So what are the best solar panels for the irish climate

trixyben

I am going to do a solar installation and have only the panles left to purchase, with so many different kinds I was wondering if anyone could advise which they went for or would suggest to go for...

I dont mind paying top dollar as long as they are the best of the best for are climate.

Cheers

saibhne

trixyben wrote: »

I am going to do a solar installation and have only the panles left to purchase, with so many different kinds I was wondering if anyone could advise which they went for or would suggest to go for...

I dont mind paying top dollar as long as they are the best of the best for are climate.

Cheers

Hi Trixyben,

Different panels behave differently depending on their location and their interaction with the whole system (size of cylinder, household water use, shading etc..) If you PM me the details of your system I can run a few models for you to see what might come out best in your situation.

S.

trixyben

just checking if anyone could recommend a quality solar panel...

theres quite a lot of choice but what is the bees knees in panels here, price is no object as looking for the best here,

cheers

tomwest

Hi,
I am also looking at buying a solar tube system for my new build. Thermomax from Kingspan looks the best but its quiet expensive.Does anyone have any other suggestions to look at that have a good guarantee. I am not interested in the cheap imports from the far east.

Tom

Evergreen

trixyben wrote: »

I am going to do a solar installation and have only the panles left to purchase, with so many different kinds I was wondering if anyone could advise which they went for or would suggest to go for...

I dont mind paying top dollar as long as they are the best of the best for are climate.

Cheers

There are plenty of panels on the market, some good and some rubbish, but I suppose that the question most people have to ask themselves is whether or not to go flat plate or evacuated tube?

The common theme on the market is that evacuated tube are more efficeint and therefore that is the type to go for regardless. However, the variation in quality of evacuated tube panels is much greater than the variation in quality of flat plate panels. You can get top quality flat plate panels that will give you a better output than medium and lower quality evaucated tube panels.

Be wary of the sales man who only wants to talk in terms of output per square meter of aperture. I'll give you an example. I have installed two different types of evacuated tube panels, from the same manufacturer - one of them has a rated output of 650/m aperture and the other is rated at 840/m aperture. On face value the 850 option looks way better. However, if you then convert the ouptut to gross area (in other words the amount of roof coverd by panels). However, the 650 panel is 1.0m aperture and 1.15m gross giving an output of 565.22 per square meter of roof covered, wheras as the 850 panel has an aperure area of 1.31m and gross of 2.32m giving an output of 479.95 per meter of roof area it covers - giving the 650 17% better output per square meter of roof covered than the 850 model.

Other things to consider when choosing solar panels are esthetics, in my opinion flat plate panels look way better than tubes, especially the integrated version.

After that it is really up to personal preference.

yop

Evergreen wrote: »

There are plenty of panels on the market, some good and some rubbish, but I suppose that the question most people have to ask themselves is whether or not to go flat plate or evacuated tube?

The common theme on the market is that evacuated tube are more efficeint and therefore that is the type to go for regardless. However, the variation in quality of evacuated tube panels is much greater than the variation in quality of flat plate panels. You can get top quality flat plate panels that will give you a better output than medium and lower quality evaucated tube panels.

Be wary of the sales man who only wants to talk in terms of output per square meter of aperture. I'll give you an example. I have installed two different types of evacuated tube panels, from the same manufacturer - one of them has a rated output of 650/m aperture and the other is rated at 840/m aperture. On face value the 850 option looks way better. However, if you then convert the ouptut to gross area (in other words the amount of roof coverd by panels). However, the 650 panel is 1.0m aperture and 1.15m gross giving an output of 565.22 per square meter of roof covered, wheras as the 850 panel has an aperure area of 1.31m and gross of 2.32m giving an output of 479.95 per meter of roof area it covers - giving the 650 17% better output per square meter of roof covered than the 850 model.

Other things to consider when choosing solar panels are esthetics, in my opinion flat plate panels look way better than tubes, especially the integrated version.

After that it is really up to personal preference.

Evergreen for the 650 model what sort of euro are you talking for the panels only?
Tanks are about 1200 spots I think?

Brookie123

Starting to build our house & we obviously have to have a renewable source of heat & energy to comply with the 2008 regulations. We are almost certain that we will use solar panels. However I'm clueless about them & we don't have a big budget but still want good solar panels. Can anyone guide me with regards to the types of solar panels & prices??

quentingargan

tomwest wrote: »

Hi,
I am also looking at buying a solar tube system for my new build. Thermomax from Kingspan looks the best but its quiet expensive.Does anyone have any other suggestions to look at that have a good guarantee. I am not interested in the cheap imports from the far east.

Tom

Hi Tom,

80% of all solar panels made in the world are made in China. Their vacuum flask systems are, by and large, simple and reliable, provided they have the proper certification etc. Chinese flasks are often used in panels which are part made or just re-badged elsewhere.

There is a slight problem with certification because all the systems look very similar, so someone might get a cert from company X in China, register with SEAI, but then buy panels from company Y. I've also seen forged certificates. Caveat Emptor.

All vacuum systems will lose their vacuum after 15 to 20 years, and the advantage of Chinese flasks is that the replacements are very cheap - about €5 per tube. Also, all the Chinese systems come in standard sizes so the replacement components are pretty much generic.

I agree with Evergreen about the appearance of flatplates, and have worked with both. In broad terms, both systems are equally efficient in summer, but if you want to extend your solar season into spring and autumn, vacuum systems with their higher levels of insulation tend to work far better. If your house is well insulated, and you aren't running the heating until late Oct / early Nov, then vacuum systems have a great advantage.

In a house where the heating comes on in September, the saving is less. (When the heating is on, your hot water is relatively cheap compared to using electricity or running the boiler just for hot water).

ActingDanClark

quentingargan-pardon my ignorance-when you refer to vacuum systems you mean evacuated tubes yeah? also-buy and pay a plumber, or get a package and qualify for grant??
apologies if this has been answered a thousand times before-tried ploughing through some of the threads but simply surrendered!!

quentingargan

damian139 wrote: »

quentingargan-pardon my ignorance-when you refer to vacuum systems you mean evacuated tubes yeah? also-buy and pay a plumber, or get a package and qualify for grant??

Yes - evacuated and vacuum are the same thing.

I have a commercial interest, so you may get other responses to this, but I would go for the grant option. In the good old days, installers might have been making profits that swallowed up the value of the grant, but those days are long gone....

Sometimes grants come with ludicrous terms and conditions, but I don't think there is any requirement in the SEAI scheme that I would consider unnecessary.

That said, the fact that an installer is on the SEAI list doesn't mean much. There has been some very iffy training. So I would go on recommendations from people who have had work done. As usualy with the building trade....