Solar Panels In Sheffield

[Chekhov 488]

We had a 3kW system (with perfect alignment as regards the sun) fitted in Aug 2019 by  AW Electrics for £5000. They did a good job, and used quality components all non rust alloy or stainless steel. Better still because of the shape of our roof it is a very neat symmetrical install, esp using all black panels as it does. On the other hand I have to say personally I think oblong panels on a triangular roof look pretty unsightly.

The predicted output was 3124 kWh per year though over the last three years it has slightly exceeded that at an av of 3279 kWh.

When we had the system installed it only made economic sense if the panels added value of the house though the main reason we had it done was to offset our flying (though shortly after we were stopped - or put off - from doing any for years !). Cost wise we had our system fitted at the worst time, there was no subsidy and we had to pay the VAT (which I believe has now been abolished, not before time.....).

However, now the price of electricity has gone up by a factor of 3 or 4*  a solar system would be a much better bet financially speaking, and this is even more the case when inflation is over 10% and savings rates are about 2% !

 

Systems fitted more than about 5 years ago were able to sell the excess power back to the grid for a high subsidised price, now that is not the case so we only get about 7p a unit from Octopus energy even with the price of electricity being as high as it is, so it makes sense to use as much of the solar generated power as you can.

I researched batteries and concluded they were not worth it. They are expensive, took up space, and (for me, even more importantly) they lose their capacity over the years. Instead we had a relatively cheap "iBoost" system fitted which diverts all excess electricity to heating the hot water and only when the HW tank is fully up to temperature will any power be exported. On average roughly a third of the generated power is diverted to the HW tank and it makes a big difference. on a sunny day the water is HOT, on a cloudy day it's just only just warm enough because our CH system is inefficient at heating the water (poss because the HW tank is in the loft and the boiler is the in the garage under the house, i.e. 3 floors down !).

 

* though personally I expect it to come back down significantly over the next year or so, probably not to what it was a couple of years ago though !

 

Edited September 19, 2022 by Chekhov

[iansheff 89]

12 hours ago, kidley said:

Not really a rip off, the reason it is low is that firms where putting solar panels on peoples housers for free on condition that, they could keep the money that the government gave you for putting electric in the grid it was that high, so the government made it not viable. I think then the pay back for putting it back in the grid was .between 6 and 9 pence per kWh feed back

Not a rip off when they are paying between 1p and 6p per KWH while charging people more than 30p per KWH, that is a nice little boost to their coffers.

13 hours ago, geared said:

Set by Government isn't it?

 

Proper Solar farms are being offered 50p/kWh+ I believe.

Yes, like Kidley says the Government didn't like people making money out of it, when it first started the rewards were very good. If you were at work all day and didn't use much electricity while at work and could afford the installation cost, then it was worth your while having them, as most of what was produced in the week went into the grid and paying you. Weren't the prices fixed for 25 years as well, so people who had them installed years ago are getting a lot more than people do now.

Edited September 19, 2022 by iansheff

[the_mandarin 15]

19 hours ago, Chekhov said:

Instead we had a relatively cheap "iBoost" system fitted which diverts all excess electricity to heating the hot water and only when the HW tank is fully up to temperature will any power be exported. On average roughly a third of the generated power is diverted to the HW tank and it makes a big difference. on a sunny day the water is HOT, on a cloudy day it's just only just warm enough because our CH system is inefficient at heating the water (poss because the HW tank is in the loft and the boiler is the in the garage under the house, i.e. 3 floors down !).

 

 

Thanks, very informative post!

 

Can your iBoost system work with a combi-boiler? Or does it only work with boilers that have storage tanks?

[Chekhov 488]

3 hours ago, the_mandarin said:

Thanks, very informative post!

Can your iBoost system work with a combi-boiler? Or does it only work with boilers that have storage tanks?

I'm pretty sure it can only work with a boiler which uses a hot water tank.

[geared 321]

A condensing boiler can use a hot water tank, but unsure if a combi can.

 

A battery might be worth a look tho, with stupid energy prices likely for quite a while the payback period might be shorter than you'd think.

[Chekhov 488]

I have just been informed from Octopus energy that they have put up the rate the pay for exported power from 7.5p per kWh to 15p per kWh.

When we had the system fitted in 2019 it was only about 5p per kWh !

6 hours ago, geared said:

A condensing boiler can use a hot water tank, but unsure if a combi can.

 

A battery might be worth a look tho, with stupid energy prices likely for quite a while the payback period might be shorter than you'd think.

I thought the whole point of a Combi boiler was it only boiled water when you needed it. The down side (apart from their increased expense and more complicated nature = less reliable) is one has to wait for the hot water to come through, which, BTW, wastes water as well as being frustrating....

I wouldn't have a combi boiler, no way.

[dan2802 53]

15 hours ago, the_mandarin said:

Thanks, very informative post!

 

Can your iBoost system work with a combi-boiler? Or does it only work with boilers that have storage tanks?

Simple answer. No.

A combi provides hot water on demand and doesn't store any.

[Chekhov 488]

9 hours ago, geared said:

A condensing boiler can use a hot water tank, but unsure if a combi can.

 

A battery might be worth a look tho, with stupid energy prices likely for quite a while the payback period might be shorter than you'd think.

Batteries are probably less worthwhile now (if they ever were worthwhile....) that Octopus are paying 15p per unit of exported electricity !

[the_mandarin 15]

2 hours ago, Chekhov said:

Batteries are probably less worthwhile now (if they ever were worthwhile....) that Octopus are paying 15p per unit of exported electricity !

How much would it cost approximately to install a battery AFTER you have installed the Solar panels?

Is there a considerable difference between installing batteries at the same time, to installing it later?

 

What occurred to me was - with the price caps introduced by the Government for the next 2 years, it may not be very beneficial to invest in batteries right now. But if things don't improve in the energy market even after 2 years, it may be beneficial at that time.

[Findlay 116]

A 7.5 KW retrofit battery would be in the region of £6,000 which could be fully charged in 3-4 hours to last a full evening and night if you watch the usage.

With the government payback scheme of £400 coming into play October to March it will mean bills coming down £60 per month when it is most needed.

Edited September 20, 2022 by Findlay

[Chekhov 488]

11 hours ago, Findlay said:

A 7.5 KW retrofit battery would be in the region of £6,000 which could be fully charged in 3-4 hours to last a full evening and night if you watch the usage.

With the government payback scheme of £400 coming into play October to March it will mean bills coming down £60 per month when it is most needed.

All I can say is I went through all the figures etc back in 2019 and batteries really weren't worth it. Even now, with the huge increase in the price of power I still think we made the right decision to stick with an "i Boost" (which diverts excess power to heat our HW tank). With Octopus energy now offering 15p a unit for exported power batteries are still, in my view, not worthwhile and this is particularly the case as batteries start dropping off in their capacity within 5 years or so and may even need replacing within 15 years.

Don't forget, particularly during the winter, there are many days when the Solar panels don't actually produce much power at all, it is not the case you will have loads of excess electricity to put into your batteries anyway.

One further point, you cannot run your house (during a power cut) off a standard battery installation as there cannot be any chance of the system electrocuting power supply workers. 

The only time batteries may become worthwhile is if this country introduces variable prices for electricity during the day, apparently in the USA some states do that and there is a BIG difference. You can then charge your batteries on cheap electric and use it at the peak times when most people actually need it.

So, at the moment, batteries for solar installs ? Not worth it......

Edited September 21, 2022 by Chekhov

[dan2802 53]

12 hours ago, Chekhov said:

All I can say is I went through all the figures etc back in 2019 and batteries really weren't worth it. Even now, with the huge increase in the price of power I still think we made the right decision to stick with an "i Boost" (which diverts excess power to heat our HW tank). With Octopus energy now offering 15p a unit for exported power batteries are still, in my view, not worthwhile and this is particularly the case as batteries start dropping off in their capacity within 5 years or so and may even need replacing within 15 years.

Don't forget, particularly during the winter, there are many days when the Solar panels don't actually produce much power at all, it is not the case you will have loads of excess electricity to put into your batteries anyway.

One further point, you cannot run your house (during a power cut) off a standard battery installation as there cannot be any chance of the system electrocuting power supply workers. 

The only time batteries may become worthwhile is if this country introduces variable prices for electricity during the day, apparently in the USA some states do that and there is a BIG difference. You can then charge your batteries on cheap electric and use it at the peak times when most people actually need it.

So, at the moment, batteries for solar installs ? Not worth it......

Incorrect.

Many battery providers have the facility to use a PTO.

On a separate note, our neighbours are currently paying £370 per month. Last month our combined gas & leccy bill was £101.

So our IBoost & battery are now looking like a good buy.