Aberdeen council were looking to reduce the power requirements of Bridge of Don's indoor swimming pool. To this end they contracted for the installation of a Solar Water Heating System.

The pool itself was half sized olympic pool that was in constant use throughout the year. As such the heating system was required to provide heat all year round.

An installation of 180m2 of evacuated tube solar panels was deemed the most suitable solution. Due to the installations size it became on of the largest of its type in Europe.

Aberdeen council were able to obtain a major portion of the overall system cost via funding from the "Energy Savings Trust".

The installation was approved by Aberdeen council and work began in 2004 with a deadline of Summer 2005. Due to the dedication and experience of Monghan & Hornal (Sun Harvester) the project was completed on time and within budget.

The system will produce 160,000 kWh (kilowatt hours) of energy savings per year. Which translates to £14,400.00 of savings per year compared to an electrical heating system (£0.09 per kWh). The average lifetime of a solar water heating system is 30 years, which makes for a total approximate saving of £432,000.00. This is close to four times the installation cost and with minimal maintenance makes for the ideal heating solution. In addition, the system saves approximately 50 tonnes of CO2 per year (1500 tonnes) over its lifetime making for a far lower environmental impact.

It is worth noting that although the average lifetime of a Solar Water Heating System is 30 years, there is no actual finite time for the solar panels to stop producing. Bearing this in mind, the actual lifetime of a solar system can be anywhere from 30-50 years at a conservative estimate. It should also be noted that the cost of energy is rising year on year, therefore the financial savings could be far greater.