Solar PV...Still worth it?

Fruit_and_Nut_Case

Spammer wrote:

For anyone in xxxxxx wanting a cheap epc - xxxxxxx

:spam: reported.

Dave_Fowler

Fruit_and_Nut_Case wrote: »

:spam: reported.

And is the forum user name legal?

Numbnuts

How much will you be paying per kilo watt in 25 years ?

so after your panels are paid for in the first 7 - 8 years
you have 17-18 years of fits and export tariiff plus free juice

after 25 just free juice so its worth it .

but efficiency of panels will drop but they will still be running in 30 - 40 years

WestonDave

My faith in Royal Mail is slightly restored - contracts posted Wednesday second class (their stamped envelope not me being tight!), arrived with them Thursday (yesterday) and date set for install next Wednesday! Looks like we might have them up and running next time it stops raining (although at this rate I'm going to charge the water companies commission on the basis that since I agreed to go ahead we've had more rain than we know what to do with!)

Martyn1981

Martyn1981 wrote: »

Can I make a cheeky point. I often ask people on here what they paid, or what their quotes are. I say I'm being nosey, but really it's to help me get a 'gut feeling' of where prices are, since they are moving so fast.

Mart.

An addendum, to an earlier post of mine.

Just got an email from Tesco's. I asked them for a quote last August when I was PV hunting, so I guess I'm on their mailing list now. Anyway, last year they were a pretty good price, but I already had some good local quotes, so went no further.

They are now quoting the same deal as last year, 20% off, and giving an example of a 3.92kWp for £6,799.

I'm not in any way whatsoever suggesting that people do (or don't) go with Tesco's, but this all comes back to that 'gut' feeling about where prices now are.

Feel free to correct me, but I think we are now safely under the £8k barrier, for a straightforward install. And for those in competitive areas, willing to haggle, sub £7k is appearing quite consistently now.

Hope this helps a little bit.

Mart.

Numbnuts

The panels in the 6799 deal are not very good spec cheap polys.
any installer can do cheap systems but most of us dont want phone calls in two years asking why the system does not produce as much as the first year....

a decent 4 kwp will range from 7400 - 8100 depending on inverter used.

you could get a decent 16.2% eff panel with solar edge for around 7900 .

June will be intresting as the fits rate drops on 1st of july as we all know , now people are hanging around waiting for prices to drop which seems ironic as come june most installers will slap 1k - 2k on the price when the rush kicks in as we know this happened in NOV-DEC 2011 even wholesales where selling inverters at double prices and people selling on ebay was crazy too.

not been alot of work around of late and they will be looking to recoup some cash this way. Im not mistic meg but I have been in this industry a few years now so I know what to expected.

I also have some free solar power buyers guides if anybody wants one in PDF format.

merryperson51

I really am a new kid on the block when it comes both to using forums and to solar panels....but here goes
We hope to move soon and hope to retire at about the same time. If we go for solar panels on any house we buy, I'd try to regard the cost as part of the purchase price BUT I have a few really basic questions.
Is it still the case that you can't in any way store the energy you produce to use in the evenings?
Am I right in thinking that a 4kw system is better than a 3kw system but that you need more panels for the 4kw system?...any idea how many - roughly - for each?
Do you need planning permission?
What happens if your roof tiles get damaged? Does it require a specialist to remove/refit? Does standard insurance cover or do you have to pay a hefty premium?
I know, really I do know, how daft and elementary these questions must sound but, hey, you have to start somewhere and I really don't want to rely on salesmen or manufacturers' sites for information.

Martyn1981

Hello Merry, quick run through.

You can't really store up the power. If you were living off-grid, you'd want to run a battery bank to store up your power, but the cost, losses etc make that pretty impractical for on-grid. Not impossible, but the batteries would need replacing every 10 years or less, negating any savings.

Very roughly, a standard panel is 1m by 1.6m (but there are lots of other sizes too). Such a panel will usually be rated at around 230W to 250W, so approx 4 panels per kWp. Therefore a 3kWp system would be 12 panels, and a 4kWp system 16 panels. By the way kWp stands for kilowatt peak, so a 3kWp system will generate approx 3 kilowatts at peak, when the sun is just right, and there is little to no cloud cover.

A 4kWp system is better, since it will generate more units per year, but also critically, because there are a lot of fixed costs, such as admin, scaffolding, wiring, labour etc. So whilst a 4 is a third bigger than a 3, it shouldn't cost a third more.

You don't usually need planning permission, but worth checking if you live in an area that has any restrictions. The panels will normally be permitted development.

Once fitted, the panels will offer a little protection to your roof, however, if you think the roof will need repairing or replacing in the next 10 years or so, then it would be far simpler to get such work done, before the PV is installed.

You'll need to notify your insurer (just in case) but they should be fully covered at no extra charge. Coverage should be the same as your roof - damage, weather, things hitting your roof, your roof hitting things etc. A few people have said they've been charged a small admin fee for amending a policy, but most have found no charge.

Ask as many questions as you like, they're never daft!

I've put together some bits and bobs on this thread:

https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/discussion/3872445

though to be fair, most of your questions aren't covered on that.

How are we doing so far?

Mart.

Numbnuts

later this year there is an inverter coming out with two batteries inside I forgot the name now but it looks like a big en but it can store electricity for later .

albyota

!!!!!! wrote: »

later this year there is an inverter coming out with two batteries inside I forgot the name now but it looks like a big en but it can store electricity for later .

Saw the 4 - 10kW prototype unit at Ecobuild on the Schucco stand I think, about the size of a tall fridgefreezer, not sure when it will be available to UK market though.

edit.....just found it http://www.schueco.com/intersolar_2011/en/produkthighlights#energymanager