2kw pv system

Skintsaver

I applied earlier in the year for solar grant from my council. Supprised call today saying Ive been accepted and these will be installed in a couple of weeks. I haven't seen the full details of the system yet, as I'm not paying for it I'll have very little input.

The system is 2kw 3 panels on East and 3 on West. They say they won't beable to install all 6 on one side due to space, I disagree. But as im not paying for it I have very little say.

Is there any advantage of having a east and west split?

2kw doesn't seem much what can I expect it to generate over the course of a average year?

The company said I could install battery system, but this would cost 4.5k! That seems extremely expensive

My annual household consumption is around 2100kw, what is the Likley saving?

They said I can apply for a smart meter to recieve a Seg payment what is this?

rjmachin

I estimate with a 2kw array with 15% losses, it could generate up to 2300 kWh per year.   This is based on the average sunlight hours for Manchester, but also on a south facing roof, so being east / west would be less than that.

That is also based on you being able to use all of the power that is generated without it being exported.

I am having a Solax 5.8kWh battery installed for a cost of £4,426.09, so it is about right.

The SEG payment is an export payment for any excess energy you do not use that gets exported to the grid.

Ectophile

The advantage of an East/West split is that the moment the Sun comes up in the East, the first lot of panels start generating.  And you continue to get power until the Sun goes down in the West.

The disadvantage is that you may never even get 2kW from the panels, as the Sun can't be shining directly on both at the same time.

Petriix

East/West cuts your peak and overall generation, but tends to give you a bit more when you actually need it; for the brighter 2/3 of the year at least.

I'd strongly recommend maximising the amount of panels that you fit, even if that means paying some of the cost yourself. Appliances typically use 3kW when heating, so a 4-5kWp array will give you more opportunity to cover your peak usage. 

QrizB

I think you'll be pleased with your system, particularly as it's free! It should happily meet all your base load (all the small stuff you never switch off) during daylight hours for 7-8 months of the year.

Skintsaver said:

Is there any advantage of having a east and west split?

As others have said, you'll get a lower total output but it will be spread over more of the day. My system faces SSW so I don't get much solar electricity at all before 10am. You won't have this problem.

2kw doesn't seem much what can I expect it to generate over the course of a average year?

I'd guess 1600-1800kWh/yr. You won't be able to use all of this; depending on how many lifestyle changes you can make, you'll probably use 30-50% of it, so 500-900kWh/yr. The rest will be exported.
Try to eg. run your washing machine (and dryer, if you have one) during daylight hours. Consider getting a lower-power kettle (a travel one, for example) so you don't need to use mains as well as solar. Solar will be able to cope with eg. a sandwich toaster or contact grill (eg, George Foreman) but not both at once.

The company said I could install battery system, but this would cost 4.5k! That seems extremely expensive

It is expensive, but that's typically what they cost (if you shop around you might be able to get one fitted for a little under £4k). It's unlikely to be cost effective unless electricity prices remain high for several years.

My annual household consumption is around 2100kw, what is the Likley saving?

If you generate 1600kWh/yr and use 500 of them, you'll save around £140/yr at current prices. If 1800kWh and 900, £250/yr. Not a huge amount but worth having.

MWT

Skintsaver said:

The system is 2kw 3 panels on East and 3 on West. They say they won't beable to install all 6 on one side due to space, I disagree. But as im not paying for it I have very little say.

There are requirements for set-back from the edge of the roof to allow access at the sides and to prevent the rain water running straight off the panels and missing the guttering, so once you allow for that, they may be right...