So now I have a solar PV system how do I make the most of it???

jimjames

Zenoka wrote: »

Does anyone know if there is a device that can sense when you are exporting and send that electricity to a hot water heater? We would really like to use the surplus to help towards heating our water, DH is good at diy and is already talking about fitting a 500w imersion, but we want a system that will automatically control it for us.

Does such a thing exist? I've searched but not been able to find anything.

This is a thread I've seen about exactly this idea

http://www.pistonheads.com/gassing/topic.asp?h=0&f=207&t=927161&mid=0

wuthton

I have solar panels from which I collect the FIT but I'd love to meet the lunatic who came up with the Feed in Tariff scheme.

Why oh why could we not just have Net Metering, I'd have no electric bill plus some extra cash for electric sold at a fair price. Also there would be no complaints from those without panels subsidising my payments and it would be easy for newcomers to understand.

Call me a sceptic but it would also require fewer men in suits down at Whitehall to manage/meddle with the scheme.

tanctop

Just had solar PV panels installed this week. Excited that the sun is shining today! But disappointed to find that when checked main electric input meter (from grid not solar PV generated) we are using more electricity than expected. (We timed the number of flashes and surprisingly this agreed with the E-on monitor)
We try to keep a tight check on electricity usage and have been around the house twice checking what's on. Would expect it to be 500W per hour but its showing nearly 1kWh more than that.
Does anyone know how much electricity a solar PV inverter uses. We have a Sunnyboy 4000?
Sorry I'm new to all this - Forums and Solar PV

furndire

Tanctop

If you have a Siemens S2AS-100, or Siemens S1AS-100 meter as I had, check that it is working properly, and check panels are not ADDING Kw's on to your meter as mine did. Its very difficult to work out this time of year - it only becomes really noticeble when you get a lot of really sunny days. Your meter may be faulty
https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/discussion/3191844

John_Pierpoint

The concept of using more of the generated electricity - capturing say 90% rather than 40% (or the 50% those without an export meter are assumed to be using and excluding the homes with a supply meter that goes backwards ) was given a good going over on MSE, back in the early days of the FiT concept.

On most homes batteries are just not economic for storing electricity and the hot water tank is the only other realistic energy storage device, for those of us without swimming pools. However a passing cloud can have an instantaneous effect on the power being generated by the panels; so some form of monitoring, linked to a switching system is needed. The additional saving over gas or night time electricity rates is usually small. Measured in tens of £'s per year , rather than 100's of £'s per year.
So something like EMMA is difficult to justify financially.

Some talented enthusiasts have managed to measure generation by counting flashes on the modern type meters that flash a red led for each watt of power passing through a meter.

The problem does not seem to be too complicated, as the inverter works by creating alternating current at a slightly higher voltage than the mains supply; thus pushing the excess production backwards, theoretically as far as the national grid.

Perhaps the current number of PV installations will generate mass production of low cost switching device(s), but at the moment there seems to be a chicken and egg situation.

Well that is my layman's understanding of the situation.
Better informed comments are always welcome.

tanctop

"If you have a Siemens S2AS-100, or Siemens S1AS-100 meter as I had, check that it is working properly, and check panels are not ADDING Kw's on to your meter as mine did. Its very difficult to work out this time of year - it only becomes really noticeble when you get a lot of really sunny days. Your meter may be faulty"

Furndire

Thanks for your warning. After checking our meter for several days we are satisfied that it is working correctly. The e-on monitor is confused when we are generating solar PV. Also our main input meter from the grid flashes when electricity is being either imported or exported. But now we have left it for several days and can check what the meter has actually recorded in whole kWh we are relieved to find its ok!

[Deleted User]

Can't say I've made any changes in lifestyle since the PV was installed.

The house is normally occupied during the day so the ASHP is running and from meter readings PV production is a 'fart in the wind' compared to ASHP consumption

I will continue switching off TV, video, dvd, phone chargers, laptop chargers etc at the wall overnight. This is really for fire risk not for saving a few pence...

Until the meter is changed for one that does not go backwards I guess we are using 100% of what is generated in a roundabout way

Cheers

howardl

Cardew wrote: »

The point made above about not being tempted to run part loads is important.

Modern washing machines for example don't use much electricity(0.4kWh or 0.6kWh) is typical. So the savings on electricity will often only be a couple of pence - or nothing on a dull winter's day - and there will be no saving on the cost of water and detergent.

The same principle applies to dishwashers. When we had economy 7 it was a temptation to run them at night when there was still space for, say, breakfast dishes.

We have had solar pv fitted in june 11 ( I paid for) and have been carefully monitoring my appliance usage with a plug in meter. My so called energy efficient Hotpoint washing m/c uses 1.8kWh alot i think on peak useage ie when heating the water even though i have a solar thermal panel (fitted by me diy 18 months ago)) providing hot water or helping in winter, we now fill m/c with hot water from tap thru soap dispenser door.
What i feel is needed is a meter constantly monitoring electric useage and pv production for a reasonable cost, i can get a sunny boy meter that is blue tooth enabled from my controller/inverter in loft but they want £450 for it, any suggestions??? Note a few appliance measurments recorded Pc=160w, tv and hard drive box 380w,2 slice toaster=780w, vacuum cleaner 1300w, kettle 2.1 Kwh, fridge/freezer 100w when running..
The main cost saving/investment is the FIT payment which for four months june-september is 1257kwh or £560 approx but as i write this in november on a dull day the pv is just about 300watts per hour!!! still better than nothing though

howardl

betheebee wrote: »

Hi,
I have been searching through loads of posts looking for an answer to a question I have but can't find anything relating to it, so thought I'd try here as most seem to have their system up and running. My question is ,
How long did it take to start receiving money back from your supplier once your system had been registered ? Did your elec provider drag their heels and take weeks or months before they dealt with your claim for FiT, also do they have a legal deadlins as to how long they have to clear it ?

Hope this helps? I am still waiting for my FIT payment from end of September Quarter approx £560 and contacted Atlantic electric (part of SSE) my supplier, they say they can take up to 65 working days ie 13 weeks or one Quarter to pay up ie within the next billing cycle (check small print in your contract) this is so in mine. I spoke to a representative from Atlantic and they said it is endorsed by OFGEM the electricity ombudsman. When I informed them if customers took this long to pay up they would be sent a summons he agreed but could not help..keep on pressuring them mine has just been released but have not got it yet!!!:)

digitaltoast

howardl wrote: »

We have had solar pv fitted in june 11 ( I paid for) and have been carefully monitoring my appliance usage with a plug in meter. My so called energy efficient Hotpoint washing m/c uses 1.8kWh alot i think on peak useage ie when heating the water

Are you sure you're not getting kW and kWh confused? 1.8kW sounds about right for the heating part of the cycle, but the only washing machine I can find that comes close to 1.8kWh is the 1.171kWh semi-professional gigantic 11kg Hotpoint AQ113D697 - most use under 1.09kWh. Let's assume that your figures are correct, you're looking at roughly either 10 or 18p per load depending on whether you use Economy7 or not.

howardl wrote: »

even though i have a solar thermal panel providing hot water

You don't say whether your washing machine has hot & cold fill. Most don't these days. However...

howardl wrote: »

we now fill m/c with hot water from tap thru soap dispenser door

I almost wondered about this myself a few years back, but there's a very good reason that washing machines are cold fill. If you think about the length of pipe run to a wm, that "dead leg" of cold water could be close to what an economy cycle would take in water. So, you're pushing all the cold water into the washing machine, and by the time the hot water comes through, it's full. So you're heating cold water anyway, and filling the pipe with hot water to sit there and get cold again ready for the next time!

In your case, you've got bonus hot water from the solar thermal panels, however, for the sake of a saving of possibly 4p if you're lucky, is it worth it?

howardl wrote: »

What i feel is needed is a meter constantly monitoring electric useage and pv production for a reasonable cost, i can get a sunny boy meter that is blue tooth enabled from my controller/inverter in loft but they want £450 for it, any suggestions???

Yes - sit down with a calculator or http://www.ukpower.co.uk/tools/running_costs_electricity/ and do the following sums:

Calculate the amount of time you use each appliance. So for example, let's take your toaster. 780w. Let's assume you make 2 bits of toast every single day of a 30 day month, and assuming, like my toaster, it takes around 1 minute, that's (0.78(kWh) * 0.12(p) = 0.094p/month or £1.12 a year or 0.003p/day - less than one third of one penny per day.

Now YOUR part of the homework is to work out how many lifetimes of toast you could make for a £450 monitor

howardl wrote: »

Note a few appliance measurments recorded Pc=160w, tv and hard drive box 380w,2 slice toaster=780w, vacuum cleaner 1300w, kettle 2.1 Kwh, fridge/freezer 100w when running..
The main cost saving/investment is the FIT payment which for four months june-september is 1257kwh or £560 approx but as i write this in november on a dull day the pv is just about 300watts per hour!!! still better than nothing though

As many as 300w? Well, you could be running your PC *AND* your freezer during the middle of the day for at least and hour for free. Saving you 3.1p a month and the emissions of a cow's fart worth of greenhouse gasses. I can see why FOE are so enthusiastic about it - it's a planet saver for sure and worth every penny of the £8.2bn extra on everyone's bills over the next 25 years...

(For American viewers, that was sarcasm