Solar-Powered Bathing
‘Bring me sunshine, in your smile. Bring me laughter, all the while…’ Do I need to carry on? Morecambe and Wise were immune to global warming. Theirs was a world where the sun always shone and it has been a darker place since they left. Now we have to make do with promises of a brighter future brought on not by two pitch-perfect comedians beaming out from our TV screens, but by the eco ideal of a non-fossil-fuel future.
As someone who is installing energy into a house that has limped along since the Georgian period on the bare minimum, it is difficult not to be seduced by the idea that there is a cheaper, more world-friendly alternative out there. Solar panels are, apparently, the way forward. In essence, Hastings seems like the ideal place to plaster your roof with these large ray-sucking constructions.
According to official council records, Hastings would be the very best place to experiment with this new-world idea; the sun shone here for 2,010 hours in 2011 (the most recent year for which records exist). ‘We are very proud to say that we’re definitely first when it comes to the amount of hours of sunshine we have every year and, of course, we’re the best place in the UK to live and visit, so come to Hastings and St Leonards and enjoy a sunnier holiday,’ the council boasted.
Inevitably, like all bullish claims, there were challengers and in this case it came from the sedate neighbours down at Eastbourne. The retirement haven recorded an average of five hours and 23 minutes of sunshine each day in 2011. Its 273.9 hours of sunshine in April was almost 100 hours more than the long-term average.
I am not a meteorologist, I am not even someone who pays that much attention to the weather forecast, but I do know that I have had my mac on for most of the year. But that didn’t stop me being seduced momentarily by the notion of having my bath water delivered (for free).
For those prepared to pay £5,000 to £8,000 for the installation, there are savings to be had. According to the experts, solar panels can save the typical home £90 to £180 per year in electricity.
Not that it is a novel concept. Solar heating has been with us for over 2,500 years. In AD 200 the Romans passed a judgement protecting the right of sun access from the shading of a building. Sadly they didn’t pass a law insisting that the sun would always shine. Only Eric and Ernie promised that.
Next week: eBay addiction
As someone who is installing energy into a house that has limped along since the Georgian period on the bare minimum, it is difficult not to be seduced by the idea that there is a cheaper, more world-friendly alternative out there. Solar panels are, apparently, the way forward. In essence, Hastings seems like the ideal place to plaster your roof with these large ray-sucking constructions.
According to official council records, Hastings would be the very best place to experiment with this new-world idea; the sun shone here for 2,010 hours in 2011 (the most recent year for which records exist). ‘We are very proud to say that we’re definitely first when it comes to the amount of hours of sunshine we have every year and, of course, we’re the best place in the UK to live and visit, so come to Hastings and St Leonards and enjoy a sunnier holiday,’ the council boasted.
Inevitably, like all bullish claims, there were challengers and in this case it came from the sedate neighbours down at Eastbourne. The retirement haven recorded an average of five hours and 23 minutes of sunshine each day in 2011. Its 273.9 hours of sunshine in April was almost 100 hours more than the long-term average.
I am not a meteorologist, I am not even someone who pays that much attention to the weather forecast, but I do know that I have had my mac on for most of the year. But that didn’t stop me being seduced momentarily by the notion of having my bath water delivered (for free).
For those prepared to pay £5,000 to £8,000 for the installation, there are savings to be had. According to the experts, solar panels can save the typical home £90 to £180 per year in electricity.
Not that it is a novel concept. Solar heating has been with us for over 2,500 years. In AD 200 the Romans passed a judgement protecting the right of sun access from the shading of a building. Sadly they didn’t pass a law insisting that the sun would always shine. Only Eric and Ernie promised that.
Next week: eBay addiction