Leicester College gets Cooking with Solar Thermal Technology

Leicester College has flicked the switch on new solar thermal technology that will provide up to 70 per cent of its annual hot water needs and cut energy bills at its vocational training campus.

The college, which is one of the largest in the UK with 27,600 students and 1,600 staff, is one of the first in the country to adopt evacuated tube collector technology to service its hot water needs as part of its commitment to sustainability.  

The college installed Kingspan Solar Thermomax vacuum tubes at one of its key campus sites, Freeman’s Park. This campus incorporates a vast range of specialist vocational facilities, from a construction hub, to an industry standard kitchen and restaurant. 

As part of a dramatic overhaul to upgrade its facilities for students and in keeping with Building Regulations Part L, Freeman’s Park replaced its old gas boilers with 300 Kingspan Solar Thermomax vacuum tubes, which now provide the campus with 70 percent of its hot water needs all-year-round. 

Each Thermomax high performance system diffuses solar radiation into useful heat by using a solar collector. This consists of a highly insulated manifold and row of solar tubes, which capture energy quickly, as their vacuum-packed chambers suppress heat loss. Each solar tube has a vacuum inside, which ensures the most effective transfer of energy into heat. It not only provides perfect insulation, it also protects the system from outside influences, such as bad weather, allowing thermal solar energy to be captured efficiently and effectively. The result is a performance that ranks Thermomax collectors as 30 per cent more efficient than flat plate equivalents.  

Leicester College opted for the Thermomax HP200 collectors, which are designed with industrial applications in mind, providing premium heat transfer. Specifically intended for Northern European climates to provide quick thermal response even on cloudy or humid days, Kingspan Solar Thermomax tubes were an obvious choice for Robin Dalby, Maintenance and Development Co-ordinator at Leicester College: “Before installing the Thermomax solar tubes, we were using gas boilers that were energy guzzlers and costly to run.  We were keen to implement an environmentally-friendly option, without compromising on performance. Switching to Thermomax solar tubes was the perfect solution, as we could reduce our carbon footprint whilst simultaneously making significant savings on our hot water bills.

“The performance of the Thermomax solar tubes has been nothing but impressive. We get solar-heated water in record time and there is minimum maintenance required. As we head into our first solar powered winter, we’re safe in the knowledge that the Thermomax collectors won’t let us down, whatever the weather condition.”

Managing Director of Solar Solutions Direct Darren Taylor oversaw the installation: “This has been our biggest installation to date. We fixed 300 Thermomax solar tubes across a 36 square metre flat roof to generate a massive amount of energy that now heats a 3,000 litre thermal store. The bespoke setup took just two weeks to finalise, as the ‘plug and play’ design of the collectors made the process fast and simple.”

“Thermomax solar tubes are truly the most established product on the market and people are already starting to sit up and take note. Since this installation we’ve had a flurry of even bigger orders come in. Solar energy is the way forward and we’re proud to be playing a part in creating an environmentally friendly future.”

Solar panels in the UK are more effective than you may think.  The amount of energy the UK receives from the sun is similar to the output of 1000 power stations. Solar energy is free, clean and safe and produces no waste or pollution, whereas burning fossil fuels creates carbon dioxide, which is a major contributor to global warming.

Kingspan Renewables Marketing Director Mark Brookes adds: “Leicester College has not only  significantly reduced its carbon footprint by installing Thermomax solar tubes, it is also benefiting from tomorrow’s technology at today’s prices, as well as teaching the next generation the importance of renewable energy sources and how to make a positive environmental impact.”