University of North Carolina to Save Big with Solar Hot Water System

The University of North Carolina  Asheville plans to cut annual hot water costs in Mills Residence Hall by 29% through the installation of a solar energy system from SolTherm. Compared to their previous energy source, the student dormitory is expected to save more than $81,000 over the life of the system.

“We could not be more thrilled about our partnership with SolTherm”

The dormitory, which uses an average of 6,000 gallons of hot water per day, was an ideal facility for a solar thermal water heating system. The system will consist of 64 collector panels which receive the sun’s energy and transfer it to heat the dormitory’s water supply. The water is stored in an insulated tank and is used throughout the day for laundry and showering, allowing hot water to be accessed even when the sun is not shining.

The students expressed their excitement and support for the upcoming installation during SolTherm’s informational sessions offered last week in Highsmith Student Union during which an actual 4’ by 10’ panel was on display. The project’s support is especially exciting for SolTherm whose team consists of four UNCA alumni.

“As anyone involved in this project would tell you, it was a real challenge to pave the way in implementing a third-party ownership model to incorporate clean energy technology on a UNC campus,” says SolTherm’s VP of Business Development, Drew Kitt. “But the UNC – Asheville facility management team was determined in their sustainability efforts and as a UNCA Alumni, I am thrilled to see the project come to fruition.”

UNC-Asheville is the first campus in the UNC system to incorporate a third-party ownership model in order to benefit from clean energy technology without the up-front capital cost through SolTherm’s NoCapEx® program.

NoCapEx® is an industry-leading clean energy program that provides immediate hot water savings and long-term cost predictability with no capital investment.

“We could not be more thrilled about our partnership with SolTherm,” says Design & Construction Director, Don Gordon. “It is truly exciting to have a team including UNCA alumni contribute to the campus’ sustainability efforts. This project will be one of the first of its kind on a public university campus in the state, and we can hardly wait until it is operational.”

Completion of the system is projected for summer of 2012.

Source: SolTherm press release

Short URL: http://www.solarthermalmagazine.com/?p=17623

Posted by Gordon Smith on Mar 22 2012. Filed under Press Releases, Solar Thermal. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0. You can leave a response or trackback to this entry