Ecolution installed a 180.75 kWp, Solar Photovoltaic system at Ruxley Manor Garden Centre, situated in Sidcup, Kent
H. Evans & Sons Ltd, a family run business, acquired Ruxley Manor Farm in 1960 and first opened its doors to the Garden Centre in April 1964, which has now been in the family for over 5 generations. The garden centre supplies everything from plants, indoor and garden furniture, clothing and footwear, pets and aquatic supplies and even has its own restaurant.
Ruxley Manor Garden Centre pride themselves on not only their history, but also their ‘Green Credentials’. They have strong recycling policies, currently 83% of general waste, 80% of wood and 93% of cardboard are all re-used or recycled. Also in the early 1980’s they invested in two water storage reservoirs for an eco-friendly irrigation system. They also aim to reduce their carbon footprint by not only using locally sourced products but also by installing a solar PV system, meaning unlimited supply of clean energy which reduces the amount of electricity they use from the grid.
A couple of years ago Ruxley had a fire at the garden centre destroying half of the buildings which had to be rebuilt which meant it was the perfect opportunity to have the Solar PV system installed at the same time minimising disruption to the garden centre itself. Ecolution used TATA polycrystalline 250W panels, Growatt inverters and a K2 minirail mounting system. During installation Ecolution had to adapt this large solar PV system to cope with the local areas electricity capacity meaning we changed the system from the original three metres to just two.
Ecolution worked closely with the garden centre to ensure a quick turnaround from installation to the registration of the system to secure Ruxley with the higher Feed-In Tariff rate before the government cuts that were to come. This Solar PV system means that they will not only dramatically reduce their energy bills and carbon footprint but also become a step even closer to meeting their companies ‘Green Credentials’. The Solar system is now monitored and maintained by our aftercare company Ecolution Energy Services. We installed smart meters giving us remote access to half-hourly generation data and diagnostic information. We are able to view the systems performance and are alerted if any faults arise, which would otherwise go unnoticed. This means our engineers can attend site and fix any issues as soon they occur, minimising any losses of free electricity for the business.
This Ruxley Manors Garden Centres installation is a great example of how electricity savings and Feed-in Tariff income can work together to utilise your unused roof space to cut your business running costs. This solar PV system is generating approximately 153,637.50 kWh free electricity per year with C0₂ savings of 81,274.24 Kg.