Would you do it again?

rugbyleague

Hi there I have been lurking in the background for a number of weeks and finally got brave and have decided to post.

Recently moved house to the South Lakes, in a sun trap quite close to the sea and plan to be here a good while.

Have been reading the posts and doing the calculations and I am considering having solar panels fitted.

Now I know everyone's situation is different but if you had your chance again, would you fit panels? Who would you get to fit them? How much would you pay? Would you buy anything else?

Sorry it's lots of questions but would be grateful to you for sharing your knowledge......

Thanks in anticipation

Ian

EricMears

rugbyleague wrote: »

Hi there I have been lurking in the background for a number of weeks and finally got brave and have decided to post.

Recently moved house to the South Lakes, in a sun trap quite close to the sea and plan to be here a good while.

Have been reading the posts and doing the calculations and I am considering having solar panels fitted.

Now I know everyone's situation is different but if you had your chance again, would you fit panels? Who would you get to fit them? How much would you pay? Would you buy anything else?

Sorry it's lots of questions but would be grateful to you for sharing your knowledge......

Thanks in anticipation

Ian

Five years ago it was a 'no brainer' even dealing with some of the cowboys in the industry might nett 10% earnings - though obviously finding a reputable company with a fairer pricing policy was a much better idea.

It's a tad harder now that panel prices have dropped a lot, scaffolding costs will have increased and FIT payments have plummeted. You need to get several quotes and go through them with a fine-tooth comb to see what returns you might expect. And of course it should go without saying that it's even more important to ensure you're dealing with a reputable & recommended company. Nobody outside your immediate circle can be a great deal of help in evaluating your own proposals although I'm sure there are several here who would comment on obvious scams.

Yes, I'd fit some more like a shot - IF I had a bigger roof. I am considering building a sort of carport structure roofed with panels but am holding back a bit in the hopes that panel prices drop even more and a future government decide to offer better incentives

EricMears

No idea how that happened !

pinnks

I would echo that. I would fit panels again, say if I moved house but as Eric says, the maths is a bit more critical these days, unless you are driven more by long-term savings than short-term return on investment - even with current day FITs you'll at least break even I think in the long-term.

Martyn1981

rugbyleague wrote: »

Now I know everyone's situation is different but if you had your chance again, would you fit panels? Who would you get to fit them? How much would you pay? Would you buy anything else?

Ian

Hiya Ian, this won't surprise anyone, but I'd do it again in a blink of the eye.

Back in 2010 and 2011, it was a lot of money, and I compared the decision to buying a car, when horses were the preferred choice. So it was quite scary, and subsidies were high to persuade folk to make the leap. These days we know what PV (a car v's a horse) does, so the fear factor has been removed.

Now I know how simple it all is, and just how boringly predictable generation is against PVGIS estimates. Days may vary considerably, but weeks are levelers, months steady things out quite a bit, and yearly totals are surprisingly steady.

I expected a 12yr repayment on my ESE systems, but the effects of shading are less than I assumed, and leccy savings higher, so looks more like 8 yrs.

My WNW system, done separately was always going to be questionable, and on it's own, will take around 16 yrs to repay, but I was happy with the smaller investment cost (1/3 of the ESE), and bundled (mentally) the two systems.

Taking into account the environmental elements, the fun, the learning curve, the chats on here, I'd do it again even it came out financially neutral.

What I'd do different, well it would have been nice to go big from day one, but my extension was only possible due to a fortunate upgrade of the local grid. These days, as extensions can't get subsidy funding, I'd suggest going as big as is sensible from the very start.

I'd also make sure the system is battery friendly. Adding an AC batt to the system after the inverter should always be simple, and probably financially better for those on an old high FiT rate. But a DC batt combined with the inverter would be more efficient, so this should be taken into account when selecting the inverter.

BUT, I wouldn't go for batts yet, I'd wait a few years and watch the prices.

I might also ask the sparkie to install an export meter (just a normal meter but running backwards, so to speak) as I'm really interested in finding out my export. However, this is purely for my nosey knowledge, and no real benefit. I'm planning to get smart meters installed, so these will solve the problem.

Mart.

matty2767

All things being equal. And I matched my install with last yrs FIT, then I would have the panels again. I don't know what the numbers stack up to this time round.

I paid £5k for 4kw last year so would try for £4K this year incl iboost or similar. I don't know if that is achievable though

rugbyleague

Hi both thank you for taking the time to write.

I wondered whether I would be asking the converted........

I'm going to move to the next stage and obtain quotes.

Would it be rude to use this forum to help me decide?

Ian

Martyn1981

rugbyleague wrote: »

Hi both thank you for taking the time to write.

I wondered whether I would be asking the converted........

I'm going to move to the next stage and obtain quotes.

Would it be rude to use this forum to help me decide?

Ian

Hiya Ian, you are talking to the converted, and as I tried to explain, but it's hard to get the words right, PV can be (or seem) a bit scary. But once you have it, it's boringly simple and just does what it says on the tin. So we've all been able to relax, whereas you still face this seemingly big (and scary) decision.

Start getting quotes, and discussing options and ideas on here, you'll learn a lot. Have you had a read of the FAQs yet, they'll give you a head start.

Now for the bad news. The FiT rates have been dropped a tad too far, so they moved from too generous at Xmas, to not quite enough, effectively making domestic PV a tough call.

Looking at the 5th carbon budget announced yesterday, the government may have to review its policy on PV and on-shore wind, which have been almost killed off, but don't hold your breath.

The solution, you need an even better quote, but due to the large fall off in PV this year, a lot of the supply chain has been closing, and economies of volume have suffered, in some cases actually pushing prices up.

So, you'll need to be patient, explain to any installers that you're not trying to haggle, you simply have to have a good price to make it worthwhile. Then pop back on with prices, suggestions, set up, kit etc.

Based on a 4kWp south facing system, you may be looking at something like £400pa from a £5k investment (8% gross). So you need to decide if that's ok for you. To compare to a savings account, remember to subtract about 5% from the gross return to account for depreciation over 20 years.

Lots of positives and negatives, when you probably wanted something a little more down the middle! :think:

Mart.

EricMears

At the moment I believe there's an EU import tariff on Chinese solar panels.

Far too soon to say how our EU exit exercise will finish up but there must at least be a chance that a country no longer bound by EU policies and with its historic commitment to 'Free Trade' restored might well scrap that surcharge. With improving manufacturing processes and further economies of scale on the cards that might well mean that in a couple of years time SPs could be significantly cheaper than they are this week.

OTOH if you wait two years for that to happen you'll miss two years of reductions in your electricity bills.

Not having a Tardis or even a humble crystal ball, I don't really want to advise.

rugbyleague

Hi all I really appreciate your responses.

It's quite interesting that all of what you are saying is what my research has told me (including the really quite good Faq's).

I'm of the view that I don't want solar to cost me more than keeping the outlay money in the bank and getting interest on it.

I am wary of being told a good story (salesman) and that's why I am asking people with real experience for advice. However being able to generate my own power and consume it seems a very green thing to do! I'm even considering an electric car......

First appointment booked for Thursday. Will prepare questions and share them with you.....

BIG THANKYOU!
Ian

rugbyleague

Ok trying to sort people to quote, 1st stumbling block........ who do you ring? If anyone can reccomend good suppliers in the Northwest please post here!

Thank you

Ian