind turbine to generate about 28% of its stated peak capacity throughout the year. - Location is essential. Some dispute over viability of urban/suburban micro wind as buildings (and trees for that matter) drastically affect wind strength and direction. Many experts believe mini house-mounted turbines to be a waste of money and effort. - Planning permission is required. - Noise and shadow flicker should be considered although hardly an issue.

Wind Turbines

Learn More

Cost

Yearly Saving

CO₂ Saved

Feasability

£18,000

£300

900kg

-Planning permission is required.
- Your property is preferably not in a highly built up area. The turbine blades must be five meters above anything within a 30m radius.

Pros / Cons

Pros
- Zero emissions.
- Grants available.
- Vertical axis turbines are also available. These can cope much better with turbulent air currents found in urban/suburban areas.
Cons
- Obviously, if there’s no wind, there is no power. You can expect a wind turbine to generate about 28% of its stated peak capacity throughout the year.
- Location is essential. Some dispute over viability of urban/suburban micro wind as buildings (and trees for that matter) drastically affect wind strength and direction. Many experts believe mini house-mounted turbines to be a waste of money and effort.
- Planning permission is required.
- Noise and shadow flicker should be considered although hardly an issue.

Heat Pumps - Back to top

Learn More	Cost	Yearly Saving	CO₂ Saved	Feasability
£10,000	£300	3 tonnes	- Property is suitably insulated. - Underfloor heating will be incorporated. - Sufficient space and access is available to lay ground source piping or drill bore holes.
Pros / Cons
Pros - COP of around 4, meaning that for every kW of energy put in, 4kW of heat energy are produced. - When combined with underfloor heating, this technology optimizes its performance and can save enormous amounts of energy. - Can be combined with wind or solar power source for zero emissions. - Most ecological and economical and ecological if replacing fossil fuels other than gas. Cons - Best fitted to new builds or properties that are in the process of being renovated to modern building regulations and are therefore extremely well insulated. Installing in badly insulated properties will require the pump to work harder and even be assisted by a regular gas boiler, thereby negating any ecological and economical benefits intended. - A horizontal ground pipe system will require a large area of garden to be dug up or deep bore holes to be drilled, which will increase the costAir source heat pumps produce background noise similar to an air-conditioning unit.

Heat Pumps

Learn More

Cost

Yearly Saving

CO₂ Saved

Feasability

£10,000

£300

3 tonnes

- Property is suitably insulated.
- Underfloor heating will be incorporated.
- Sufficient space and access is available to lay ground source piping or drill bore holes.

Pros / Cons

Pros
- COP of around 4, meaning that for every kW of energy put in, 4kW of heat energy are produced.
- When combined with underfloor heating, this technology optimizes its performance and can save enormous amounts of energy.
- Can be combined with wind or solar power source for zero emissions.
- Most ecological and economical and ecological if replacing fossil fuels other than gas.
Cons
- Best fitted to new builds or properties that are in the process of being renovated to modern building regulations and are therefore extremely well insulated. Installing in badly insulated properties will require the pump to work harder and even be assisted by a regular gas boiler, thereby negating any ecological and economical benefits intended.
- A horizontal ground pipe system will require a large area of garden to be dug up or deep bore holes to be drilled, which will increase the costAir source heat pumps produce background noise similar to an air-conditioning unit.

Biomass - Back to top

Learn More	Cost	Yearly Saving	CO₂ Saved	Feasability
£10,000 (with back boiler and auto-feed)	£0 Fuel is similar in cost to fossil fuels	4 tonnes	- Planning permission may be required before a flue is fitted. - Fuel availability and storage should be considered. - System can also be reversed to provide cooling via chillers.
Pros / Cons
Pros - Carbon neutral as the carbon released in the burning process is offset by the carbon absorbed and oxygen released by the growing trees - Most economical and ecological when using locally sourced fuel Cons - Does require refuelling and cleaning. Some models come with automatic feeder and cleaner, but still require maintenance and top up every few months.

Biomass

Learn More

Cost

Yearly Saving

CO₂ Saved

Feasability

£10,000
(with back boiler and auto-feed)

£0
Fuel is similar in cost to fossil fuels

4 tonnes

- Planning permission may be required before a flue is fitted.
- Fuel availability and storage should be considered.
- System can also be reversed to provide cooling via chillers.

Pros / Cons

Pros
- Carbon neutral as the carbon released in the burning process is offset by the carbon absorbed and oxygen released by the growing trees
- Most economical and ecological when using locally sourced fuel
Cons
- Does require refuelling and cleaning. Some models come with automatic feeder and cleaner, but still require maintenance and top up every few months.

Combined Heat And Power (CHP) - Back to top

Learn More	Cost	Yearly Saving	CO₂ Saved	Feasability
To be confirmed	£300 (inc. fuel)	6 tonnes (if run on bio-fuel)	- Fuel availability must be considered. - A suitable out-building is available away from main property. - Planning permission may be required before a flue is fitted.
Pros / Cons
Pros - Electricity and hot water provided by a single system. - Can supply all a property’s energy needs even in the case of a complete grid failure. - Already available for commercial scale installations, the only true domestic micro-CHP due for launch in 2009 is gas powered, which releases a lot less carbon than burning other fossil fuels. - Future developments are likely to include bio-fuelled versions. Cons - Will require maintenance and as an internal combustion engine will produce some noise and vibration.

Energy Saving Light Bulbs

Learn More

Cost

Yearly Saving

CO₂ Saved

Feasability

To be confirmed

£300
(inc. fuel)

6 tonnes (if run on bio-fuel)

- Fuel availability must be considered.
- A suitable out-building is available away from main property.
- Planning permission may be required before a flue is fitted.

Pros / Cons

Pros
- Electricity and hot water provided by a single system.
- Can supply all a property’s energy needs even in the case of a complete grid failure.
- Already available for commercial scale installations, the only true domestic micro-CHP due for launch in 2009 is gas powered, which releases a lot less carbon than burning other fossil fuels. - Future developments are likely to include bio-fuelled versions.
Cons
- Will require maintenance and as an internal combustion engine will produce some noise and vibration.

Hydro - Back to top

Learn More	Cost	Yearly Saving	CO₂ Saved	Feasability
£20,000	£400	4 tonnes	- A year-round source of running water is available. - Planning permission will be required.
Pros / Cons
Pros - Reliable, free, quiet electricity. Cons - Few sites have the water flow and head (height) necessary.

Energy Saving Light Bulbs

Learn More

Cost

Yearly Saving

CO₂ Saved

Feasability

£20,000

£400

4 tonnes

- A year-round source of running water is available.
- Planning permission will be required.

Pros / Cons

Pros
- Reliable, free, quiet electricity.
Cons
- Few sites have the water flow and head (height) necessary.

Hybrid System - Back to top

Learn More	Cost	Yearly Saving	CO₂ Saved	Feasability
£30,000+	£1,000	6 tonnes	See above
Pros / Cons
Pros - Optimizes energy production in changeable weather conditions by combining different sources such as wind for overcast days and solar for fine days. Cons - Depending on the system, may require planning permission.

Energy Saving Light Bulbs

Learn More

Cost

Yearly Saving

CO₂ Saved

Feasability

£30,000+

£1,000

6 tonnes

See above

Pros / Cons

Pros
- Optimizes energy production in changeable weather conditions by combining different sources such as wind for overcast days and solar for fine days.
Cons
- Depending on the system, may require planning permission.

Based on average three-bed 1930’s semi-detached property. Figures are based on averages; they are not definitive and are affected by numerous variables.