Solar Thermal FAQ

Yes if your home has a roof that faces South / South West / South East / West / East.

No planning permission is needed in the vast majority of cases. If you live in a conservation area or in a listed building planning permission may need to be obtained.

The UK receives plenty of the suns radiation to work very effectively, especially in the south of England where we are lucky to get more than the north. Generally the system should be able to supply all of your hot water heating requirements from March through until October, and even in winter it can substantially supplement your required water heating.

Ideally 3m x2m, as this will provide enough room for a substantial 3kw system, which is all most homes need, however smaller lower output systems can be installed for smaller roofs.

Realistically approximately 1000kWh per year per kW of system installed. For example a 3kW system would produce 3000kWh per year approximately. Take a look at your currently annual gas / electricity bill from March through until October to see how much of your current usage you can attribute to heating your hot water, as during this time is can be completely replaced with your own Solar produced hot water.

As each system is tailored to the property to which it is fitted on, a technical survey is required to give you an accurate quote. However to help give you an idea, and using a typical scenario, a fully installed system, registered and connected to the Renewable Heat Incentive Scheme, and including a new thermal ready cylinder, will cost approximately £4000.

Please contact us to discuss your requirements, and if you like we can arrange for technical survey to give you a precise quote.

One of our full time employed, non-commission based surveyors will visit your home to take more exact readings of your homes orientation, pitch of roof, shade factors, roof strength, as well as to help you assess your hot water heating requirements

The survey is required not only to be able to properly asses you property in term of being able to give you an accurate quote, but also adhere to the MCS (renewable energy installation governing body’s) standards, which requires us to give you the customer the most accurate data possible on how effective the proposed system will be.

Unlike most solar companies we are completely against the use of the typical hard sell techniques used by so many solar firms. We cannot stress enough that it isn’t an untrained commission based hard sell sales rep that will be visiting your home, but rather a fully trained technical surveyor who is there to give you the information required and answer any questions you may have. We hate hard sell sales reps ourselves, so we don’t believe that is something you should have to endure either – our team is there to help, however as intelligent consumers all decision making should be left to you to decide in your own way and in your own time.

The whole survey process should take less than 45 minutes.

Yes you can. As standard we install for you what we believe to be the best quality and value panels available at the time. This is judged not only by the specifications from the manufacturer, but also from the installation experiences of our installers, who are able to assess the quality feel of one panel over another – some panels simply feel stronger and better made than others.

We are not tied to a particular manufacturer in order that we can maintain that flexibility to provide for our customers the very best product available at the time.

It also means that we are free to install any equipment a customer wishes. So if there is a particular make of panel you would specifically like us to install for you, then please let us know and we will source and quote accordingly.

This will of course vary depending on how much energy you use to heat your water, the size of system installed, as well as factors such as the direction of your roof.

Using a Solar Thermal system you will be producing your own hot water, thus greatly reducing the amount of gas / electricity you need to buy in from your current supplier.

Take a look at your currently annual gas / electricity bill from March through until October to see how much of your current usage you can attribute to heating your hot water (typically about 30% of a standard domestic gas bill), as during this time is can be completely replaced with your own Solar produced hot water. Based on a typical 3kW system example, that can produce 3000kWh of heated water over a year which is approximately £200 worth of gas / electricity you will not need to purchase in.

Please use the calculator in the calculators section to work out what you are likely to save. The calculators used are on independent government backed sites, so you can rest assured that the estimates they give are completely achievable, as opposed to the unrealistic calculators you may see on some commercial solar sales sites.

As well as saving the amount of energy you need to pay for you will also be eligible to be paid extra for using your own produced energy through the through the Renewable Heat Incentive.

As well as the savings you can make by needing less energy from your supplier, through the Clean Energy Cash Back Scheme you will also be paid 19.2p per kWh of energy you produce through your solar Thermal system.

This 19.51p per kWh is paid to you even though you will be using the energy you create yourself in your own home. You are effectively getting paid for doing your bit to help the environment – it’s a thank you from the government for being a part of the solution to the planets problems rather than being a continued user of the non-sustainable energy produced by the big power companies.

For current Solar Thermal installations this generous payment is fixed for the next 7 years, giving you plenty to repay your initial investment.

Please use the calculator in the calculators section to work out what you are likely to earn. The calculators used are on independent government backed sites, so you can rest assured that the estimates they give are completely achievable, as opposed to the unrealistic calculators you may see on some commercial solar sales sites.

Using a typical well performing 3kW system example you should expect your solar Thermal system to have completely paid for itself in savings and Renewable Heat Incentive earnings in about 7 years. As the Solar Thermal system should last around 20+ years, this still leaves a further 13+ years of savings, with the current renewable heat incentive earnings for solar installs for the time being are guaranteed for the next 7 years, turning your Solar system into a profitable investment for many years from its likely completed initial investment repayment.

Please use the calculator in calculators section to work out what you are likely to earn. The calculators used are on independent government backed sites, so you can rest assured that the estimates they give are completely achievable, as opposed to the unrealistic calculators you may see on some commercial solar sales sites.

There is no need for you to do anything. As your MCS installer, Gem solar will take care of everything for you.

No regular system maintenance is required at all. The solar panels have a self cleaning coating, which means the rain will keep your panels clean for you.

Yes it does as there is still a certain amount of the suns ambient radiation, however it works better on a nice sunny day.

If enough panels are installed the answer is in theory yes, however it may only be possible to contribute to the hot water required for central heating system, however we will to survey your home to see if a thermal store system is suitable. In most cases the answer would be no, and the solar thermal system is really only suitable for heating domestic hot water.

Also in the winter months when you need your central heating the most it is when the solar thermal system is working least effectively.

Our advice is to consider Solar Thermal an effective and efficient solution to your hot water requirements and not central heating necessarily.

If you are looking for a renewable energy system that can provide both your hot water and central heating, perhaps a Bio Mass boiler or Air Source Heat Pump should be considered, which work very well in conjunction with a solar thermal system.

Yes it can, with you using the boiler if you need additional hot water (for example in the winter months) and using the boiler to generate heat for your central heating system.

The main consideration will be that you will need to have a domestic hot water tank installed if you do not already have one, which simply requires space for the hot water tank to be located.

When we install a Solar Thermal System it is essential to have a modern efficient multi-coil water tank to get the most of the system, so we will install a suitable new water tank as part of the installation. The cost of this is included in our overall system price.

Very little. The vast majority of the work is done outside of the house, and the internal work involved will take less than a day, and you will only be left without hot water for a few hours. A typical install can be completed within 3 days, and we will ensure that any scaffolding required is removed immediately following the completion of the install.

Our installers are all full-time employed by Gem Solar and we don’t use any external third party contractors. As a result you can rest assured that our installers are polite and professional, efficient and clean and tidy – the very best around.

How long will it take from placing my order to get the system installed?

Typically we can have a system installed and up and running on your house within 3 weeks, but we will always try and fit around your requirements and will always try and get it done sooner if you need us to. Equally if you wish to order more than a month before you would like it installed we can delay installation until whatever date you request.

This very much depends on your water heating energy usage primarily. Typically 1.5m2 or 0.75kW per person living in your household. The bigger the system you can afford and can accommodate, the more hot water you can produce year round, and, the greater your potential long term earnings and savings from the system.

The most important thing is to make sure you get a system large enough to supply the hot water you require, and we will make sure you are advised accordingly.

Conservative estimates for the current standard of the technology and the high standard of the panels that we install, you should expect a system life span of at least 20 years +.