PV Systems. Which panel and inverter to choose

Bharat

Dear Friends

I have a few quotes for the installation of a 4KW system and the prices range between £13K and £19K.

I will be grateful if I can have advice on the following:

Are the following installation charges reasonable for:

CP Solar 185w panels and a Fronius IG Plus 35 inverter installed for £13K.

Koysera panels and a Fornius invertor installed for £16.5K.

Should I insist on monocrystalline panels?

I will be most grateful if I can be directed to what are the better quality panels and which I should avoid and same for the invertors.

All advice gratefully received.

Thank you.

Bharat

Poosmate

Wow! £6k is a bit of a difference in price!

Have you read the other two threads on solar PV's? Very informative and knowledgeable people on there. There's also another thread on the Utilities board (sub board Gas & Electric).

Seems the general census of opinion is that the prices are being kept artificially high at the moment due to this being "the latest craze" and demand outstripping the supply of the bits and bobs and also because of the systems requiring being fitted by MCS accredited companies (some seeing this as a cartel who are keeping the prices high).

Personally, I believe the "cartel" bubble is about to burst on account of the amount of companies who are now on the MCS register (the list gets longer by the day!). Also, because these companies are not only competing against each other but also against those companies who are offering the solar panels for free (ASG, Isis and Homesun + some utilities now too!).

In the absence of the experienced ones from the other threads posting, I would enter the component parts into a search engine and see if you can decipher what the difference in the prices are. It could be that the one for £13k is less efficient than the £19k one even though the panels would have the same kWp rating. i.e. the difference between Heinz beans and Morrisons Value ones.

Alternatively, it could be that one company has decided to cut their profit margin to the bone just to get the business and highten it's profile in your area, rather than continually quoting and not getting the business. Maybe it's the start of the bubble bursting.... I live in hope!

Hope that helps.

Poo

Rodders57

Panels by Shueco, inverters by Sunnyboy

daytona600_2

Bharat wrote: »

Dear Friends

I have a few quotes for the installation of a 4KW system and the prices range between £13K and £19K.

I will be grateful if I can have advice on the following:

Are the following installation charges reasonable for:

CP Solar 185w panels and a Fronius IG Plus 35 inverter installed for £13K.

Koysera panels and a Fornius invertor installed for £16.5K.

Should I insist on monocrystalline panels?

I will be most grateful if I can be directed to what are the better quality panels and which I should avoid and same for the invertors.

All advice gratefully received.

Thank you.

Bharat

modules best types

premium sanyo solarworld kyocera rec

mid market suntech sharp yingli
then 100s of cheap asian low cost units

premium modules cost more but produce higher outputs/yields
and have better power warranties & power tolerances
they also work better in poor/low light and in all seasons
poly modules generally better than mono in the uk in all seasons

inverters best types european

premium sma & aurora up to 97% effciency
mid fronius steca mastervolt kaco
avoid cheap inverters at all cost
it converts the dc from the solar module to ac to sell
to the grid

modules must be mcs certified for grid systems
www.microgenerationcertification.org
inverters must have G83/1 certification to connect to the grid

you get what you pay for in pv as with anything else
there is a global shortage of pv premium inverters for all this year


premium modules & inverters cost more bit produce better outputs
are better built with better warranty up to 25 years
and they will be there to sort out any warranty problems in the
future
it will be on your roof for 25 years or more
price should not be the only only guiding decision

true cost
pv system ( modules/inverter ) + installation + KWh therefore earnings produced
budget on £3000 - £ 5000 per instaled KWp fully installed
installation is the expensive part

buy from a specialist with no gimmicks or bonus points
always insist on a site visit - looking at your house on google maps
will not do , you are installing a small power station on your roof
pv professionals don,t supply groceries - supermarkets should not be supplying solar


systems can be modular for future expansion if higher earnings
are required and don,t accept standard price list/catalogue
system should be tailored to your exact needs

remote wireless/bluetooth displays are good idea
or good inverters talk to web/pc/i-phones these day

csae

daytona600 wrote: »

modules best types

premium sanyo solarworld kyocera rec

mid market suntech sharp yingli
then 100s of cheap asian low cost units

premium modules cost more but produce higher outputs/yields
and have better power warranties & power tolerances
they also work better in poor/low light and in all seasons
poly modules generally better than mono in the uk in all seasons

inverters best types european

premium sma & aurora up to 97% effciency
mid fronius steca mastervolt kaco
avoid cheap inverters at all cost
it converts the dc from the solar module to ac to sell
to the grid

modules must be mcs certified for grid systems
www.microgenerationcertification.org
inverters must have G83/1 certification to connect to the grid

you get what you pay for in pv as with anything else
there is a global shortage of pv premium inverters for all this year


premium modules & inverters cost more bit produce better outputs
are better built with better warranty up to 25 years
and they will be there to sort out any warranty problems in the
future
it will be on your roof for 25 years or more
price should not be the only only guiding decision

true cost
pv system ( modules/inverter ) + installation + KWh therefore earnings produced
budget on £3000 - £ 5000 per instaled KWp fully installed
installation is the expensive part

buy from a specialist with no gimmicks or bonus points
always insist on a site visit - looking at your house on google maps
will not do , you are installing a small power station on your roof
pv professionals don,t supply groceries - supermarkets should not be supplying solar


systems can be modular for future expansion if higher earnings
are required and don,t accept standard price list/catalogue
system should be tailored to your exact needs

remote wireless/bluetooth displays are good idea
or good inverters talk to web/pc/i-phones these day

Sound advice, and it is true, you get what you pay for!

Remember that at every turn.

Ecotrician

You do get what you pay for with regard to PV components, SMA and Fronius and the other German and Austrian manufacturers churn out quality kit, dont agree the same with regard to installation costs though, I see some quick and slap dash installs on a regular basis that bare no relation to how much the total system costs.

swinnerton

Hi, have just had PV system by local specialist consisting of 26 KD135 Kyocera panels and a Fronius IG40 inverter .In their opinion these were the best and most efficient and reliable components. Installation took a week and the quality of workmanship and attention to detail is second to none.Cost £19000.

Bardonman

I'm looking at a couple of quotes for £9,000 for installed 2.52kwp systems using schueko panels and Shueko badged Sunnyboy inverter. I think Schueko is one of the better panels, but don't see them mentioned much apart from by Rodders 57. Seems a good quote to me, but has anybody else any ideas on that . Oh yes the price also included supply and fitting of a new consumer unit (switched fuseboard). Also, Rodders 57, any reasons for the backing of Scheuko and MCA Sunnyboy.

cliffski

I have a quote for schuco and sunnyboy too, just waiting for planning permission now...

Cardew

In 10 years or so we might have a better idea on the reliability of panels and inverters.

The problem as I see it is 'Badge Engineering'. German and Austrian firms can assemble PV panels from the Far East - China etc and legally claim they are 'Made in Germany' - much like Made in UK Sharp panels are assembled in Wales(not implying that Sharp are not very good panels)

It is rather like cars. 20 years ago Skoda were a joke as far as reliability - now they are a VW in drag. In the same period Mercedes who enjoyed an unrivalled reputation for reliability, outsourced manufacture of some models to South Africa etc and almost overnight reliability suffered.

Gizmosmum_2

I've seen Schott, Phono and Sharp panels installed - Sharp appeared to be the better quality although only time will tell. Efficiency differences between poly and mono crystalline are minimal I wouldn't be too concerned about that.

SMA and Fronius have served the German market well over the last few years and so seem a safe (if expensive) bet. Others may well turn out as good in time.

One of the hidden costs is the roof mounting kit. I've had a Sen mounting kit installed on my roof - twice as expensive as it's nearest rival but loads more substantial with vertical and horizontal fixings. I considered it important as I live in a windy part of the country others may well be hapy with a cheaper, lightweight version.

Scaffolding costs are horrendous too and are often forgotten about in the costings.

The main cost is in the purchase of the components - around £11- £12k for a 4kwp system. Scaffold, labour (solar pv installers now earning in excess of 30k pa) etc all on top of that as well as normal overheads for running a business.

I paid £14,500 and was really pleased with the outcome. I wanted UK manufactured panels so went for Sharp.