Welsh medieval castle gets the solar power treatment

Welsh fortress gets into hot water with solar thermal

Built for the medieval wars of King Edward I, one 14th century castle in north Wales is preparing for a different kind of battle – the fight against climate change.
Chirk Castle, in north Wales, has installed a £23,500 solar thermal system that will provide hot water for the castle during the summer months. In one year it is expected to generate 8,000kW of energy, saving the castle £3,000.

Keith Jones, Environmental Practices Advisor for the National Trust in Wales, believes that the eight roof-mounted solar panels will be inconspicuous, and won’t affect the appearance of the castle, which is Grade One listed: “We do our homework to ensure that appropriate technology is tailored to specific buildings. You’ve really got to go and look for these panels!”

Funded by the National Trust’s Green Energy Fund, the system should reduce the carbon footprint of the castle by over 4,000kg of CO2 per year.

“We’ve got a lot to learn from heritage buildings,” says Martin Hunt, Head of Built Environment at Forum for the Future. “They’re built to last, unlike many of our new buildings today, and can still be carefully adapted to help tackle climate change and reduce their running costs.” – Fiona King

12 January 2010

Fiona King

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