Solar panels on Commercial /warehouse roofs

oap71

I think that the electricity energy companies along with the government should work on the idea of installing Solar panels on the Commercial /warehouse roofs. There must thousands and thousands of usable square metres available.

pochase

The government or energy suppliers cannot just install solar panels on somebody else roofs. They don't own the buildings.

Apart from that you will hardly find any installers who are currently available, and who would be paying for this? Solar panels are great, but it takes years (10 plus) to break even on the cost for the installation.

MWT

pochase said:

...but it takes years (10 plus) to break even on the cost for the installation.

That calculation is changing a bit with the way prices are heading at the moment...

daveyjp

There are millions of square feet which could be covered.  Unfortunately there is limited capacity and infrastructure to feed energy back into the grid.

pochase

You don't even need roofs, you can just use fields.

Solarpark Meuro is a 166 megawatt (MW) photovoltaic power station located in Meuro and Schipkau, Germany. The plant was built on a former lignite mine[1] and is the country's largest solar park.[2][3] It was named POWER-GEN International solar project of the year in 2012.[4]

The PV system uses about 636,000 solar panels provided by Canadian Solar and 20k-string inverters from REFUsol. It is also the first solar park to use a 690VAC gridvoltage for some of REFUsol's 333k HV central inverters.

peter_the_piper

I'm surprised that building regs dont insist that panels are put on all new homes.

peter_the_piper

Kenrw8 said:

I think that the electricity energy companies along with the government should work on the idea of installing Solar panels on the Commercial /warehouse roofs. There must thousands and thousands of usable square metres available.

I see that panels are being installed on engine sheds in St Leonards. Good start.

QrizB

peter_the_piper said:

I'm surprised that building regs dont insist that panels are put on all new homes.

They were going to, but after the 2015 General Election the winners decided to "cut the green crap" amd "reduce red tape that was holding the country back".

For more details of what could have been:
https://www.designingbuildings.co.uk/wiki/Allowable_solutions_for_zero_carbon_buildings

From the bottom of that article:

... the move was welcomed by the Home Builders Federation who suggested that zero-carbon standards would have cost purchasers in the order of £2,500 per home.

Spending an extra £2500 on a new home to achieve much better energy performance doesn't seem too bad, in hindsight.

gazapc

pochase said:

The government or energy suppliers cannot just install solar panels on somebody else roofs. They don't own the buildings.

And in most cases, the businesses that operate from the warehouses do not own the property themselves so they can't make these sorts of improvements.

Xbigman

The warehouse I worked in looked at solar panels but the assessor said don't bother without even coming out to look. Most modern warehouses are a steel frame with literally corrugated tin coverings. They are not load bearing. 


Darren

oap71

If needs must , with grants property owner could strengthen roofs , gain preferential feed in rates, with no loss of agricultural land. Have seen proposals for solar inbetween windmills, moorland where goats graze between the panels. The only way to become self effecient is to generate electricity that uses existing spaces that does not involve loss of agricultural or spoils the scenic view. Where I live they built industrial units, EU funding, never used, now demolished and rebuilt new industrial units with UK grants, WHY. That money could have to strengthen the roof and solar installation.
Oh well just rip up grass lands and put solar farm there.