Solar Panels

C

Confused®

Senior member
 Manchester
Has anyone any experience with them ? Just had a Quote from a company called EES in Harrogate, North Yorkshire.
Deffo tempted by the sales jargon but at 10.5K its a fair wedge. that's for 16 panels, something that will heat my water up, so that will save on gas as well. a gizmo that knows when the house is empty so uses no power, 25 year insurance backed guarantee, any input will be appreciated.
 
Look them up on LinkedIn see what people are saying. No knowledge of them myself, some company's tie you in with maintenance contracts and such like
 
That seems pricey!
for example......................
http://first4solar.co.uk/
http://www.ikea.com/gb/en/campaigns/solar-panels.html
I paid £5995 back two years ago they are having a laugh i think :wink: :wink:
 
I looked into this a few years back and the figures did not add up. Would be even worse now as the government cuts the feed in tariff just like that whilst your proposal is using the current feed in tariff value.

Assuming it is not just a water heater and is actually a PV panel, you have to allow for an AD converter replacement costing about £1k to do every 5 years or so. They normally don't tell you that in the pay-back calculations.

If it goes on your roof, there may be planning permission costs to add as well. Also the roof must be able to support it. Read up on the roof fires as well …

I decided against it anyway, was not worth it.
 
Depends on your circumstances but on a small investment it pays much more the a cash ISA any day and depending on situation can increase property value.
 
How can you compare to an isa when the return is defined by government which is reducing year by year and you are stuck with it? In first years, you might achieve a return which is then wiped out in latter years by huge replacement costs for parts and a guaranteed reduction in feed in tariff?
 
pvr said:
How can you compare to an isa when the return is defined by government which is reducing year by year and you are stuck with it? In first years, you might achieve a return which is then wiped out in latter years by huge replacement costs for parts and a guaranteed reduction in feed in tariff?
Click to expand...

Quite easiliy...............who dictates the interest rates for ISA's btw.......... the customer ?

Taking out a capital investment on a solar panel array at a fixed rate of return for a fixed period of time. The only variable is how much sun you get.
Simple maths.
However I installed before 2012.
If you have a large sum to invest you might want to look else where for decent gains.
Our Electricity costs have reduced by 40% after installation yet we still get paid for all our generation. Pay back period will be appx 5,5-6 years then all gain. Solid state inverters are very reliable (however you can have a failure...............if your unlucky..... but then again you own a Z so can't be that unlucky!)
Yes the new installations tariffs are being reduced so need to work it out........ however the capital costs have also reduced (unless you are getting ripped off) and the pay back periods alter.
You may want to consider the environmental issue about generation and sustainability.

Thermal solar has high initial costs but creates investment in your property or asset. Don't have to heat hot water from April til October. I like that :wink:
 
Personally I wouldn't go for it just yet, theres been some massive advances in the technology that have still not made it through to the retail market but in a couple of years you will be able to get panels that are much more efficient
 
I'm with pvr and haven't bothered.

Maths doesn't work if you factor in some of the ongoing costs, reducing feed in rates, up front expenditure and need to remain in the house for years to benefit. Plus they are pig ugly, lots of poor fitting and a bit wild west like the early double glazing days with companies making wild generation claims and going bust, etc.

I frequent another forum and a 50+ page thread largely is a few real enthusiasts and a massive 'jury out'.

If you do go ahead really understand it and get many quotes.
 
i looked into this a few months back. figures didnt add up and the sales guy was overselling by a long shot. i went online to see how much you would actually benefit and it was negligible as well as the government cutting feed in tariffs last month too

the final nail in the coffin was that if you decided to have them for free which was an option. you would need to keep your house for 20 years for the company to make their money back
 
Just had another cheque, this time for £250 for 3 months (it is summer and this is our best quarter but it's not been that sunny).

It's not as fantastic and wow as you might hope, as the government payback reduces - so do your sums (we get 23p a unit).

Have a 70's house so would take some making worse in terms of looks . . . . . I think it looks more high tech and eco-friendly which counts with more and more folk (the main reason we went for it after costs - but we understand if your house is grade II listed).

I'm early retired so making use of the electricity generated through the day suits us and Steph will join me after Christmas - we get paid for what we generate whether we use it or not as well remember. . . . .

Paid £7000 for 16 panels a year ago. (Would have liked heated water as well - that sounds excellent)

Steph says we've reduced our electric bill by £600 per year and we generate a further £600 per year (paid to us by cheque).

We're with Toe-side on this one and when we're in the house we don't spend a lot of time looking at our roof. . .when we're out and see panels fitted our thoughts are, 'Well done, that's excellent' and we wish we'd done it sooner. Surely won't be long before roofs are made of solar panels?

And have you heard about the road surface made of solar panels that can provide power for housing, signs, heating the roadway - the possibilities seem endless - has to happen one day . . . . .
 
Thanks for all the replies. i am led to believe that the feed rate is guaranteed at the price you opt in at for 20 years, whatever the government do to the tariff, hope that's correct,
hot water is now a feature if you don't have a combi boiler. so that's a good saver as well.
and just had a quote of 6.5K from
Lynx Energy
Unit 1 Beehive Business Park | Smithies Lane | Heckmondwike | WF16 0PR
So things looking promising.
 
Not sure if you care, but the feed in tariff was cut in length as well (retrospectively). You first were paid for 25 years, now cut to 20 years.
 
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