Move over Billy bookcases and Ektorp sofas because something more earth-friendly is about to be sold at IKEA. This Swedish-owned big box company is finally making some common sense for the planet: the company’s UK chain of otherwise throwaway furniture, will begin selling flat pack solar panel kits to its UK customers. The kits will be available in all its 17 UK stores within the next 10 months.
A 3.36 KW non-assembly solar system will cost about $9,200 and will include an in-store consultation and design service. Installation, maintenance and an energy monitoring service will be included in the deal. A rare thing because IKEA is usually very hands-off the customer experience.
The device will help the home owner gain about $1000 a year in subsidies and energy savings. Let’s hope it has a ten-year warranty and then the solar kit would pay for itself.
“In the past few years the prices on solar panels have dropped, so it’s a really good price now,” IKEA’s chief sustainability officer Steve Howard told The Associated Press. “It’s the right time to go for the consumers.”
IKEA branches can be found in the Middle East region in Turkey, Saudi Arabia, Israel and Egypt.
Please IKEA, move these kits throughout all of your branches. The planet can’t wait.
IKEA has already installed solar panels on the roofs of its stores worldwide and plans to draw some 70 percent of its energy from solar and wind power by 2015 and 100 percent by 2020.
For other novel, at home installations, see the Swiss company iLAND. They offer a range of portable packs for travellers, home owners and peace keepers.
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Nice idea, yes, we could do with some in Turkey where there’s plenty of sun, but the price is still prohibitive for the Turkish market. People here (the general public) still haven’t got the hang of segregating waste let alone green energy, but there are some appearing slowly…
I’m planning to make my own panels having bought a set of solar panel “poly cells” from E-bay, have already had the house wired for a 12v lighting system… here we go!
Abdullah Eyles,
Ankara, Türkiye
Abdulla – same exact story here in Israel. I would love to see our region come together to use the vast amount of sun we receive and create a revolution in consumer friendly solar panels. Good luck with yours, I’m going to start googling How To!
Way to go Abdullah!
Look at ILand:
http://www.iland-solar.com
Price is ok,products better than rest of the world.
Petjo
AWSOME. The prices will continue to drop and these will be everywhere in the next 5 years. Putting this technology in the hand of the consumer is one of the best developments in the movement towards ‘greener’ lifestyles. Now I better start saving….