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Sat in their idyllic garden under the apple tree, alongside the family home they built more than a decade ago, Joyce and Alec Jordan have found their own little piece of paradise.
The couple, both celebrating their 80th birthdays this year, moved to the Norfolk
countryside after bringing up their children in Kent. The house was built to fully
capitalise on the moving trajectory of the sun throughout the day, with an immense
window forming the showpiece in the dining hall.
“The early morning sun comes into the bedroom,” explains Joyce. “My kitchen gets it all through the morning then the conservatory, and then it comes directly into our big solar window. We had this built by a local craftsman and it was based on a similar one at Strangers Hall in Norwich.”
Choosing a solar PV system was an easy decision for the couple, who already had a thermal set-up for water heating. “We belong to the Centre for Alternative Technology,” continues Joyce. “They were really the first people to start The initiatives and we’ve always had a keen interest in what they do. Even when we built the house, we made sure it was well insulated in the roof and under the floors and had the
walls made extra thick.”
Alec and Joyce openly admit their motives were not really financial, although the payback has been reassuring. “We had £9000 in an ISA and it made just £46 interest in a year,” shrugs Alec. “We paid £12,000 for the PV and we’ve already had two payments of £150. It is making much, much more money than if it was in the bank.”
In terms of electricity generation, the 1.845kWp system is making a big impression on the pair. While they acknowledge that they use a lot of the energy themselves, Alec and Joyce estimate that 8kW is being exported to the grid each day. “Everything here is electricity so this really is a benefit to us and we’re off setting our usage the whole time,” enthuses Joyce. “It is like watching your bank balance grow without having to do anything to it! The electricity company thinks we’ll have generated over 1000kW by the end of the year.”
*Estimated CO2 Saving is based upon 0.529 kg CO2/kWh (kg/yr)
Meet the Jordans in Norfolk
Type of installation: Solar PV, 1.845kWp, 14.95m² array
At a glance: the facts and figures for a rural self-build detached bungalow
Date of installation Sep 2010 Annual SAP 2009 calculation:
System size 1.845 kWp
Panel array 45°, W facing roof
Est. CO2 saving* 666.81kg/yr
Est. total yearly benefit £ 666.18
1596 kWh
per annum
