Removing solar panels

EachPenny wrote: »

I think there should be a crackdown on people who are illegally obtaining their energy, no question about that, but it is the means used which needs to be questioned.

Without getting into an argument that is probably more suited to a debate in The MoneySaver Arms! I can't agree with you on restricting the means to catch thieves.

Presumably nobody questions the use of cameras, tags and other high tech to catch shoplifters. After all it is the public who pay in the end.

The police use high tech to catch uninsured motorists; who add around £50pa on average to motorists premiums. Objections?

Energy theft is not a victimless crime, other customers pay. What methods do you suggest for a 'crackdown on people who are illegally obtaining their energy'?

House_Martin wrote: »

Rent a roofers are doing very well and they would nt change it if they had a choice Many have an old analogue meter which will actually run backwards on sunny days deducting units used on the previous nights usage at the same time as crediting the FIT meter.
so long as the reading never shows a negative on the last reading the suppliers will not twigg and you end up with a virtual zero electric bill.
The panels sell well on Ebay. As a meter reader I have seen quite a few houses where they increase the panels from the 4 kwh limit without telling the supplier

Hi

Not this rubbish again ... :wall:, next you'll be praising the quality of excellent British made meters with analogue dials which do run backwards, which you and other meter readers continue to read without reporting unsuitability and are prone to misreading -or- the energy industry refuses to replace on cost grounds, whilst rubbishing analogue meters made abroad which are easier to read without mistakes being made and actually work without reversing according to the requirements made upon the industry by regulation ... the vast majority of meters do not reverse and it is the joint responsibility of the homeowner & the supplier to rectify the situation if a meter reversal is possible ... the homeowner is required to notify the supplier, however, agents of the energy company should also take action & report if they come across meters which are known (or suspected) to be dangerous or non-compliant ...

Panels prices have dropped significantly, so there's not much value in the pre-owned market compared to potential income ... on a 4kWp early install system the op would be looking to binning somewhere around £35k (at current economics) over the remaining years of the FiT contract, so the details regarding the installation really need to be looked into before making rash decisions ...

Regarding adding additional panels ... over on the G&E board you'll see plenty of comments regarding generation over a particularly sunny quarter which results in the FiT partner querying the reading and requiring proof of the TGM reading because generation is outside the expected tolerance ... they also have the right to inspect the installation as do the operators of the FiT scheme .... cheating on a contract for financial gain should be treated as fraudulent and dealt with according to the law ... also, being in breach of the terms of the MCS certification should lead to an entry being removed from the MCS database, preventing any further payment being made and likely depriving the 'cheat' of thousands of pounds of income, so it's just not worth the risk ...

By the way, there is no '4 kwh limit' ... firstly for energy it's 'kWh' not 'kwh', secondly you're describing the nominal generation, therefore it's 'kWp' not 'kwh' and thirdly to approach the limit to which FiT payments apply you'd need a roof-space around the size of a supermarket, so in mentioning '4' you're probably confusing the point where G83 installations need DNO approval or the breakpoint of historical tiered FiT tariffs, which changed significantly some time back ... then again, someone familiar with the energy supply industry should already know this ... shouldn't they?

And no, before it's raised, I don't really care what the 'Which?' random survey report mentioned years ago or how the newspapers covered the article at the time ... as mentioned previously, it's flawed, outdated and often misrepresented - so irrelevant ...


# Note to OP .. If your position & posts are genuine, you really do need to think about doing some research before removing the panels .... if it is an early generation installation with a high FiT rate, maybe a 'half-way' option would be to look at replacing the panels with a newer all black panel array of the same capacity, but you would need to check the validity of doing this, asking the question on the G&E board might get some info & opinions on this ... yes it would cost money up front, but potentially flushing £35k down the toilet without giving the situation much forethought doesn't make much sense to me unless you consider it 'small change' ....

HTH
Z

As the OP is in the dark;) about the panels, and the solicitor hasn't apparently mentioned them, I wonder if the previous owner is still collecting the FIT??

I understand this is 'legal' (a sort of Rent a Roof arrangement!) but of course to be valid it should have been part of the sale documentation. Also it would not be the solicitor's fault if the vendor didn't mention solar panels to the solicitor.

propinquitas wrote: »

I know you probably think we're mad....
Thanks again for your reply.

Yes.

Cardew wrote: »

As the OP is in the dark;) about the panels, and the solicitor hasn't apparently mentioned them, I wonder if the previous owner is still collecting the FIT??

He has bought a bungalow that needs a new roof and has solar panels that he hates enough to throw money away. Why would he buy a bungalow like that?
He bought it without knowing the ownership of the panels and the solicitor and building society not knowing it even had them!

JC_Derby wrote: »

Not strictly true, 3.68kw or <16a per phase may be installed without requesting permission from the DNO however the DNO must still be informed of the installation.
Over 16a per phase then the installation should be applied for to the DNO.
Suppliers may pay the FIT, but if an installation is adversely affecting local supplies, then the customer can be told to turn it off by the DNO.

Hiya, Z has answered the key point. You can install as much PV as you like, you only need permission from the DNO if you want to be able to export (even theoretically) more than 3.68kW. So if your inverter is limited to 3.68kW, then problem sorted.

Also, best not to mix 3.68kW and 16A, they are not the same. The old rules were 16A, but as voltage varies so much in the UK, it was changed years ago to 3,680W (equal to 16A at a nominal 230V) to prevent greater wattage being exported in high voltage areas/times.

There is also an old myth that you can't install more than 4kWp of PV, but actually that just relates to the old FiT tariff brackets of 0-4kWp and over 4kWp to 10kWp, so no 4kWp limit, just an issue for consideration. There is now just a 0-10kWp bracket.