Our Products

You can rest assured that by buying from It Won’t Cost The Earth you’re getting the best equipment available on the market today.

Our partner, Eco Solar Equipment Ltd.

We work closely with Solar Equipment specialist Eco Solar Equipment Ltd (“ESE”), who supply all our solar equipment and train the majority of our installer company partners. ESE have gone to great lengths to source components and create Solar PV and Solar Water Heating systems that represent the highest quality and best value in the market.

Solar Photovoltaic Systems

As you may well be aware, there are many different Solar PV components advertised on the internet, with many being pushed for their performance or price. Even as relative experts we think that it’s difficult if not impossible to do a ‘apples with apples’ comparison between most of them. As a result we supply what are acknowledged by the industry to be the market leading makes and models.

Solar “Modules” (panels to you and me!)

We prefer to use Romag panels. Customers often say “never heard of them” in the same way that we all used to about Nokia before mobile phones became common! Romag are robust, high performing panels which are made in Britain. Certain other more well-known brand names are not as robust and we believe this is a crucial requirement given that they must withstand at least 25 years of the British climate. Romag products have been used recently for the large PV installation at Glastonbury but also previously at the Eden Project and a number of landmark developments in London, such as 150 Cheapside and the Palace of Westminster.

As well as panels, Romag also supply solar tiles for roof integrated installations. Please note that whilst roof integration is arguably more aesthetically appealing, it is more costly per square metre, and per unit of power generated. Please ask us for more details.

We can also supply other panel brands, such as Sharp, BP Solar, Kyocera, Schott and Schueco, to name a few.

Inverters

The vast majority of our installations are carried out using one of four brands of inverter, three of which are industry leaders (Fronius, SMA Sunny Boy & Diehl Ako) and one which is a relatively new entrant as is the technology it provides. This last company is Enecsys, and they produce micro-inverters which simply means that instead of having one inverter for your panel array, you have a smaller ‘micro-inverter’ behind each panel. Whilst this approach is more costly there are a number of advantages, especially if your chosen location has shading issues.

We specify inverters to suit your array and this part of the design is crucial to optimise the output of the installation over its lifetime. This will usually recommend a specific make and model. If however you have you heart set on another brand we will endeavour to adjust the design to accommodate it.

Please contact us for more information on any of our inverters.

Solar Thermal Systems

There are a number of different components to the system. Some can be chosen according to your individual requirements, be they technical or aesthetic (for example flat plate collectors or evacuated tubes). Others are standard to all configurations. In each case the products have been chosen to provide the most efficient and robust solution available, at the lowest cost.

In addition two specific components of the ESE system make it distinct from the majority on the market:

1. Air separator isolating valve:  other systems require an air vent to be installed at the highest point, usually next to the collectors, where they look like antennae on the roof. This element removes that need and this valve is located discretely inside your house.
2. Stainless Steel flexible piping: this relatively recent innovation means that all the components in the system containing fluid can be installed efficiently & with the knowledge that there are no pipe joins to leak or fail. This means minimal pipe work in your property and greater durability as well as speed of installation.

Of course, all relevant UK regulations and technical standards are met, of which the key ones for the Solar Water Heating products are: BS 5918; BS EN 12975; BS EN 12976; DD ENV 12977;BS EN ISO 9488 & BS 6785.

The Components

The main elements of a typical system are set out below with a brief description of their role and provenance.

The Cylinder

In most cases a new hot water cylinder is required for a solar water heating installation. This is because the solar cylinder contains two heating coils instead of the usual one that would be found in a standard cylinder. Near the top of the solar cylinder, there is a coil fed with hot water generated from your boiler, and in addition  there is a ‘solar coil’ near the bottom which is fed by the hot water generated in your solar collectors. The cylinders themselves are manufactured by Gledhill, and come with a 25 year warranty.

The Collectors

The collectors come in two forms, ‘Evacuated Tube’ & ‘Flat Plate’. In addition, the Evacuated Tubes come in either a 58mm or 70mm size. Deciding which type of collectors usually comes down to personal preference, with some preferring the flat plates (which can be integrated into a pitched roof to look like a large Velux™ window), and others the greater efficiency that evacuated tubes provide at our relatively high latitude in the UK. Between the different evacuated tubes sizes, the larger 70mm tubes are more efficient but also marginally more visible. The ESE solar collectors are manufactured and sourced as follows:

Thermostatic Mixing Valve (TMV)

The TMV mixes cold water with the hot water piped from the cold water cylinder to prevent scalding.

The Pump Station

The pump station is the heart of the solar hot water system. It pumps the fluid around the system as well as preventing flow in the wrong direction. The pump is manufactured by Wilo (Wilo ST20/6 Solar Star)and has a 5 year guarantee.

The Controller

If the pump is the heart, then the controller is the brain of the system. It determines when the pump should be running and monitors the temperature at the collectors and at the bottom of the solar cylinder. The Controller is manufactured by Resol (Resol Delta Sol BS),and is guaranteed for 2 years.

Other Components

Apart from the main components above, the Solar Water Heating system also comes with:

• A surge protector:  in case the collector is struck by lightning.
• The Air Separator (as previously mentioned).
• The expansion vessel: used to take up the increase in volume in the solar circuit when the pump is turned off but the collectors are still generating (e.g. on very sunny days).

Stainless steel flexible piping (as previously mentioned).