Find an Electrician you can trust in Newbiggin-by-the-sea.

If you’re thinking about installing a solar thermal system in your house, it’s always important to put into consideration numerous factors before you proceed. While some solar thermal systems are suitable for use at home, there are also some that are suitable for businesses or organizations which normally requires a big amount of hot water like hotels, restaurants, schools, hospitals and many more. You’ll also find some types available in the market that are suitable for communities to satisfy communal hot water demands.

It should, however, be noted that solar thermal systems do not have the capacity to produce all the hot water demand of a house. In the UK, an average household will need an annual water heating of between 3000kWh to 5000kWh. Whereas, a solar thermal system is only able to meet about 40 percent to 60 percent of this demand.

With that in mind, it’s also worth noting that during the summer months when the solar radiation is at its peak and hot water demand is relatively lower when compared to other seasons, a solar thermal system may be able to provide all of your household’s hot water needs. This implies that during this period you may not find the need to operate your boiler at all. However, during winter or colder months, when you have a higher hot water demands in contrary to a lower solar radiation, a solar thermal system will only be able to take care of about 20 percent of your household’s hot water needs. And that ultimately implies that during this period, you’ll need to rely more on a alternative or backup source of heat like gas, coal, electricity, oil or LPG.

How Many Solar Panels And Batteries Do I Need?

Are you presently considering adding a solar system to your home? With several homeowners in the UK using solar now, many more are realizing the numerous benefits they stand to derive by getting one. Therefore, if you’re thinking about adding the system to your home but do not know where to start, you’ve come to the right place.

Here, we’ll help you calculate the number of solar panels and batteries you’ll need to power your home. Starting from the panels, you can begin by taken into account everything that makes use of power in your home to get a good idea of how many you’ll need.

• Firstly, you’ll have to determine the number of watts you use. Simply go through your utility bill for kilowatt-hours (kWh). This varies amongst homes and being able to identify your daily average energy usage will assist you in getting your solar needs.

• Secondly, you have to determine the peak sunlight hours - having in mind that the solar panels only work when under direct sunlight. Once determined, you can then multiply the figure in hours by your home’s hourly energy usage and divide by your selected solar panel’s wattage.

Generally for a 1500 square foot house, you might need around 15 to 18 solar panels to cover the house’s electricity.

Meanwhile for batteries, there are also some factors to be considered to determine the number of batteries you’ll need for your house. These factors include your home’s power or electricity usage, the period of time in which the battery will be used as well as the battery’ specifications. Once done, you’ll be able to calculate the number of batteries required by your home.

If you’re thinking about getting a solar thermal system for your home, it’s normal to consider the possibility of using the system for central heating. So is this viable? In this article, you’ll learn how solar thermal panels can be incorporated for heating. Let’s have a closer look!

Heating and hot water systems, on the average, takes up a sizeable part ( up to 70 percent) of our energy bills. Now take a moment to imagine how cool it’ll be to generate your own hot water for free without having to depend on any supplier which in turn significantly reduces your energy bills. Well, this is exactly the work of central heating systems that are powered by solar. That’s super cool, right? Well, let’s have a look at how this works.

While solar panels generates electricity, solar thermal panels produces heat for hot water production. However, what’s important is the fact that they both make use of the sun’s natural energy to provide us with a free and renewable energy we can use in our homes. Here’s how it works.

Solar thermal panels directed at central heating incorporates the sun’s natural energy to heat water in a storage cylinder which is then available for use at home. These solar thermal panels are exposed to the sunlight by fitting them on the roof of the home. Generally, they’ll include tubes that contains liquid whose job is to collect the heat and then transfer it to a hot water cylinder that’s solar compatible in your home. The heat is generated for free and is also renewable. This is help you save lots of money on oil, gas and even electricity which you purchase to power the cylinder.

Are Electric Radiators Expensive To Run?

Just like many home additions, the running costs of electric radiators varies largely on a number of factors. Great number of electric radiators typically comes with an in built thermostat which is designed to turn itself off automatically when not in use in order to save energy.

However the energy provider’s set electricity charge tariff will also have a great influence on an electric radiator’s running cost. Let’s take a look at the running costs of an electric radiator!

A 600 Watt electric radiator ( on a standard electricity tariff) will usually have a running cost ranging between 4 to 6 pence each hour. However you should also take note that this scenario might change in situations whereby the electric radiator is not calling for heat the full 60 minutes of each hour. And this is more likely to be the situation as the thermostat is programmed in such a way that enables it to turn itself off immediately there’s an achievement of your required room temperature level - usually within 10 minutes from the time it was switched on. As a result of this, the running cost per hour of electric radiators will be greatly reduced to just about 1 to 2 pence.

It’s also important to note that enhancing the insulation of your home can go a long way to add to the heat retention value of each room. Consequently, the duration at which the electric radiator calls more heating will be significantly reduced, which in turn, implies a lower electricity bill.

Another key factor that can play a huge role in saving on your heating bills is the programming as well as usage of your electric radiators. Every radiator comes with an independent digital thermostat with a number of 24/7 programming options to help achieve maximum efficiency. When the radiator is properly set according to your lifestyle, you can save as much as 50 percent on your heating bills.

Fuse box prices will vary and a periodic inspection should be carried out first. However, domestic fuse boxes cost an average of £460. A qualified electrician will advise if yours needs to be replaced and it's always a good idea to obtain a number of quotes before committing to this.

Registered Electricians will certainly work in uniformity with the UK nationwide criterion, BS 7671 - Demands for Electrical Installations. They will certainly provide a safety and security certification for their electric work to verify that the setup has actually been created, built, evaluated and evaluated, based on the standard.

You should guarantee that your selected Electrical installer is signed up with one of the adhering to companies:

• BRE Certification Ltd
• British Standards Institution.
• ELECSA Ltd
• NAPIT Registration Ltd
• NICEIC Group Ltd
• SELECT (Scotland)
• STROMA

There’s a need to ensure that all the paperwork are in place,before putting your house up for sale on the property market. An very good example of such essential document is the Electrical Installation Certificate (EIC) which is used as a proof to attest to the fact that the electrical installation works carried out on the property in question was actually done and also whether or not it satisfies the building regulations. It’ll be a contravention of the law to put your house up for sale or actually sell it without producing this important document. Therefore, if you’re looking to sell your house you may wish to know the electrical documentations you need to complete the task. In this post, we aim to provide you an in depth insight into the electrical certificates needed to sell your house while also helping you make informed decisions along the process. Let’s take a look!

You’ll need to obtain two certificates in the event whereby the electrical work done was performed by a registered and qualified electrician. The two documents include:

• The Building Regulations Compliance Certificate - This is provided to confirm that the electrical works done complies with the Building regulations.
• The Electrical Installation Certificate (EIC), alternatively you can have a Minor Electrical Installation Works Certificate which is provided to confirm that the electrical works done satisfies the BS 7671.

In addition, the local building control body must be provided with a copy of these documents. In such an event whereby the electrical work was completed after 2013 and either it was done by yourself or by an individual who isn’t a registered professional, then there’s a need to make sure that work is inspected by a registered third party certifier within 5 days of completion. If the work is found to be satisfactory, you’ll be issued a copy of an Electrical Installation Condition Report.

For most homeowners, rewiring a house is always a sore subject they’d prefer to avoid especially when they think of the expenses they’d have to incur or the mess and complexity that the project involves. However, this is a subject we’d all have to face sooner or later as an old wiring poses a lot of drawbacks, while an improper wiring can also prove to be more expensive and even cause more damage as it can lead to not only electrical shorts but also electrical fires. When a wire triggers a spark or a current overload, this can cause fire and the entire house may be down in ashes within a couple of minutes. Hence, one of the several reasons why house rewiring is just too important to ignore.

In this FAQ, we’re going to take you through the house rewiring process so as to ensure that your project is done to perfection. However, if you do not feel confident enough to pull this off, we’d strongly recommend you get in touch with a reliable electrical professional who can guarantee that a safe and effective work is done.

• Firstly, you’d have to upgrade the main service panel to a minimum of 100 amps
• Fit dedicated circuits in the service panel for all the home’s major appliances.
• Allow for a space of about 6 to 8 feet between electrical outlets throughout the house in order to cut out the need to run extension cords which could be a fire hazard.
• Install only three-prong type to avoid electrical shocks when fitting new outlets.
• Using ground fault circuit interrupters, fit outlets in the bathrooms, kitchen as well as outdoors. These outlets will shut themselves out so as to prevent electrical shock when wet.