Off-Grid Cabin in Zealand- SE
This off-grid cabin has two 15-W PV panels from Canadian Tire, charging two 12-V car batteries. This system was installed to replace a small diesel generator. The owners realized that going with solar had many advantages over the previous set up, including lower maintenance, lower fuel costs, and being affordable to start with. The panel and the batteries run lighting and a 12 V pump for the plumbing needs, such as for their shower and sinks. The batteries are hooked up to a 1000 W inverter, which can run additional appliances when needed. A water heater, fridge and stove are run on …
Solar Hot Water in Woodstock- SE
This solar hot water system, supplied by Sunrain and installed by Sun Wave Energy, meets water and space heating needs. The solar-evacuated tubes preheat the domestic hot water system, with electricity back-up. The system also provides space heating through wall-mounted radiators, again with an electric heating back-up. The system should provide more heat for the house. It is integrated into a heritage home in Woodstock. The solar hot water system works well during winter, but overheats in the summer months. Changes are needed to improve the system. …
Solar Hot Water in Sackville- SE
The owners have a passive solar home that is equipped with solar hot water panels. The main purpose for the home and the panels is to help the environment and become less dependent on fossil fuels. The system is a solar hot water pre-heating system. Two 4 x 8-foot solar panels (by Thermodynamics) are installed on the garage roof, facing south. Supply lines run to the heat exchange unit, which is attached to an additional 60 gallon water tank set up in tandem with a regular electrically-heated 60 gallon tank. The owners like the system they have been using and …
Solar Hot Water and Solar Hot Air in Sackville- SE
The owner has chosen to use a combination of systems to help lower electricity payments and test renewable energy. The systems include solar hot air space heating (Cansolair), and solar hot water heating (Thermodynamics). electricity generation from a wind turbine …
VISION Home in Moncton- GT, PS, SE
The EQuilibrium project is a national sustainable housing demonstration initiative, created and led by the Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation. One of the winning entries for the Sustainable Housing Demonstration Initiative is the VISION home located in Moncton. …
Off-grid Home in Jolicure- BE, SE, WIND
At the moment the home is powered by a small photovoltaic solar system which is sufficient for his home, however he has had to make some lifestyle changes. The owner monitors the amount of power being used, and can only use a laptop computer for a certain amount of time as to not drain its batteries. He uses a refrigerator in the summer when there is lots of solar energy, and uses a naturally cooled room in the winter. The system includes three 123 W Sharp PV solar panels mounted on an outbuilding. He has a small 400 W Air X Wind turbine …
Off-grid Home in Knowlesville- SE, WIND
This is an off-grid system that more than meets the needs of this family, home-based business and supplies surplus power to a small artist cabin nearby. The house is a timberframe with strawbale infill, 3 storey, 195 m2 (2100 sq. ft.) building. The cabin is a load-bearing strawbale contruction, 1.5 storey and 60 m2 (650 sq. ft.). They have several appliances running on this system, including a freezer a washing machine power tools a refrigerator, and many other kitchen appliances. The main problems faced with this RE system was that several of the nuts were not tightened properly by the installer, which resulted in issues related …
Off-Grid Yurt in Cocagne- SE
The owner uses this place as a summer get-away on a large, wooded property. He built himself a yurt and uses the solar panel to run one light, a computer, a DVD player and a radio. When he uses the vacuum cleaner, it is often too much of a load for the system to handle. When he connected the cable to the battery, he only realized later that the positive and negative symbols were inverted. Unfortunately, he had to buy a new battery because the battery was ruined. He highly recommends buying a voltage meter which can be used to check up …
120 W Photovoltaic system in Fredericton- SE
Four 30 W solar panels, pointing south (1 pm) and south-west (3 pm), catch the noon and afternoon sun and work surprisingly well during sunny summer days. A daily charge of up to 7 A for 6–8 hours keeps 3 deep-cycle spiral-type 12 V batteries (a total of 165 Ah) well-charged and ready for supplying enough energy to a 12 V DC/115 V AC inverter of 1750 W capacity for all the floor lamps in the house, and occasionally the TV in the evening. …
Solar Hot Water & Space Heating in Debec- SE
This solar thermal system provides both hot water and in-floor heating to this house and garage for a family of four, and has a 40 gallon tank for thermal storage along with a 15kW electric heater as a back-up. In the summer, 2 of the 4 banks of evacuated tubes are covered, and the heat is used for hot water. During the winter, all 4 banks of evacuated tubes are used, producing the main source of heat for the garage and house, which are both one story and have an area of roughly 186 m2 (2000 sq. ft.). The heat comes from passing …
