Cyprus-Forum.com

[ComeFlyWithMe]

I am building my home and I decided against the photovoltaic panels. They are expensive and until they pay back for their cost they would need to be changed. So they are not a very economical proposal right now. They should first become cheaper and more efficient and then everybody will have them. But in Cyprus most people have solar panels to help heat the water. These are rather cheap and they can last a lifetime so it makes sense to use them.

PV panels last a life time. They should last a minimum of 25 years. Some companies guarantee the panels for 30 years.

Sotos, I like to be self sufficient. So for me, they are worth it. Pay back time I calculated to be 6-8 years. But the best thing is that it is good for the environment.

I second this - they are not expensive in the long run.

[supporttheunderdog]

thanks for the vqarious comments

Solar driven Absorbtion chillers seem to be out of the question unless one has 4000 sq m to heat/cool - they seem also tio suffer from problems due to the nature of the common circulating coolent, such as Lithium Bromide, which can crystalise and cause corrosion in the pipes.

The Trombe walls and solar grabbers look intersting for virtually free heat but would probably cause problems in the summer, thoughand the window configeration at the sunny side of the house with two sliding doors militiates against easy installation of a heat grabber for winter, while a solar cube likewise seems to have potential for winter warming - one might with care be able to construct a combined heatgrabber and solar cube.

on the cooling side Geothermal wind pipes combined with a solar chimney look intersting, but the jogistics of burying upto 30m of pipe in a slope to depth of sat 2m could be expensive.

[kurupetos]

I am building my home and I decided against the photovoltaic panels. They are expensive and until they pay back for their cost they would need to be changed. So they are not a very economical proposal right now. They should first become cheaper and more efficient and then everybody will have them. But in Cyprus most people have solar panels to help heat the water. These are rather cheap and they can last a lifetime so it makes sense to use them.

PV panels last a life time. They should last a minimum of 25 years. Some companies guarantee the panels for 30 years.

Sotos, I like to be self sufficient. So for me, they are worth it. Pay back time I calculated to be 6-8 years. But the best thing is that it is good for the environment.

I second this - they are not expensive in the long run.

That's irrelevant. What is important is to understand that your home will still need to be connected with the grid.
Therefore PVs are just a supplementary solution, rather than an alternative.

[zenen]

All,

there are A.C units that work with solar energy. The panel is located on the compressor.

cheers.

[kurupetos]

All,

there are A.C units that work with solar energy. The panel is located on the compressor.

cheers.

Capacity? Lifetime? Cost?

[supporttheunderdog]

All,

there are A.C units that work with solar energy. The panel is located on the compressor.

cheers.

Capacity? Lifetime? Cost?

Night use??

[Pyrpolizer]

I have recently checked this matter. The A/C is a pure inverter type and works directly with DC.Hence It's very economical
It is just a little more expensive than the usual AC to DC inverter types
For 4 Room Air conditioners in the house about 12,000BTU each working 2-3 hours in daytime and 8 hours at night I needed
about 50 Photovoltaic Panels 1.2X0.7m each costing about 300 Euros.(I would do the installation myself) Total 15,000 Euro.
About 50! Deep Cycle batteries costing 250 each. Total 12,500 Euro
Controllers for charging the batteries from the PVs total cost about 1000 Euro

I would get 50% subsidy from the Government but then I heard they have no money for this at the moment.
assuming I would get the subsidy i would break even in about 8 years.

The TRICKY THING however is the batteries. You need to change them every 4 years. And you don't get any subsidy after the first installation.

My conclusion:
1)YOU NEVER BREAK EVEN
2) You pay for the batteries ALONE much more than you would pay running your Air conditioners from the Electricity grid.
3)You need too much space on the roof (I doubt I have 50 square meters on the roof facing South) and a whole ventilated room for the batteries.


NB. I thought in winter I could utilize the power from the batteries using inverters (which also cost a lot) and calculated everything, still there is no breaking even.

NB2. Perhaps it is better to use PVs and sell whatever you produce to the Electricity authority. You pay X per KWH you use, they pay you something like 2X for what you sell them. I heard many people do this, but haven't personally checked it.Any info anyone>?

[kurupetos]

I have recently checked this matter. The A/C is a pure inverter type and works directly with DC.Hence It's very economical
It is just a little more expensive than the usual AC to DC inverter types
For 4 Room Air conditioners in the house about 12,000BTU each working 2-3 hours in daytime and 8 hours at night I needed
about 50 Photovoltaic Panels 1.2X0.7m each costing about 300 Euros.(I would do the installation myself) Total 15,000 Euro.
About 50! Deep Cycle batteries costing 250 each. Total 12,500 Euro

When the govt needs to subsidise investments, it simply means they are not sustainable.
Also technology improves very fast, which means you better buy products with low purchase cost. Otherwise the risk becomes very high for obvious reasons.

[SKI-preo]

In australia a small unit for a lounge room costs about $5000 AUD.

If the predictions for Natural gas wealth are true maybe Natural gas aircond is a good idea. You can also get Fridges et cetera than run on Gas.

[zenen]

All,

there are A.C units that work with solar energy. The panel is located on the compressor.

cheers.

Capacity? Lifetime? Cost?

I havent searched the whole idea yet. What I know of though (...well maybe is some models), is that the unit works normally during sunlight and in night it switches back to normal power supply.

One guy in Larnaca deals with these AC for the moment, but I am sure many will follow