Solar PV installation for private care home Casey’s Lodge

Overview

Project: Casey’s Lodge

Location: Merthyr Tydfil, Wales

Project timeline: The project is being delivered in two phases. Phase one was a two-day project to optimise the existing solar PV installation on the 8-bed care home on the Casey’s Lodge site. Phase two is the delivery of the solar PV system on the new 7-bed care home, which required a week for the roof installation and will require a further two days for the internal work and commissioning (spring 2026).

The brief:

CES, working in partnership with Ample Power, was commissioned to install an 11kW in-roof solar PV system on a new-build assisted living home for young adults with brain injuries, and to optimise the performance of a 10kW solar installation on an existing assisted living home on the same site.

The high occupancy private care homes, which house 7 or 8 adults each, have a high demand for electricity, so the operators wanted to reduce their monthly energy bills.

The challenge:

The optimisation of the underperforming solar installation presented multiple challenges. Firstly, the solar array had been fitted some 8-9 years ago under the Feed In Tariff scheme, so any major changes to the installation would invalidate the terms of the agreement and affect the customer’s payments.

The ageing equipment had a number of issues, including water ingress on the string inverter. CES also found several cables and roof mounts which needed replacing plus evidence that birds had previously nested under the panels.

The new build installation was much more straightforward. However, the build schedule was very tight, and CES had to adhere to the timeline to ensure the project stayed on track.

The solution:

CES did a large amount of remedial work on the existing care home to boost the amount of power the system generated, including waterproofing to protect the integrity of the building and roof, replacing worn cables and mounts, and installing bird nets. Battery storage was also added to the system to further maximise the customer’s return on the installation.

The new build care home was fitted with a 11kW solar PV system with in-roof panels and battery storage, meeting 25% of the home’s power requirements. The installation features small, powerful solar panels to generate more electricity with a reduced footprint, while the in-roof panels give a neat and tidy finish. The solar PV system allows the care home to cut energy bills and utilise more of what they generate to meet demand for heat, hot water, lighting, cooking, ensuite electric showers and EV charging points.

Key project highlights:

• CES worked collaboratively with the client and Ample Power in the planning stages to streamline the roof installation work and help the project stay on schedule.
• While not a feature on the original solar installation, CES’s recommendation of battery storage for the old and new systems at Casey’s Lodge ensures the operators keep more of what they generate to further reduce their energy bills.

Why this project stands out:

This project shows the breadth of CES’ expertise, both in designing and installing new solar PV systems for light commercial use, and also in maximising the output of existing installations through small changes and modifications which make a big difference.

The project also demonstrates the potential for solar PV to be used in care applications where energy consumption is particularly high.

What the client appreciated most:

The client appreciated the CES team’s flexibility and willingness to work around other contractors’ deadlines to keep the new build on schedule.