Solar Panel Question

greeny36uk

I moved into a new build in 2018 and started an application to British Gas to register my solar panels before the standard changed last year. Due to an issue with the dates on the MCS certificate and the company producing the certificate going bust I am still trying to register them so I'm not getting any money back from them via British Gas. 
My question is while the application is still going through am I still benefiting from any 'free' electricity generated by the solar panels during sunshine hours if appliances are turned on in the house, i.e. should my bills be a little cheaper? Also, Is there a way I can check how much of the energy being generated I am using?

Martyn1981

Hiya. The good news is that the house will always consume PV generation first before importing any shortfall, so for instance, if you generate 1kW and are consuming 2kW, then only 1kW will be from import. If you are generating 2kW, in that scenario, then no import, and if you generate 3kW, then no import but 1kW export. So PV will reduce your leccy bills by reducing your grid import.
Regarding monitoring, this gets more tricky. Hopefully someone will advise on a clever monitoring tool. For many, you look at pre and post PV consumption for a guide, but not relevant to you. If the import meter is visible to you (but not a smart meter) then the red flashes indicate each 1Wh you import, so if you are drawing 3.6kW, it would flash once per second. The slower it flashes the less import, which might be a guide for you. If it has a solid red light, then you are exporting.

Solarchaser

Its worth checking the make and model of your inverter, theres a possibility that they would have an online portal to let you see production... though chances are low tbh.