Solar panels

Beachview_2

Hi

Does anyone have a solar panel? I saw a company advertising free ones in the Belfast Telegraph a while back and it got me thinking. So I'm wondering what other people's experiences of solar panels are. Any companies to recommend/avoid?

irishjohn

I had some installed in November - I live in Bangor - I bought the system rather than taking a free install offer as I wanted to benefit not just from getting some free electricity but also I will be paid for every unit generated with a bonus payment for units I export to the grid.

The payment per unit generated is approximately 17p and the bonus for each unit exported to the grid (not used by me) is another 5p per unit.

Before the install my average daily use was 10kw and since the install it has gone as low as 6 units and there have only been 3 or 4 days since the beginning of November that I have not generated any electricity - presently I am exporting 70% of what is generated.

I have installed 16 panels and these have been estimated to generate 4000kw per annum so I anticipate a lower annual electricity bill which will be covered by payment for electricity generated and give me a surplus payment.

I am happy to refer you to the company I used if you want to send me a private message

mackers8923

irishjohn wrote: »

I had some installed in November - I live in Bangor - I bought the system rather than taking a free install offer as I wanted to benefit not just from getting some free electricity but also I will be paid for every unit generated with a bonus payment for units I export to the grid.

The payment per unit generated is approximately 17p and the bonus for each unit exported to the grid (not used by me) is another 5p per unit.

Before the install my average daily use was 10kw and since the install it has gone as low as 6 units and there have only been 3 or 4 days since the beginning of November that I have not generated any electricity - presently I am exporting 70% of what is generated.

I have installed 16 panels and these have been estimated to generate 4000kw per annum so I anticipate a lower annual electricity bill which will be covered by payment for electricity generated and give me a surplus payment.

I am happy to refer you to the company I used if you want to send me a private message

Hi John

Apart from the external works required to facilitate the installation could you give me an idea of the amount of work required internally please?

Rob

irishjohn

Hi Rob
Job was completed in one day - Internal work was as follows

Install Inverters in the roofspace.
Bring cable down exterior wall and into hall where mains unit and meter is situated - connect to mains system and install generation meter to show Kw generated.

That was it - the entire job, panels install and all other work was completed in one day - probably the wettest day of the year in NI too!!

Cosmetically the company have done an amazing job of ensuring the cabling is concealed as much as possible.

Once completed it was then down to NIE to change my meter to an import / export meter which unfortunately took 3 weeks - all down to NIE and their poor way of administration.

Feel free to pm me if you want to discuss

warmhands.coldheart

Hi john,

Don't want to blatently ask how much it all cost but do you have any info on facts/figures on costs/returns on any websites you could possibly direct us to?

irishjohn

Hi - I installed 16 panels which is estimated to generate approx 3600 units - every unit i generate will pay me 17.64p whether I use it here or export it to the grid. For every unit exported to the grid I will be paid an additional 5.41p and of course every unit I use will reduce my PowerNI bill by the unit price they charge, currently around 14.5p after dd discount.

I used about 3600 units last year so as I will be generating my own I expect to use less this year and therefore I expect to be in pocket as the payment I receive will be greater than my electricity bill. I wont know till November as payments are made annually .

PowerNi say a system generating 4000 units per annum is about £8500. I paid less than this and unfortunately just missed out on grant moneys as they had run out but decided it was worth going ahead. The company I used were about 7% cheaper than PowerNI.

warmhands.coldheart

So you'd be looking at a 12 year payback on your outlay if you were able to pay it off without any loans. Not bad really. Also, what size were the panels. (What roof area did you need. (I have a south facing garden and gets good sunlight all year round)

Does anyone know how long the Contracts tend to generally run when installed by these other companies who do it for "Free". if it was 20 years. I would consider it as I wouldn't have the cash to make such a large outlay but any longer and I'd think I'd have issues. How does this all work with Banks/Mortgages? I mean if they put up the system on a say 20 year contract, what if you move in 5 years time?? I mean their contract is with you, not the bank or new owner??

yeoldecrier

i had my panels installed in february and to date I have generated 1750kwh which equates to £3500. i upload my meter readings for gas, leckie and solar monthly, so I get an accurate figure through the year. After initial installtion, meter change and paperwork signed off I setup a spread sheet to record all details. Throughout the summer and autum I did not have a gas/electric bill as my solar provided enough income to cover a monthly bill of about £90 plus excess which was repaid into my account monthly. I now use that surplus to pay for the additional gas/leckie used in the bleaker months. I had three bills up to end of december, the highest being £50 which was paid out of the surplus. I still have over £100 surplus, so not expecting to pay a bill until february.
If we get a better spring/summer/autumn this year, I expect to break even over the year.

i bought my own 2kwh system so gain all the benefits and expect it to be repaid by year eight. My house faces more south west but being 3 storeys and not having a steep roof, it gets the sun earlier and uninterupted right up to sunset.
James
SW England

saverbuyer

I know the issues with mortgages have yet to be resolved. Technically (if mortgaged) you are trying to modify and lease a roof which doesn't belong to you.

I would also have issues with the inverters reliability. If they go after 12 years you have a big bill to get the system functioning again.

These retrofitted systems work with the English FIT and RPI increases, but paying £8000 with a minimum payback of 12 year (+ lost opportunity) just doesn't add up for me.

saverbuyer

yeoldecrier wrote: »

i had my panels installed in february and to date I have generated 1750kwh which equates to £3500. i upload my meter readings for gas, leckie and solar monthly, so I get an accurate figure through the year. After initial installtion, meter change and paperwork signed off I setup a spread sheet to record all details. Throughout the summer and autum I did not have a gas/electric bill as my solar provided enough income to cover a monthly bill of about £90 plus excess which was repaid into my account monthly. I now use that surplus to pay for the additional gas/leckie used in the bleaker months. I had three bills up to end of december, the highest being £50 which was paid out of the surplus. I still have over £100 surplus, so not expecting to pay a bill until february.
If we get a better spring/summer/autumn this year, I expect to break even over the year.

i bought my own 2kwh system so gain all the benefits and expect it to be repaid by year eight. My house faces more south west but being 3 storeys and not having a steep rook, it gets the sun earlier and uninterupted right up to sunset.
James
SW England

The English feed in tarriff is way way more generous than our ROC scheme.

yeoldecrier

They are closer than they were previously, the english tariff is about the 17p rate. i was lucky to get mine in before they chopped the rate.

The one big problem with all these FIT's is down to Government keeping to its word. If a change of Gov were to happen is the incoming going to play by the same rules.

its the one element that I do not trust at all, regardless of colour.

james
Glasto