Palm Trees and Solar Water Heaters in Barbados

Driving across Barbados, windows down, breathing in the warm moist air of the Caribbean, admiring all the glorious flora and colorful houses, I noticed something new: a solar water heater on almost every roof. They weren’t here 2 years ago, I thought, so with the first opportunity to use wifi, I decided to investigate.

Solar Water Heater in Barbados

As I found out, Barbados has a long history of using renewables, going all the way back to the colonial times when bagasse was used to power sugar cane refinement.

More recently, Barbados received a $45 million loan from the Inter-American Development Bank aimed to boost the renewable energy industry on the island. The aim is to derive 29 percent of the island’s energy mix from renewable sources including solar PV, solar water heating, wind, biomass, and waste-to-energy systems.

Much of the credit for pushing the renewable agenda goes to William Hinds, a visionary engineer and Senior Technical Officer, Ministry of Finance, Investment, Telecommunications and Energy, who has been a preacher, inventor, and implementor of renewable energy in the Caribbean for last 20 years and has, with the help of his staff, built a prototype Solar House in a public park in Bridgetown.

I know, I need to stay focused on my promised goal of helping urban dwellers become energy efficient, and some of these techniques won’t work in a city apartment (unless you want to drill a hole through your ceiling up to the roof for a Sunlight Pipe, but if you do, you didn’t learn it from me!)

But just hear me out, because if anything, these are great food for thought AND bargaining points with a developer or your real estate agent when you’re shopping for a place (that I wish I had when buying my condo. No, not bitter at ALL)

The Solar House showcases a truly holistic approach to energy efficient building.

Solar Photovoltaic panels on the rooftop

The Solar PV panels are arranged in five sets of four photovoltaic panel arrays comprising 2 kilowatts (KW). These are used to maintain the charge in 12 deep cycle batteries, which will actually power the house

Energy Charge Controller

Charge Controller controls the energy being sent to the batteries from the solar panels. When the batteries are full, the solar panels are disconnected to prevent overcharging or damage. The device works with solar power coming in at 48V and measures/displays the energy going into the batteries on a continuous basis

Appliance Energy Meter

Appliance Energy Meter is a great tool to track the energy usage of each appliance and the house as a whole. Getting one installed helps in becoming aware of how much energy your home actually consumes and makes it easy to be in control.

Foam Insulation

Foam insulation is used on the roof and on the west wall to create a barrier from the late afternoon heat.

Radiant Barriers and Window Tint

Radiant Barriers reduce the amount of heat entering a building. They consist of a thin sheet of highly reflective material, which deflects the heat away from the surface.

Whole House Fan

Whole House Fan is used to suck the hot air out of the house and ceiling fans are used throughout the house to circulate air

Sunlight pipe

Sunlight Pipe is not as wide-spread as PV panels or even smart grid, but in the right house, can deliver a fantastic passive solar solution and savings on the electric bill

Ceramic Paint used on the ceiling has tiny ceramic particles suspended in it. When dried, this surface acts as insulation and prevents heat from easily passing

Even the exterior paint colors play a role in keeping the heat out. Light pastel colors reflect the heat from the sun and keep the house cool. It’s ideal to have the roof painted a light color as well.

Double-Glazed Windows and Window Tint are also used to keep the elements away and reduce the amount of heat passing through the window, which reduces the amount of energy required to cool the place

All these can be used in hot or cold climates, some are for houses only, but a few of these measures can be effectively used in your apartment - I actually used the Window Tint purchased from Home Depot last summer which made it possible to survive the New York summer in my top floor apartment without too much sweating or breaking the bank!

e-mail me if you have questions: kateshifman@gmail.com


Many Thanks to Hariette Daisley for her help in getting access to the Solar house