What do they do?: Promoting sun-powered energy in Ireland is no joke, Xavier Dubuisson tells Bernice Harrison.
After a blazing hot summer and unseasonably warm August, Xavier Dubuisson's job is bound to be a bit easier. The Belgian is the solar energy expert for Sustainable Energy Ireland (SEI), the Government-funded body charged with making us all more energy aware. It's his task to convince builders and the home-owning public that solar energy in Ireland isn't some sort of Irish joke.
"In fact Ireland compares very well with other European countries such as Holland and Belgium in terms of solar energy potential," he says, adding that where he lives in West Cork is equivalent in solar terms to Paris. For solar energy to work it doesn't need blazing sunshine; energy can be harnessed from diffused sunlight - and apparently we get a lot of that.
At the start of the summer he "put his money where his mouth is" and installed a solar water heating system in his own house. The family home now boasts solar panels on the roof and a new 300 litre hot water tank. They have had constant hot water since then, only had to turn on their immersion three times since July - and then it was to boost the water temperature from 45 to 60 degrees.
The cost of installation was €4,000 and he estimates that the payback time will be around 15 years. "For me the financial savings were not the main argument," he says, "there's a feel-good factor about knowing that we are tapping into a renewable energy source and my children are now more sensitive to what's happening with the weather and the environment.
"One square metre of ground or roof can produce the equivalent of 100 litres of oil," says Xavier "or over 1,000 kilowatt hours of energy." His solar water heater will, he believes, also add value to the house if he ever comes to selling it.
The optimum time to look into solar energy is when you're building your house, that way you can think of orientation as well as installing the necessary hardware. However, people can make their houses more sun smart by maximise solar gains in the building (through good orientation and layout, and glazing); avoid heat losses through ensuring a high level of insulation and air-tightness of the building; and ensure a high degree of comfort by using controlled ventilation and daylighting.
Anyone building a new house or extensively refurbishing an existing house should, according to SEI, apply passive solar principles, and reduce their heating requirement by up to 80 per cent at no, or little, extra cost. Over three million households use a solar heating system in Europe.
Solar water heating would appear to be a relatively affordable first step for people interested in cutting their energy bills and doing their best for the environment by saving on precious non-renewable natural resources. It is possible for solar energy to power lighting and other appliances but the investment is more difficult to recoup. When Xavier came to live here from Belgium he was quite amazed not just by how wasteful people are of non-renewable energy sources but the degree to which we are prepared to put up with chilly rooms and the level of discomfort that brings.
"But people are getting more demanding, he says. "I talk to solar heating contractors every day and they say that sales are up by 150 per cent." The SEI has a list of contractors and Xavier advises people to get three quotes before proceeding with the work. "While I can't recommend any one contractor, I can talk homeowners through their requirements and help them see if the quote they are getting suits their needs."
Xavier Dubuisson can be contacted through SEI's hotline 023-42193. www.sei.ie
This column appears fortnightly
