Solar Panel Guide Discussion

ronlizpatsimon

Panels may be getting a little cheaper but with the Govenment telling the power companies to reduce FIT to 21p and then to an even lower figure; it is not a viable economic investment anymore. When you see the calculations many people work out; there is rarely any mention of the extreamly high cost of a replacement Invertor

orrery

ronlizpatsimon wrote: »

...there is rarely any mention of the extreamly high cost of a replacement Invertor

They too have come down, according to my installer (who popped round with all the outstanding docs and certs for my installation). Being electronic kit, they too will follow a downward curve as the functionality becomes more integrated into fewer chips, the high power semiconductors reduce in price and designs increase in efficiency requiring less elaborate mechanical design. You can also get 10 year warranties from the manufacturers so the maximum replacement cost is entirely predictable.

On the old FIT levels you could guarantee that the inverter will not cost you a bean until you are well into profit and it becomes self funding.

ronlizpatsimon

I,ve had my installation for 5 months. At that time a replacement Invertor was £1,500.
Being able to predict a future cost does not alter the calculation. I mean, assuming a new Invertor is needed after 12 years use; and only getting about 13p per KW; (future installations); it would take about 2 years of FIT to buy it (if it cost £1000 and you average 10 KW per day.

don0301

my inverters present cost is approx £435 (OUT of warranty)

that does not include any labour tho.

The_Green_Hornet

SMA Sunny Boy inverters are designed to last over 20 years and you can get warranty extensions of up to 25 years if you are worried about future replacement costs.

I don't know about other manufacturers though but I assume they are the same or similar.

ronlizpatsimon

My invertor is a AKO Platinum 3800S. Its only got a free warrenty of 5 years. With an offer of 25 years for an extra £1,000. Cost new - today - is £1.100

don0301

ronlizpatsimon wrote: »

My invertor is a AKO Platinum 3800S. Its only got a free warrenty of 5 years. With an offer of 25 years for an extra £1,000. Cost new - today - is £1.100

so...in 5 months..it's come down from £1500 to £1100.

rogerblack

ronlizpatsimon wrote: »

My invertor is a AKO Platinum 3800S. Its only got a free warrenty of 5 years. With an offer of 25 years for an extra £1,000. Cost new - today - is £1.100

Addressing the cost.
PC power supplies cost about 500 pounds for 4kW.
The circuitry - while clearly not identical has a number of similarities - it has a high voltage power converter, and a number of other similarities.

There are of course differences, but overall, the complexity and constructional cost are similar.

It's reasonable to perhaps subtract 30% as it's one unit, not many, and perhaps then add it back, for increased reliability.

There is room to move, even now, on prices.

The_Green_Hornet

ronlizpatsimon wrote: »

My invertor is a AKO Platinum 3800S. Its only got a free warrenty of 5 years. With an offer of 25 years for an extra £1,000. Cost new - today - is £1.100

According to the Diehl web site they changed their standard warranty on S and TL product families from 5 years to 10 years as of February 2011.

http://www.diehl.com/en/diehl-controls/photovoltaics/service/platinum-long-term-warranty.html

You may want to speak with your installer.

ronlizpatsimon

Thanks "Green Hornet".
I will just wait until a replacement is needed, then look for the cheapest good quality one. On average, it does not pay to have extended warrenties. You are using some of your cash to help the profits of an insurance company.