Solar Panel Monitors

GreenBo

Yeh, I'm not sure why he did it that way. There's a much easier way. Smappee just tells me how much my freezer is using/costing, without having to get the calculator out. I'd take a screenshot to show you if I could figure out how to do it :mad::D

I agree with what you say about the 'useful life' of monitors. TBH - that's also one of the reasons why I went for the Smappee (after having a few other simpler monitors in the past, which ended up in the draw after a while), the control aspect attracted me somewhat. But now after having it installed for so long it's funny but I find I'm still using it, at least once every few days. Looking to see if the oven's on yet when I'm trying to sneak another pint in at the pub, or checking if the TV/Xbox/Sky etc has gone on yet (i.e. the kids are home). It just seems to have become a useful everyday thing, even though I initially bought it as an energy monitor with knobs on :rotfl:

pinnks

I know what you mean. I am 20 months in with solar and still interested in daily yields and how much is generated at what time etc. Bit geeky I guess but then, I have just joined this forum...


I have already cut my import usage by about 2/3 through careful management, investment in low energy lighting and appliances, PV and Immersun, so I think a Smappee would probably be an expensive toy and not really repay itself for me.


But anyone who has not gone down this route through manually could find it a really useful tool and should repay the investment quickly.

GreenBo

Yep. Being green has definitely impacted my pub-talk. It seems I sit alone a lot more than I used to down the local - I guess there's only so many time's I can show people how much my kettle costs me per year :rotfl::beer:

I'm still on the fence whether to get solar panels or not. Have you calculated how long the payback on yours is now they've been installed for sometime and you're getting real world readings?

pinnks

I would definitely recommend them. As you can see I have 2 systems. one is 20 months old, the other 11. I should have gone as big as possible and gone split roof from the outset but one learns from experience.


I am generating about 10% more than forecast on system 1 and about on track on system 2.


System 1 is WSW-facing 3.5kWp and generated 2.9mWh in year 1. System cost £6,000 in June 2013. System 2 faces ESE and cost £4400 in March 2014 (installing twice is expensive on install costs) and has generated 1.5mWh to date. Immersun cost me £350 installed.


FiT payments to December 2014 are £1,000. Grid consumption down by 50% per year, or 2.7mWh @ 11p per kWh, so saving about £450 so far. Gas is turned off for 6 months a year and I get some space heating on sunny winter days. My guess is about £120 saving to date.


Add this lot up and bearing in mind that system will still add a bit more annually once it has full years feeding into the maths and you could estimate effectice savings of about £1,100 per year, so 9 years to repay ignoring inflation for FiT and grid import. Add those in and you probably look at 6 or 7 years??


But then there is that warm feeling that you are doing a bit to reduce the overall carbon footprint of the world...