Havebury gains from Baxi Solarflo

Published by Jocelyn Rowan for Baxi Group in Housing and also in Communities, Environment, Local Government

A comprehensive Baxi Group heating and hot water solution, featuring renewable solar thermal technology, has secured Code for Sustainable Homes Level 3 rating on two new developments in Bury St Edmunds, Suffolk for the Havebury Housing Partnership.

Completed in December 2009, Out Westgate, is a £3.7m development of thirty new, affordable dwellings on a brownfield site. 26/26a Bloomfield Street consists of two ground and first floor flats, built for people with learning difficulties. Both projects incorporate Baxi Solarflo™ in-roof panels specified in combination with Santon Premier Plus Solar twin coil, hot water cylinders and Potterton Promax SL heat only boilers. This integrated Baxi Group solution delivers an impressive low carbon result for Havebury, generating enough solar power to heat up to 100% of each property’s hot water in the summer and approximately 55% annually.

“The Baxi Solarflo™ panels have proved instrumental in achieving our Code Level 3 goal,” says James Mann, Architectural Services Manager at Havebury Housing Partnership. “They are easy to fit and link up well with the Santon storage cylinders and Potterton boilers to provide a complete system. They are also excellent for the environment and, of course, our tenants who can now look forward to substantially reduced heating bills. I’d recommend the Baxi Group approach to any housing association keen to access a single, efficient solution from one supplier which will cut the carbon emissions from their housing stock.”

Depending on the size of property, either one or two Baxi Solarflo™ panels have been installed into each roof. Fitted by contractor Pro-Mech, these panels absorb heat from the sun which is transferred to a thermal fluid. The fluid circulates to a solar coil in the base of the Santon hot water cylinder. The heat is then absorbed by the water and the fluid re-circulates back to the panels. At Out Westgate fourteen houses are fitted with two panels and sixteen flats with a single unit. Solar gain is maximised on these predominantly south-facing dwellings thanks to special Baxi controls. Baxi Solarflo systems are supplied with the pump station and controller pre-wired which reduces installation time significantly.

Central heating and additional hot water is provided by the small yet powerful Potterton Promax SL boilers in each home. This slim-line SEDBUK Band A boiler is available in a choice of five different outputs, with 12 kW and 15 kW models supplied for these two projects. Potterton Promax SL boilers are fully modulating according to heat demand to ensure maximum energy efficiency.

The Havebury Housing Partnership is dedicated to the provision of good quality affordable homes and housing services across Suffolk, Norfolk and Cambridgeshire. As a member of the e² Development Consortium, Havebury has made a commitment to make sure that all of its new and refurbished developments are sustainable. All new homes built by the Consortium from 2008 achieve Level 3 of the Code for Sustainable Homes, with 10% of their programme in 2008/09 exceeding this standard, and 20% from 2009/10 onwards.

For more information on Baxi Group know-how, technologies and services, visit www.baxigroupspecification.co.uk.