Rob McMonagle, SolarCity Program Manager, Toronto Atmospheric Fund

March 24, 2010

Designing a Building Permit Process for Residential Solar

Water Heating

Designing a Building Permit Process for Residential Solar

Water HeatingThe Toronto Experience

(and some international perspectives)The Toronto Experience

(and some international perspectives)

Solar Permits Overview Developed by the Toronto Atmospheric Fund (TAF) to share knowledge

gained through the largest single-city solar hot water project in Canada (Solar Neighbourhoods).

TAF is the City of Toronto’s climate agency. TAF supports the development and implementation of leading-edge ideas with the potential for large emission reductions.

TAF is working to support greater deployment of renewable energy in Toronto as a way of helping the City reach its emission reduction targets.

Solar Permits is made possible by an investment by the Government of Ontario and the Government of Canada.

Webinar Agenda

Introduction to Solar Water Heating– Solar Hot Water – A Brief

History– Why Solar?– Understanding the

Technology– Toronto’s solar initiative

Regulatory Issues– Institutional barriers– Simplification of processes– Standards– Codes– Bylaws

Backflow Prevention Roof Structure The Toronto Process

– Certified Plans– Roof Structure Report– Building Permit Application– Plan Review– Building Permit Inspection

Q&As Info on Future Webinars

An introduction to solar water heating

An introduction to solar water heating

Solar Technologies

There are four distinct technologies that collect energy from sunlight– Passive Solar – collects heat and light through

natural (passive) processes– Photovoltaic or PV – produces electricity directly as

a result of the material’s properties– Solar Air – produces hot air for space heating– Solar Water – produces hot water for pools,

industry and residential applications We’re focusing on solar domestic hot water

(SDHW)

1.1 Status of Solar Hot Water Deployment Solar hot water is the most popular

distributed renewable energy technology globally (outside of biomass) but is often overlooked

Sales of Solar Hot Water Collectors in Canada

-

5,000

10,000

15,000

20,000

25,000

30,000

35,000

1978 1980 1982 1984 1986 1988 1990 1992 1994 1996 1998 2000 2002

m2

The “great crash” of 1987- was due to the sudden cancellation of government programs- resulted in the closing down of 80% of the industry - left a legacy of system failures and an ongoing belief that solar “doesn’t work in Canada”

However Sales Continued to Grow Internationally…

-

20,000

40,000

60,000

80,000

100,000

120,000

140,000

160,000

180,000

200,000

1975

1977

1979

1981

1983

1985

1987

1989

1991

1993

1995

1997

1999

2001

Col

lect

or A

rea

(m2)

Canada

Austria

Austria - 1 out of 7 homes have SDHWCanada – 1 out of 20,000 homes

In Most Other CountriesAustria Spain

France Italy

World Solar Thermal Market Global

dominance by China

The North America market is small (2% of global market)

US: 8,000 systems/year Canada: 600 systems (?)/year

Canada’s Solar ResourceDo we have enough sun?

Southern Germany = 900 kWh/kW

Yes! Better than many of the global solar leaders

1.2 Why Go Solar?

Two main drivers– Climate Change– Long Term Energy

Security

Climate Change Targets

To stabilize CO2 concentration under 400 ppm need to:– Global CO2 emissions peak by 2015– Reduction of Canada’s energy related CO2 emissions

from today’s 15.8 Gt/a to approx. 2 Gt/a by 2050 Per capita emissions of approx. 1 t CO2/capita

0 5 10 15 20

Africa

India

China

Canada

OECD

World

t CO2/(Kopf, Jahr)

Heating Domestic Water is a Major Energy Consumer

Hot water can account for 20-25% of the energy needs of an average household

Solar hot water can provide 40-50% of the energy

Residential Hot Water’s Role in CO2 Reductions SDHW Systems can

provide 0.4 – 0.7 t CO2/year reduction in Toronto (but more in high carbon energy jurisdictions)– Over system life (20

years) = 8 -15 t CO2

Lifetime GHG Reductions

-

5

10

15

20

25

30

35

TorontoElectricity

TorontoNatural Gas

PEI Electricity PEI Oil

C)2

(to

nn

es)

Red

uce

d It is the single largest action to reduce CO2

that a homeowner can take• Plus it is highly visible (unlike caulking or weather-stripping)

Second Motivator: Global Energy SupplyThe stone age did not end because of a shortage of stone

Non renewable energy sources will eventually run out (5, 10, 20, 50 years...)– We may be in the age of “peak dirty fuels”

Need to begin investing in alternatives

Solar Has Public Support

GPC Research – Public Opinion Poll – Oct 05

Canadian Financial Support for Solar Hot Water is Growing

Support has grown rapidly over last the past year.– In 2008 total was $500

As of May 21 total is now $2,500 (31% of cost)– Typical support

internationally is 50%

Average SDHW system cost

$8,000

Solar Neighbourhoods incentive (Toronto only – program now over)

-$1,000

Federal ecoENERGY rebate

-$1,250

Ontario Home Energy Savings rebate

-$1,250

Total support for early market transformation

$3,500

Costs after discounts and rebates

$4,500

Costs after incentives financed at 0% over 10 years

$37.50 per month

How Does Solar Hot Water Compare to that “Other” Solar Technology?

15% of cost and 18% of area for same amount of energy

1.3 Understanding the Technology Types of systems are broken down in two

areas:– 1. The system type – classified by the type of

freeze protection used: Seasonal – potable water is heated directly – similar

to a conventional water heater Drain Back – water is used as the heat transfer fluid Closed Loop – an anti-freeze heat transfer fluid is use

– 2. The type of solar collector used: Flat plate Evacuated tube

Systems types can use either flat plate or evacuated tube collectors

Year-round Systems

Drain back and closed loop systems

Collectors on the roof – tank in the utility room

Solar Hot Water System Schematic (Simplified)

Photo Credit: NRCan

Seasonal Systems

Tank is on the roof Potable water is

heated directly (and stored in tank)

Drained in winter In some climates a

seasonal system is used year around – however there is no “automatic” freeze protection

Flat Plate Collectors

There is no consensus of what type of collector is better (flat plate or evacuated tube)– Evacuated tube may work

better in marginal light conditions but will not self melt snow cover

– Flat plate is less flexible in sizing and if broken will need to replace a larger part of the system

Evacuated Tube Collectors

Each evacuated tube is a separate solar “collector”

Evacuated tubes are connected together using a manifold

The absorber is surrounded by a vacuum which reduces heat loss

1.4 Toronto’s Solar Initiative

Prior to 2007 30-50 systems were installed in Toronto annually (without building permits)– Austria: 10,000 systems annually for equivalent population base

(2.5 million) Action item from the Climate Change Plan (2007): “develop a

pilot residential solar domestic hot water program” The Toronto Solar

Neighbourhoods Initiative was developed to identify challenges and support barrier resolutions

Target of 100 system sales in one neighbourhood

Report will be available later this spring

Accomplished – the Highest Density of SDHW Systems Installed in Canada

100 SDHW systems sold– 1 in every 150 homes

(100/15,000)– Prior to program there

were 10 systems in ward (estimated)

If we did this in all of Toronto – 4,400 systems sales

But remember Austria – 1 out of every 7 homes– That level would equal

2,200 installations in one ward!