solar power in the alentejo
 

hello everybody
we are in the final stages of purchasing a farmhouse in the Ourique area. It requires a bit of work before we can live in it.
The main problems to ovecome are the provision of electricity(EDP to far away) therefore solar or wind or both. Anybody out there with recent experiences?
Are there any ec grants available?
The other major area of concern is the provision of drainage .Does anybody know what the requirements are for a septic tank.

Other issues are the fact that the house is in an ecological area and therefore officially has restrictions on extensions etc. Does anybody have recent experiences as I seem to be getting a lot of conflicting advice as to what I can get away with or not. ie my Portuguese builder says just go ahead and do whatever you want and not tell anybody and onthe other hand my Portuguese lawyer says to play it by the book.

Can anybody recommend any reliable English speaking builders in the area?

tara for now
Turbotad:)

Re: solar power in the alentejo
 

Hi turbotad,

Have just read your post with interest.
Solar power is something that we have been thinking about when we buy a property, and the idea of wind power sounds pretty good too.
Do you know how the pricing of solar panels is going to be?
We suspect that they are pretty expensive.
The other thing not related is, I once watched TV program about a property in Italy where the owner wanted a bio toilet waste put in, is anyone doing that sort of thing in PT?
And your other point is EC grants, I'm with you there, but where would we find out about that?
There used to be grants in the UK for houses which did not have an inside toilet or bathroom, so this is indeed a posibility. Now there are EC grants for some small businesses, but don't know the details, just grapevine info, sorry.
Need someone with EC grant info really...

ttfn :)

Re: solar power in the alentejo
 

hello Violets

Thought I was in a vacuum until you replied

At the moment I do not have a great deal of advice but there is a company called the Rainbow Trading Trust that have contacts in Southern portugal.
They sound a bit Eco Warriorish(Is that English) but have lots of info on their |Website. They also do Bio Bogs
I have made some other enquiries about the grants etc and will let you know when I get anything worth passing on.

Cost will be dependent on what you are expecting to use electrically.

the more items the bigger the basic system.

I am planning on a solar driven elctrics and water heating with underfloor heating. I will have a back up Solid fuel range for extra when required.

Bye for now

Turbotad.

Re: solar power in the alentejo
 

Hi turbotad,

Your plans sound absolutely fantasticosy !! And that's olde englishe haha.
Yep, you've got it all sussed, well done.
Thanks for your help and interest, I'd be interested in what you find re the CE Grants. Maybe an english builder, not in competition with a Portuguese builder might have knowledge on the grants. It's a possibility that when they buy ruins, they know how to get extra funds for rebuild, makes common sense to me. I've just remembered another site that I visited when searching for properties, and a couple who buy ruins and rebuild, they maywell have a little gem of info, I'll try them and see if they know, ok.

We're too old to rebuild ruin ourselves, so we're on the look out for reasonable priced property, nothing over the top, but enough for our needs, we don't need pink and gold decor, and want to do a little gardening, you know, looking after a couple of fruit trees, and growing a few veg, that sort of thing. I'll take a look at the bio-loo and see what they do, thanks for that.

I'm off the pc now, so ttfn :)

Re: solar power in the alentejo
 

Now I'm wondering if they'll give grants for those geo-thermal systems?

If anyone knows, please post!

Re: solar power in the alentejo
 

hi everyone..........I just stumbled upon this website and thread by pure chance after googling for 'alentejo' and 'wind'

I am going over to look at several properties in alentejo - over near the atlantic ocean side, a few miles in.

And solar/wind is an issue that dominates my thoughts - also internet/broadband possibilities.

Someone mentioned rainbow trading - I noticed them myself a week or two ago, and spoke with a lovely lady on the phone. I'd like to chat with them further.

From the little that I know about Alentejo, i suspect that wind could be the big resource there.

Keen to establish contact with you all. We could probably all keep each other clued up on this area.

Re: solar power in the alentejo
 

try simon at www.sunwoven.com - based in uk & portugal and very helpful and friendly with free advice on all types of renewable power.

Re: solar power in the alentejo
 

very interested in Solar power discussions and also suggestions for best type of heating, we are just at the planning stage of house building in the Minho, having purchased some land with two ruined houses on it. Any info form anyone much appreciated

Re: solar power in the alentejo
 

Hi,

Very interested in the Solar/Wind turbine/Geothermal power/heat production, as we are on a quest to buy a property in Central Portugal. I will be surfing the net over the next few weeks and if I get any info re grants etc., I will post.

I am also interested in building a house if I can find the right plot.

Could anyone give me a idea of the cost of building. In England it's about £1000 per square metre. What would be the cost in central Portugal?

Many thanks, will kep in touch, RoystonB

Re: solar power in the alentejo
 

hello

further research led me to understand that rebates are available to residents who are paying tax in Portugal who then instal Solar or other aternative energy resources. Based on a percentage of the invoiced amount paid.

Tried to get more information on the portuguese tax site but got lost as my Portuguese is at this time limited.

Have just been to building exhibition at the NEC Birmingham and found out a great deal more on the subject of renewable energy more to the point what I can and cant afford at this moment in time.

I,ll gladly share any info

regards

Turbotad.

ps building costs in the Ourique area are between 650e and 1000e depeding on quality of build and fitments

Re: solar power in the alentejo
 

I know this is a little bit of an old thread, but I only just found the site. Our solar leccy was installed by http://www.solar-blaser.com/ (the guy who runs it is Mr Blaser, brilliantly appropriate name).
He is ok, but I think our place is a bit far from his place for his liking. He did the lot, solar panels, batteries and all the gubbins plus water pumps etc. Did a good job too, all very neatly installed.

I am not aware of any grants, just reduced iva on non-fossil energy.