T
he installation project in Surrey Hills is a fantastic example of a fully integrated sustainable energy solution. Not only did the customer install a 1.5khw PV Solar Tile system but the additional low grade heating and cooling benefits supplied by PV Solar Energy were also part of the plan, creating added value from thermal energy capture.
Useful winter heat is collected from the solar array by adding low-cost ducting and fans. Air cools PV cells, and recovers waste heat that is used for space heating to improve comfort.
Warmth stored in the building interior can persist, delaying the need to use additional heating. The array cools down on summer nights and the same system can be used for cooling air.
Inside view of the roof of the house at Surry Hills, where the air heating has been installed and is being monitored for performance.
Warm air to heat rooms in winter with summer options too. In summer heat can be exhausted through roof vents or used to improve the efficiency of a hot water heat pump system. Heat pump water heaters produce cold air as a by-product that could be used in a kitchen pantry for example.
Alternately the air ducting from the roof space can work in reverse in summer as it will extract warm air from below by a chimney effect – even without a fan! At night the system can produce cool air brought down from the PV roof.
