Heat pumps, solar panels or wind power plants. Last year, Czechs started to look for ways to save as much as possible due to expensive energy. Domestic inventors have now come up with an interesting alternative to conventional batteries and the whole energy system of the house, their invention is based on the principle of heat accumulation in sand. This heating and energy system can be used for family homes and large industrial enterprises, at virtually zero operating costs.
The new heating and energy system was presented at the International Engineering Fair last week. In practice, it assumes that people will buy the storage device and pay nothing more for the system’s lifetime. The lifetime is estimated at 50 years.
The Watt sand+ system assumes that the sand will be heated by its photovoltaics or directly from the grid at zero electricity prices on the spot market.
“The prices on this market can even be negative,” Miroslav Lysek, director of Watt plus from Staré Město in the Uherské Hradiště region, presented the operation of the innovation at the fair.
Cheaper than batteries
However, potential buyers must expect a higher purchase price, as this solution will cost 1.5 million more to build a family home. It should be remembered, however, that battery packs with such a capacity would cost many times more.
“The initial investment in the complete system for a family house is CZK 1.5 million, while the operating costs are minimal or nonexistent,” said Žára, who also highlighted the environmental friendliness of the entire system. In fact, it produces no emissions in practice and there is no need for any chemistry in the form of operating cartridges.
Despite the higher initial investment, however, it was clear at the fair that interest in the novelty is quite high. Watt plus is currently completing the certification of the equipment and pre-orders have already started.
“We expect there to be a lot of interest, but we don’t have that much production capacity yet. However, they are sufficient for the Czech market, although the delivery time will be several months. The global market is a target for later, but we will have to cooperate with other companies that will produce, we can also go the way of franchises,” Žára outlined his plans.
Anti-blackout system
He also revealed that the system could also serve in case of a sudden threat or blackout. The company is already working with the state on such projects. The sand containers can be easily transported, making the entire system mobile. It is therefore possible to draw energy from them virtually anywhere.
Another interesting fact is that the whole system cannot be copied easily. “We have patent protection for the various components, but not for the whole. We didn’t think that was strategically appropriate. Every installed system is online and we can see what is happening to it. We also configure the system individually for each customer’s needs, so simply copying it probably won’t work quite right,” Žára explained.
