Solar energy can be employed in the home in a variety of ways, from passive solar heating, which uses the orientation and design of the home to gather heat from the sun without collectors, to solar hot water to photovoltaic modules for electricity.

“One of the primary impediments to the industry is that the cost is up front and the savings are over time, meaning that it requires proactive, not reactive thinking,” explains Rob Harlan, Executive Director of the Solar Energy Society of Canada—Northern Alberta Chapter. “The competition­­—oil, coal and nuclear—is subsidized. If those subsidies were removed, renewable energy would compete quite well.”

Dave Vonesch, a solar technician with SkyFire Energy Inc. agrees, pointing out that compared to many investments these days, solar thermal, hot water and electric systems measure up fairly well. “As an investment, it’s not bad,” he says, explaining that solar hot water heating systems generally last upwards of 25 years, while solar electric systems are “a little more durable,” lasting 40 years or more.

Applications of solar energy can range from basically free in the case of passive solar to tens of thousands of dollars for a full array of photovoltaic modules on a large, conventional home.  The first issue most technicians will touch on in the initial consultation is efficiency in the home—before installing a system to heat or power a home it is crucial that all inefficiencies have been addressed.

In a new home still in the planning stages, there are many opportunities to drastically reduce heating and energy needs. These include super insulating the home first and foremost, installing Low-E windows, using high-efficiency appliances, and employing passive solar design.

According to Harlan, super-insulating a home (R56 in the exterior walls, R90 in the ceiling), meticulously preventing air leakage and adding a heat exchanger for proper ventilation can cut heating needs in half. By then using passive solar design methods such as orientating the house southward, maximizing south-facing glazing, using high quality, high performance windows and employing thermal mass to store the suns heat, you can take away almost 90 per cent of the heating needs of that home. 

Similar measures can be taken to decrease energy needs; this is another area that a solar technician will go over in great detail. Homeowners considering solar power must put a great deal of thought into which appliances they use most and how much power they will use on a monthly basis.

Thanks to the Micro-Generation Regulation, passed by the Alberta government in February 2008, Albertans now have the option of selling their extra energy back to the utility company. This means that during summer months, when the most energy is collected from the sun, a homeowner with a grid-tied solar electric system could sell the energy back to the utility company and in the winter, fall back on grid-supplied energy to fill in any gaps in the solar supply. Similarly, during the day when the homeowner is not there and the modules are collecting energy, the system feeds energy into grid. Meanwhile, in the evening the homeowner will be running appliances and drawing from grid while the sun is down.

Vonesch explains that most homeowners who decide to try solar start out with a solar hot water heating system. A two-panel system of this type will heat 55 per cent of the water needed for a typical home of four people. The advantage of such a system is that it is less expensive than a solar electric system and has a faster payback. Add to that the fact that the federal government grant for such a system (as a retrofit) is now $1,250 (under the EcoENERGY Retrofit—Homes program) and that the installation is also eligible for the Home Renovation Tax Credit (which would total approximately $1,000 on a two-collector system) and installing a solar hot water system looks pretty attractive.

The suitability of a home for photovoltaic panels depends on a number of factors, including shading from trees and other buildings as well as roof slope and orientation. Most homes are suitable, or can be made suitable, but solar panels will not work in some locations and on some homes. NL

Solar Innovations for Southern Alberta
A special presentation will be held August 8 from 9 to 4 p.m. at the Foothills Centennial Centre in Okotoks to solicit local support for the formation of a Southern Alberta Chapter of the Solar Energy Society of Canada Inc.

The event will feature expert speakers, hands-on workshops and the opportunity to meet like-minded people for networking and open discussion of related topics.

The Northern Alberta Chapter of the SESCI, based out of Edmonton, was formed in 1976 with the purpose of advancing the “awareness, understanding and promotion of the use of solar energy and energy conservation technologies” in northern Alberta (http://www.solaralberta.ca). The parent organization, SESCI, was formed in 1974.


For more information, visit http://www.sesci.ca and click on the Solar Innovations for Southern Alberta link or contact Naydene Lewis at .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address).