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Two SUBWAY® stores in the Coventry area are reducing the amount of electricity they consume by using solar hot water systems.
The drive-thru SUBWAY® store at Binley Woods Service Station on the A45 has two on-roof Baxi Solarflo flat plate collectors on its south facing roof, while a city centre SUBWAY® outlet has Baxi Solarflo evacuated tube collectors, positioned on a south facing wall.
Local franchisee and Development Agent for the SUBWAY® chain in Coventry, Daljit Nahil, explains: "A lot of the equipment we use in the premises is powered by electricity: ovens, air conditioning and water heating. Anything we can do to reduce our use of electricity is good for our running costs, as well as being better for the environment.
"The south facing orientation of both these buildings presented the perfect opportunity to install solar collectors."
The installations were carried out by Coventry based Solutions Renewable Energy Proprietor Simon Dunnett. "The roof of the drive-thru was ideal for flat plate solar collector panels," he said. "It is south-facing and well away from any trees or high buildings.
"The city centre SUBWAY® store has a more challenging east/west orientation, but we façade-mounted Baxi Solarflo evacuated tubes on a south-facing wall. In addition, the tubes have been angled individually to maximise their solar gain.
"Each property has a Heatrae Sadia unvented cylinder with an immersion heater to top up the hot water requirements."
Baxi Solarflo evacuated tubes carry Solar Key Mark accreditation, the first internationally recognised quality mark for solar thermal products. The Baxi Solarflo package has been designed to be completely compatible with Heatrae Sadia range of solar cylinders. It includes everything needed to install the system: evacuated tubes, in-roof or on-roof collectors, pump station with high temperature components; expansion cylinder; 30 metres of stainless steel, fully flexible hose; pre-mixed solar fluid; and all the fittings and connections required for installation. The solar controller provides information on power savings and usage, and is supplied as an integral part of the pump station to save time on installation; however, it can be removed for more convenient siting if required.
