Solar PV

Mike-Graham

Hi everyone,

We are thinking of having solar PV installed on our property and have had a couple of quotes. We have the roof space to have the maximum 4kWp installed, but its on the west face.

We have been quoted £20500 from Ploughcroft solar for Sanyo Hybrid Panels supplied and fitted including VAT. Does anyone have any dealings with this company?

Trying to get a few other quotes from other companies for a similar setup. Do people think this is a good price? I've seen the panels on the net for £15000 for the amount they quoted, so I don't think its such a bad price. We are going to get some extra lending on our mortgage to pay for this, so wanting a good quick return on the investment, meaning the hybrid's are probably the best way to go.

What are other peoples earnings on their PV systems?

Thanks for any input, all very confusing at to what system will suit us best, and pay the money back the quickest! :-)

Ta
Mike

ormus

the average house uses 9kw per day. so you wont even halve your lecky bill.
lets say you save 500 quid per annum.
payback time? you work it out.

vaio

The new FIT pays just over 40p per kwh generated. Factor in the saving of say 13 or 15p per kwh for displaced mains and you end up well over 50p per kwh.

A 4 kw set should generate 3200 kwh per years so make you over £1500 per year and that's guaranteed and index linked for the next 25 years.

Installation is going to be £15 or 20k so you could be looking at a simple rate of return of 10% which obviously gets better the more expensive electricity gets (and I’d be surprised if fuel inflation was less than 10 or 15% pa for the foreseeable future)

Sounds like quite a good investment to me.

Gizmosmum_2

Don't touch it - if you've a west facing roof you won't generate enough electric even with the feed in tariff to back it up to pay for itself.

Key criteria for solar pv - Dues South roof, South west, South East at a push and no shade from trees, other houses etc. You shouldn't have even been given a price for a west facing roof.

Solar pv is much more sensitive than solar thermal and even that shouldn't be installed on a west facing roof.

Solar Century and Sundog are both well established solar pv firms with excellent websites and the Energy Saving Trust provides free, impartial advice on their website or on the phone 0800 512012.

Mankysteve

Also note its got to be a MCS certificated product to get fits.

Mike-Graham

Gizmosmum wrote: »

Don't touch it - if you've a west facing roof you won't generate enough electric even with the feed in tariff to back it up to pay for itself.

Key criteria for solar pv - Dues South roof, South west, South East at a push and no shade from trees, other houses etc. You shouldn't have even been given a price for a west facing roof.

Solar pv is much more sensitive than solar thermal and even that shouldn't be installed on a west facing roof.

Solar Century and Sundog are both well established solar pv firms with excellent websites and the Energy Saving Trust provides free, impartial advice on their website or on the phone 0800 512012.

Just had a look on google maps, the roof they quoted for is actually west-north west. The other side is obviously east-south east, which to me would be a much better choice.

Gizmosmum_2

Have a play with this great little calculator - it can work on roof space or kw and they'll organise 3 quotes for you if you want them. The prices they quote are in line with what I'd expect for 4kw.

The FIT is designed to give you 8% return on investment but the reality is usually less, between 4 - 6% even on a due south facing roof. It's a great investment if you have a bit of cash to spare because interest rates are so rubbish now but I'd seriously hesitate to take out more on the mortgage to finance it. It is supposed to be index linked but what happens if we hit 8% interest rates in 2 years' time?

http://www.solarguide.co.uk/solar-pv-calculator?sc_formtype=2#factors

I'm keen to be green but canny with my cash too - haven't got much to spare these days!

Hope this helps.

Mike-Graham

had a call from another company yesterday, evo energy. They sounded much more sensible, and said a 2.2kWp system on the most south facing side of the house would be the best investment, using sharp panels (40% cheaper than hybrid), with an investment of around £10k and a return of approx 10%. This sounds much more sensible.

macman

You really need to establish the precise bearings of the available roof slopes. ESE is not good, you need something between SW and SE, you also need to establish any shading factors during daylight hours (any trees in the way?). For example, I have a parapet wall on my house which slightly affects the PV output during late afternoon.
A reputable company will not give you a firm quote until they have done a proper on site survey. Google Maps can give you an initial idea of feasibility, but it's no substitute for a site inspection.

Gizmosmum_2

Mike-Graham wrote: »

had a call from another company yesterday, evo energy. They sounded much more sensible, and said a 2.2kWp system on the most south facing side of the house would be the best investment, using sharp panels (40% cheaper than hybrid), with an investment of around £10k and a return of approx 10%. This sounds much more sensible.

Even due south roofs aren't getting 10% ROI be careful not to get carried away trying to be green and get a good return on investment by convincing yourself with the best figures. FIT is set up to provide a max of 8% on a due south or south east/west roof.

Macman's right any reputable company will visit but you might have to wait a while because they are all so busy. Better to wait and get decent information than jump at phone quotes and regret it for the next 20 years.

ninjaryder

Mike-Graham wrote: »

had a call from another company yesterday, evo energy. They sounded much more sensible, and said a 2.2kWp system on the most south facing side of the house would be the best investment, using sharp panels (40% cheaper than hybrid), with an investment of around £10k and a return of approx 10%. This sounds much more sensible.

Hi mike im getting 1.84kw for £8,500 i will try to get a couple of extra panels (230w) fitted at the time if there is room at the time of the main install at a discounted price,my roff is 5 degrees off due south.
Nick