I'll ask about micro inverters. Less panels but more efficiency, might workout. Would need some figures. Obviously benefits of isolating each panel.
Looking at getting solar pv
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Is this your post by any chance?
https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/discussion/6181981/looking-to-get-solar-panels
https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/discussion/6181981/looking-to-get-solar-panels
That's me. Figure here and there are the best places to get advice out of my usual haunts.
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Thought so. That forum is full of many knowledgable people on the subject.
Just got an email saying we'll need two inverters instead of one, given the size of the system (not sure why we just don't get 1 bigger one?), is 2 inverters better than one? Twice as much to go wrong I suppose, but like microinverters, more isolated systems so one doesn't take out the rest.
A friend of mine had a 4k system installed about 2 years ago. The company that he used at the time pay a flat fee for exports but he rarely makes any. I think he gets a flat £25 a month for exporting but the way his is setup he doesn't export any. He has a zap charger for his Tesla and that will dump any additional energy they are not using into his car rather than exporting it. I believe as he works from home he normally uses the energy he generates and its more the savings you make on not paying for the energy you are using rather than anything else. He has changed the way he uses his energy and will stick a load of washing on during the day when says the sun is paying for it. Coupled with the fact he only uses the electric car for fairly small journey and NEVER has to pay to fill it up with any kind of fuel (he will use free superchargers for longer runs) the savings he is making do add up and will continue to as energy prices rise.
Do you really need solar panels in Scotland... sorry for being rude!
I can see the point of these in mainland Europe and Southern England, but Scotland...
And I have lived and travelled over much of the place over 2/3 years.
Solar panels IMO are a waste of time in Scotland. I was in Japan about 4 years ago and remember seeing miles and miles of houses covered in solar panels outside Tokyo - they obviously have lots and lots of glorious sun, Japan is way ahead of the game for EV and Solar tech - the Motorways had EV charge points when i was last there
I can see the point of these in mainland Europe and Southern England, but Scotland...
And I have lived and travelled over much of the place over 2/3 years.
Solar panels IMO are a waste of time in Scotland. I was in Japan about 4 years ago and remember seeing miles and miles of houses covered in solar panels outside Tokyo - they obviously have lots and lots of glorious sun, Japan is way ahead of the game for EV and Solar tech - the Motorways had EV charge points when i was last there
Not sure if you're taking to meet or sonny? Sonny is in Scotland and if he got the fit payment it definitely makes sense.
I'm on the isle of wight, one of the best places in the uk for sun.
I'm on the isle of wight, one of the best places in the uk for sun.
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The numbers just don't add up unfortunately..... Don't bother.
Caporegime
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Why wouldn't you need them in Scotland?
I get Fit payments before they were stopped.
So essentially:
1. I get paid for every bit of electricity I make by the government.
2. I get use of any electricity I make.
3. I get deemed export payments of 50% of everything I generate.
So even of I use 100% of everything I make I stoll get paid 50% export and 100% FIT.
Obviously you don't know how any of this works so an ignorant comment to make. Half the homes in my estate have solar panels. And literally thousands in the area.
It's definitely worth it if you got a decent FIT rate. Installing them now. Then no chance.
Still not sure why you're so convinced it's not a smart buy now. I would agree that it's probably a not so much in Scotland, especially in some of the worst places for sun, then you'd be looking at a 20 year or more payoff (though that still works on no increases in electricity prices.)
Even in your scenario, when adding in the fact I'm on the Isle of Wight, pay off within 13 years seems likely. Especially when you add in the fact that your inverter is 80% of your max output, and in your scenario you put mine on an inverter of only 68%.
Since it'll be dual inverters, it'll be 6.6kW, which is about 90% of the total output, again, makes sense to get closer to the max, given my location.
We'd only have to use about 40% the energy produced to earn £500 a year. 13 year payoff, assuming absolutely no increases in energy prices, which seems unrealistic.
@rubberduck Again, why don't they add up? What am I missing? Sonny has kindly supplied real world figures, that pretty much support the estimated total output as estimated by the solar calculator I used (not what an installer provided me).
Even in your scenario, when adding in the fact I'm on the Isle of Wight, pay off within 13 years seems likely. Especially when you add in the fact that your inverter is 80% of your max output, and in your scenario you put mine on an inverter of only 68%.
Since it'll be dual inverters, it'll be 6.6kW, which is about 90% of the total output, again, makes sense to get closer to the max, given my location.
We'd only have to use about 40% the energy produced to earn £500 a year. 13 year payoff, assuming absolutely no increases in energy prices, which seems unrealistic.
@rubberduck Again, why don't they add up? What am I missing? Sonny has kindly supplied real world figures, that pretty much support the estimated total output as estimated by the solar calculator I used (not what an installer provided me).
Isle of Wight, yes but Scotland is a no for me. Pay back time would be such that the whole thing is hardly worth the trouble.
And you don't need fancy sun measure things to measure sun - all you need is common sense, anywhere in the South of England is pretty sweet for Solar Installs, you could probably draw a line over most of the SE,SW Territories and there you go.
Thanks for the figures, yes i never heard of FIT but if you can get them done at no extra cost that's a different story. It wont change the fact that Scotland doesn't get much sun in the first place!
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Payback for me is estimated at 14 years.
That's if electricity prices don't go up at all.
My next car is going to be electric. That means payback period will likley drop below to the 10 year point. As I'll get a smart charger and charge when excess solar is there and use the car as a battery storage as tech improves.
That will bring payback even lower.
It's only a good investment though if you have zero plans to move. The longer you stay in that home the better.
I could easily stay put until the mortgage is paid off. Build up cash reserves and possibly investments and then look to upgrade. That wouldn't be for a couple of decades and I have already had the panels for a few years.
I won't lose any money on them. I would have if I moved within 10-15 years of their purchase.
Its an investment for me and also in the environment.
Soldato
I've considered panels myself but ultimately I think it makes more sense if there is better incentives for doing it, or they are cheaper to install.
Looking at 10+ year repayment timeframes today.
If you're planning on living there for a while then it's probably worth it.
Looking at 10+ year repayment timeframes today.
If you're planning on living there for a while then it's probably worth it.
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Exactly.
If it's not a home your going to be in for like 30 years your probably better off just investing the money elsewhere.
Soldato
Well you could argue why not in Scotland? They work from daylight, not just sunlight. And Scotland typically has longer days than the south of England.
Associate
We have a large south facing roof and I've been thinking about solar panels for a bit.From what I see the investment case versus paying off a mortgage or investing elsewhere is marginal - however, being more self sufficient in eneergy (alongside a battery system) does appeal a lot, particularly with the long term moves to electric cars.
I curiously looked at them last year and had a quote done when the council had a mass install program going on (contracted out to a single company, therefore they were able to provide the installs at a discount). I think payback was still a good 15-20 years dependent.
I think once the tech has advanced further so that panels can produce more wattage for the same size, they're more efficient, and they're cheaper to produce. So that payback is under 5 years regardless of any FIT/export schemes.
I'd imagine for our household, that we'd end up consuming majority of the electricity we'd generate - only a few situations if we're away from the house all day on a nice sunny day etc. So the export schemes wouldn't really matter much to me. It's more the cost of the panels still.
