Rod Speed wrote:

Pooh Bear wrote
Rod Speed wrote
Matthew Maddock wrote

We are moving to France in a few months to a house that needs
renovating etc. There is no existing hot water system, so that got
me thinking that instead of putting in the usual electric water heating
system that is common in France, a solar system might be nice.

They're hardly ever good value where mains power is available.

I suspect that virtue over value is in effect here.

Then that would be completely stupid.

Yes it would indeeed, since the same amount of money spent on more effective
means of energy efficiency would reduce energy requirements by a greater amount
( with better attendant benefits on carbon load )

I should have said 'perceived virue' really.

The frogs generate a lot of their mains power from nukes,
so it makes no sense to be minimising the use of that.

It is in fact the most sensible way to generate power today
and any solar system will waste more resources in the
construction of the solar system. In spades with a relatively
high tech approach to solar like the one being discussed.

Yup. Concentrate on insulation first. I'll bet there's some room for
improvement.

Graham