1. GOOD PRACTICE TEMPLATE
Title of the measure/initiative: Solar collector system investment of the Social Home of the
Municipality of Budapest for Mentally Disabled
Name of the organisation: Social Home of the Municipality of Budapest for Mentally
Disabled
Status of the organisation: Social organization
Address: H-2463 Tordas, Gesztenyés út 1
Contact person: Szénási Zoltán
Phone: +36 22 467 199
E-mail: info@minosegtordas.hu
Web site : www.minosegtordas.hu

2. Topic (multiple answers are possible)
X Public Sector
X Private Sector
 Large Industrial Buildings
X Solar Plants
 District Heating
 Wind
 Biomass
 Geothermal energy
X Energy saving
 Energy efficiency
 Energy concepts
 Other, please specify ___________________________________________
Stakeholders (multiple answers are possible)
X Citizens
X Households
 Property owners
 Policymakers
X Local and regional authorities
 Energy service company (ESCO’s)
X Architects and engineers
 Other, please specify ____________________________________________
BACKGROUND
The social home for 260 people with mental disabilities in Tordas invested in a solar collector
system for its warm water supply in 2004. The owner of the social home is the Municipality
of Budapest; the contractor for the investment was the Naplopó Ltd., an expert in solar
heating systems.
OBJECTIVES
The idea for the project was born after studying a solar collector displayed for demonstration
purposes in the town. The solar energy is utilized by a 64m² solar collector surface, which
produces an annual amount of 155 GJ heat energy. This amount usually satisfies the warm
water demand of the main building for bathing (200 people).
PROCESS
The warm water is heated by 32 Heliostar solar collectors type 300 N2L, which are integrated
at an angle of 45 degrees into the south-east oriented roof. The heating system furthermore
includes 2 storage tanks of1 000 litres placed in the boiler room in the attic as well as the

3. piping, a heat exchanger and measuring and safety equipment. The system operates with two
circuits; the primary circuit is filled with a heat-transfer fluid while the secondary circuit uses
water. Regulated by HC-2 type microprocessors, the system operates fully automatically and
can also be used without supervision. The maximal output of the solar collectors is 45 kW
and, depending on weather conditions, the 64m² surface area can produce about 43 125 kWh
heat energy annually.
The biggest demand for hot water arises in winter, although the collectors operate at their
lowest efficiency then. Thus in winter it is not possible to achieve a high level of efficiency,
whilst during the rest of the year the capacity utilization is mostly 100%.
The building is heated primarily with natural gas heat modules, so the solar collectors help to
reduce the amount of natural gas consumed.
FINANCIAL RESOURCES AND PARTNERS
The investment amounted to EUR 30 000 (HUF 7 500 000), of which 30% was covered with
State support from the National Energy Saving Program, whilst the remainder was financed
by the social home’s own resources.
RESULTS
Due to the solar energy investment the use of natural gas for heating can be reduced by
approx. 10 000 m3 annually. Thus with environmentally friendly water heating the institution
achieves a significant saving in greenhouse gas emissions.
The social home succeeded in decreasing its expenses by approx. EUR 3 200 per year which
is a great relief for the institution, in a difficult financial situation. The savings are achieved
by the reduced demand for natural gas.
LESSONS LEARNED AND REPEATABILTY
The system was installed and put in operation by experts of Naplopó Ltd. As the system is
fully automatic, no personnel are needed for running it. The maintenance can be fulfilled by
the maintenance engineers of the social home with the help of the instruction manual.
The social home has welcomed several visitors and groups interested in the new solar
collector heating system. The contractor uses the investment as a reference.
There are plans to install (as soon as conditions will allow it) further solar collectors on the
roofs of 4 additional houses (accommodating 15 people each). Furthermore the management
would also like to supply the heat for the laundry and the kitchens situated in the main
building by solar collectors.Besides solar energy, the management has thought of utilizing
other kinds of renewable energy sources for the social home, e.g. by installing a small wind
turbine or a pellet oven. These ideas need to be assessed in depth in the future

4. PHOTOS: