Solar panel power and power showers..

For a while now we have been of the opinion that power showers are the hungriest system available for washing, hungry on water and hungry on energy. Unilever have recently released a study which backs this up and dispels the commonly held notion that taking baths uses more energy than a shower. This is true in the case of normal gravity fed showers with a low flow rate but high pressure power showers can easily deliver over 100 litres of water in one shower, twice the amount of water and twice the amount of energy than a standard non pressurised shower!

€1050 per year to heat water

The study states that “while the average bath uses 80 litres of water, extended shower times (as well as more powerful systems) can use up to 136 liters in just 8 minutes. For the average four person household, this equates to a staggering 200,000 liters of hot water per year at a cost of £918 in water and electricity. In comparison, non-power showers, which use less water only run up costs of £416 a year.”

Water heating accounts for 25% of our energy bills

£918 pounds is about €1050. This includes water charges currently payable in the UK but will be soon part of our bills in Ireland. Water heating is accounts for approximately 25% of heating bills in the UK so in Ireland we probably aren’t far off this figure particularly in new build houses which have efficient space heating systems. Speaking to The Independent, Jacob Tompkins, managing director of Waterwise, said “showers are an increasingly large part of the mix in terms of the amount of water we use. The energy associated with heating water in the home is about 5 per cent of UK CO2 emissions and it’s around a quarter of energy bills.”

Solar panels are part of the solution

People often underestimate the amount of money they spend on heating water in the home but it is becoming far more important to look at upgrading all of the heating systems in our home not just the boiler. Solar panel systems are capable of heating water in a cost effective and clean way, they are not the full answer but they are a big part of the solution!