Free solar panel discussion

hansi

I registered with Home Sun when I saw their feature in the Express some months ago. I registered on the day it appeared.

Mcfi5dhc

If you want to play "Spot the error" or "Spot the made up facts" the Daily Mail has an excellent article today about Isis/ASG/Homesun et al

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/property/article-1309252/MARKET-WATCH-Solar-panels-fit-prince-beware-free-offers.html?ito=feeds-newsxml

Even by Daily Mail standards, it is poorly written, though I must admit I agree with its sentiment.

timity

I have inherited a largish bungalow in Wales with a good south facing roof and it has night storeage heating of which I was considering spending over £7000 to upgrade to gas fired central heating (from 6 storeage heaters) and still have to pay for electricity to operate the hot water/cooker/fridge/freezer/lights.

If I was to get an installer to supply and fit all the gear for £15000 of solar panels, would I be correct in thinking there would be enough energy generated by the panels to power the storeage heaters and other equipment even in the worst of winters and still be able to export an excess of electricity ?

Tim

liquidity_2

timity wrote: »

If I was to get an installer to supply and fit all the gear for £15000 of solar panels, would I be correct in thinking there would be enough energy generated by the panels to power the storeage heaters and other equipment even in the worst of winters and still be able to export an excess of electricity ?

Tim

Sorry but the answer is almost certainly no. If you installed 4 kWp of solar panels you would generate perhaps 3000 kWh of electricity per year with obviously more during the longer sunnier summer days than the shorter cloudier winter days. I suspect that if you looked at your electricity bill you would see you used 10,000 kWh or more of Economy 7 electricity over the course of the year - your panels wouldn't generate anywhere near enough and then at the wrong time of the year. Sorry.

timity

timity wrote: »

I have inherited a largish bungalow in Wales with a good south facing roof and it has night storeage heating of which I was considering spending over £7000 to upgrade to gas fired central heating (from 6 storeage heaters) and still have to pay for electricity to operate the hot water/cooker/fridge/freezer/lights.

If I was to get an installer to supply and fit all the gear for £15000 of solar panels, would I be correct in thinking there would be enough energy generated by the panels to power the storeage heaters and other equipment even in the worst of winters and still be able to export an excess of electricity ?

Tim

Sorry may have worded that wrong - it was late at night.

What i meant was would it be a good idea to install the panels then go over to ordinary electricity rather than economy 7. Would then be able to change the settings on the storeage heaters so they charge in day light hours through the use of the power from the panels.

Cardew

timity wrote: »

Sorry may have worded that wrong - it was late at night.

What i meant was would it be a good idea to install the panels then go over to ordinary electricity rather than economy 7. Would then be able to change the settings on the storeage heaters so they charge in day light hours through the use of the power from the panels.

If you install the largest system(that attracts the highest rate of FIT) i.e. 4 kWp at a cost of £15,000 to £20,000 you will get somewhere around 3,500kWh per year(depending on your location.

However the maximum output might approach 4kW on a sunny summer day around noon. That would not be enough to charge 1 storage heater and of course you don't need heating in summer.

In winter when you need heating the output of the panels is a fraction of the above; so your idea is a non-starter.

The economics of getting a PV system depend on the income from FITs. The electricity you use in the house and from exporting power are a bonus, but even with a large system the reduction in your electricity bill is likely to be in the region of £100 to £150 a year even if you work hard at utilising electricity in the house.

Perry525

timity wrote: »

I have inherited a largish bungalow in Wales

If I was to get an installer to supply and fit all the gear for £15000 of solar panels, would I be correct in thinking there would be enough energy generated by the panels to power the storeage heaters and other equipment even in the worst of winters and still be able to export an excess of electricity ?

Tim

I would guess that the bungalow was built in the 1930's and it will be poorly insulated and full of tiny drafts.
Your money would be better spent on draft proofing and insulating. This will cost less, then it will work 24/7 year round, keeping you cool in summer and warm in winter. Your savings on heating will far outstrip any money you may make on solar.

timity

Perry525 wrote: »

I would guess that the bungalow was built in the 1930's and it will be poorly insulated and full of tiny drafts.
Your money would be better spent on draft proofing and insulating. This will cost less, then it will work 24/7 year round, keeping you cool in summer and warm in winter. Your savings on heating will far outstrip any money you may make on solar.

The bungalow was built in the mid 80's and is very well insulated

I am now in a dilema - do I install pv panels 9from savings so no loan) or change the heating system ?

Cardew

timity wrote: »

I am now in a dilema - do I install pv panels 9from savings so no loan) or change the heating system ?

PV panels have nothing to do with heating! - They are fitted as a form of long term investment; and to be 'green' if that is your 'thing'.

grahamc2003

If your house is well insulated, E7 seems a decent heating system to me, assuming you have modern storage heaters which are contollable (and you know the sensible way of controlling them).

You can't change the times they come on - your ex-REC decides the times, and the contract is for 7 hours of heating at night (usually between 00:30 and 08:30). In any case, you'd be a long way off even charging a single stoage heater via solar panels even from the sunniest midsummers day).

If you prefer gas, then remember to add in breakdowns/yearly check/service/new boiler every few years etc - so while e7 looks quite expensive (even at night rates), all in all it's probably cheaper overall than gas. In ten years time I'd expect gas users to be moving to E7 for various reasons.