Eco Builds

Excel Electrical Services Ltd work in conjunction with many local Eco builders and architects and can provide services for:-

Air Source Heat Pumps

 

Air source heat pumps absorb heat from the outside air, this is usually used to heat radiators, underfloor heating systems, or warm air convectors and hot water in your home.

Ground Source Heat Pumps

 

These systems use similar principles to air source heat pumps to extract heat from the ground.

Ground source heat pumps use pipes buried in the garden to extract heat from the ground. This is usually used to heat radiators or underfloor heating systems and hot water. Although more expensive than air source heat pumps, ground source heat pumps can be more efficient.

Heat Recovery Units

 

Modern well insulated homes with central heating suffer air pollution up to 10 times worse than outside, according to a 'Which' report.

Surveys by the (Department of Environment Transport Region) DETR and the Building Research Establishment (BRE) have Carbon Dioxide levels in one in ten British homes above World Health Organisation guidelines.

Current Building Regulations call for extractor fans in all wet areas of the property including the kitchen, bathroom, utility, en-suite, WC and trickle vents in all the windows to allow air back into the property, at a cost to the homebuilder.

A heat recovery system is designed to completely change all the air in the property at least once every two hours, continually replacing the stale damp air with fresh, warmed, clean, filtered air.

A typical heat recovery ventilation unit recovers 60-70% of the heat normally lost through trickle vents and other breakout points in the building structure.

Ducting connects the stale air exhaust grille to the heat recovery unit and extracts via ducting to all the wet areas of the property. The stale air passes through the cross-flow heat exchanger and 65-70% of the heat normally lost via trickle vents is recovered.

Fresh air is brought into the property via a separate external grille, passes though the heat exchanger and picks up the heat recovered from the stale air. There is no mixing of airflows - only the transfer of heat. The warmed fresh air is then ducted to all the habitable rooms within the property.

Energy Efficient Lighting

 

Energy Efficient Light Bulbs

The sustainable building industry is primarily focused on energy efficient lighting solutions. Standard light bulbs, known as incandescent bulbs, are known to be highly inefficient. Electricity is passed through a metal (tungsten) filament that heats to over 2000º Celsius and glows to give off light. Only 10% of the electrical energy are converted to light; 90% is wasted as heat. Halogen bulbs are similar but instead have a small pocket of halogen gas that reacts with tungsten to produce light. They burn brighter, use less electricity and last twice as long as a standard bulb, but are still inefficient compared with other forms of bulbs.

Energy efficient light bulbs use significantly less energy than incandescent bulbs, and also last longer. There are two main kinds: Compact Fluorescent Lights and Light Emitting Diodes.

Compact Fluorescent Lights (CFL)

These are small versions of full fluorescent lights.

Light Emitting Diodes (LED)

LED is a relatively new technology, and currently the bulbs are most suitable for track and recessed lighting, where a pointed light is required rather than radiated light. They are more expensive than CFLs, but energy savings over their lifetime means their cost is soon recouped. Because their power inputs are minimal, LEDs are readily combined with solar panels to provide reliable, energy efficient lighting day and night.

Solar PV Installations

 

Solar PV panels produce their energy from daylight, meaning energy is produced even on cloudy days.  Suitable for homes, businesses, schools or community buildings and with no moving parts, solar PV provides one of the easiest and most reliable ways to future proof against rising energy costs & reducing C02 emissions.  With the introduction of the Governments Clean Energy Cashback scheme, investing in solar PV to generate a buildings electrical needs has never made more sense than it does now.

Fuse Board Add On

 

Technology is available to optimise the voltage on your electrical installation. By reducing and managing the voltage coming into your home the device will ensure many of your electrical appliances use less electricity and cost less to run. It will also lower your carbon emissions.

Voltage coming into your home is typically 245v. The ‘add-on’ device reduces this voltage and maintains 220v. Typically whole house savings are in the region of 10%, which means, household electricity bills will be around 10% less each year.

The ‘add-on’ device is installed alongside your fusebox and must be installed by a qualified electrician.