Is there such a thing?

**Snadger** · 12-11-2006, 06:17 PM

Originally posted by Fezinio View Post

Hi all,

Reading about winter frost and greenhouse heating etc etc

I was wondering........................................

Is there such a thing as a solar powered heater?

This could charge up during the daylight and work through the night keeping greenhouse warm. Plus it would keep the bills down

If there isn't have I just missed a chance to be a millionaire and should have patened the idea

Fezinio

I think some of the new energy efficient houses have in- built solar panels which help to heat the house......wouldn't be a problem to extend the pipes to the greenhouse methinks!
To do it solely for a greenhouse would probably not be cost efficient, but with technology moving so fast maybe it will be soon!

**Lesley Jay** · 12-11-2006, 06:37 PM

I am sure you can buy small solar panels that you could put in your garden. It would just be a case of rigging it up to a heater.

**Fezinio** · 12-11-2006, 06:40 PM

Maybe I am barking up the wrong tree here but solar lights are readily available for the garden so surely it wouldn't be to difficult to make a portable solar heater would it?

Maybe I have ate to many of the my home grown chillis and lost a few brain cells LOL

Fezinio

**Shortie** · 12-11-2006, 06:58 PM

Originally posted by Lesley Jay View Post

I am sure you can buy small solar panels that you could put in your garden. It would just be a case of rigging it up to a heater.

I'm sure they sell them for sheds as I seem to remember the option of buying on for the roof to power a light when we were buying ours...

**M Nicholson** · 12-11-2006, 07:21 PM

Would a solar panel be able to produce enough power for a heater?
Several hours worth of sunshine only produces enough stored power for a low powered light, nowhere near enough to increase heat in a greenhouse to above freezing on a cold winters night.

M NIcholson

**Snadger** · 12-11-2006, 07:22 PM

There's a whole lot of difference between getting a bit free light as opposed to free heat! Its not just the solar panels its all the other gummins. Becuase you are going to get low level light through the winter you won't be able to harvest much solar energy! You would then need to step it up with an inverter to make a very long low heat output into a shorter duration high output heater to make it usable, and would probably need a solar panel the size of a house!

This is all from memory and I am sure if it was googled enough my theory would be shot down.....

Might be able to get enough heat to power a propagator tho!

**JennieAtkinson** · 12-11-2006, 07:32 PM

You can get solar panels (photovoltaic cells) which can be placed on the ground adjacent to a building (ie a large garden) but the number you need for producing electricity that you can do something with is large. It also depends on where you are in the country too. For us here in Shetland it is a no hoper for anything other than possibly June - August.
One of our remote islands, Foula, is currently utilising this method for their community electricity system, along with hydro-electricity (they have some very steep cliffs with lochs on the top) and hopefully in the future five large wind turbines. A huge number of P.cells is required and that is just to top up the period in the summer when the hydro scheme is low (we have a lack of rainfall inthe summer amazingly) and when the demand is extremely low.

So the chances of getting something to heat up a greenhouse might require a 1/4 acre field and sunny southern weather!

**Snadger** · 12-11-2006, 07:42 PM

Originally posted by JennieAtkinson View Post

You can get solar panels (photovoltaic cells) which can be placed on the ground adjacent to a building (ie a large garden) but the number you need for producing electricity that you can do something with is large. It also depends on where you are in the country too. For us here in Shetland it is a no hoper for anything other than possibly June - August.
One of our remote islands, Foula, is currently utilising this method for their community electricity system, along with hydro-electricity (they have some very steep cliffs with lochs on the top) and hopefully in the future five large wind turbines. A huge number of P.cells is required and that is just to top up the period in the summer when the hydro scheme is low (we have a lack of rainfall inthe summer amazingly) and when the demand is extremely low.

So the chances of getting something to heat up a greenhouse might require a 1/4 acre field and sunny southern weather!

Jennie, rightly or wrongly I have always imagined the Shetland isles as being very windy (Like chicago...the windy city)
Although windfarms would sound ideal, we have some at Blyth and they are big ugly things!

I have seen the odd farm with a single wind turbine and they don't look so out of place.

...but when there's banks of them along the coast they look horrible!

**JennieAtkinson** · 12-11-2006, 07:53 PM

Snadger - DONT JUST DONT get me talking about wind turbines! I have five on the hill above our house and it has taken me years to get used to them. Don't get me wrong, I'm really into green power, but having something moving on your peripheral vision, the whole time, is really disturbing. They are also incredibly noisy - sound like a train sometimes!
AND we lost our television and radio reception (they were put up and started one Christmas and we had no TV over the whole festive period - son no. 1 was nearly suicidal! and we were all getting fed up up Monopoly and Cludo!)
As they are south of us too, we get shadow flicker in the winter .......... OK I'll stop !

**dexterdoglancashire** · 12-11-2006, 08:14 PM

I never realised there was a down side Jennie - from your comments it makes me realise there are two sides to the story. DDL

**Fezinio** · 12-11-2006, 08:35 PM

Seems like I have opened a can of worms here

So it looks like a no hoper then.

The thing is though I know a well known DIY store (not sure i can say who because of advertising rules) which are selling solar panels and a windmill thing to heat and power the whole house nowadays.

So maybe its not that impossible to heat my 6x4 greehouse

one day i hope

Fezinio

**Alison** · 12-11-2006, 08:38 PM

You mean B&Q don't you Fezinio? I'm guessing it's OK to mention them on the basis there is another thread about Wilkos elsewhere.

**Fezinio** · 12-11-2006, 08:44 PM

Alison

I have looked at these things is all seriousness for the house.

Anything to save the planet and to cut down costs in all fairness.

A bit expensive for initial outlay but the long term benifits have to be worth it.

Fezinio

**Alison** · 12-11-2006, 08:52 PM

Is it OK if I pick your brains then Fezinio. We're building a single storey extension in the New Year and I feel that we perhaps should tie this build into some kind of green energy / water saving device but am totally out of my depth - any advice on where to look (there's so much on the web I don't know where to start) would be much appreciated.

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