Are solar cells worth installing?

lunar

lunar

lunar

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A salesman came to see me about purchasing photo-voltaic panels that are installed on the roof and generate electricity, which is fed back into the Grid.
Cost of installation and panels is about £11,000. He stated that I could make a profit of upto £2,000 per year.
What I didn't like was he wanted the money upfront nor did the company do financing.
After 30 minutes of discussion I said I would not be able to decide right now. He wanted me to commit on the day otherwise we cannot do business. So we parted company.

It worth having solar cells?
 
I recall it being just able to pay for itself in a reasonable time frame when government grants were available, not sure if they still are or if feed in tariffs have changed recently.

I wouldn't be jumping up and down to get any unless I was really into the idea of having a carbon neutral house or something
 
Depending where you are, which way your roof is facing and if you can afford it.
And certainly not from that company, high pressure sale with what sounds like over priced product.

Fit is still a available and still worth it, as prices for solar have come down.


http://www.uswitch.com/solar-panels/#

Ikea average about £5200 an install and have finance options and 15% off if you get their loyalty card http://www.hanergy.co.uk/#contact
 
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My parents and sister have them I will ask them next time I see them about savings, although they wouldn't have them if you didn't make a saving somewhere down the line. You probably need 5 or so years to pay off the costs before you start making a profit.

Doesn't exactly sound like very good business practice there.
 
do your reasech and get prices in.

1. you will be able to get it cheaper than £11k
2. finance will be available
3. it must be installed and connected by 1st Jan 2015. The rates of the RHI you get paids are been slashed by a third then. If you have them before then you stay on the current high rates.

Done right the payback is gauranteed for 25 years and you get all your money back with 6/7 years and then enjoy the £2K a year you make thereafter.

This gravy boat has almost sailed and you might find it difficult to find a good installer to fit it before xmas now as the number of order have surged after last months announcement.

Post 1st Jan its 21/22 years to get your money back on the installation.

ATm the moment the return on your money is around 11/12%. After 1st Jan it will be around 3% which is no good if you have borrowed the money for the cost at a rate of higher than 3%
 
jsmoke said:
My parents and sister have them I will ask them next time I see them about savings, although they wouldn't have them if you didn't make a saving somewhere down the line. You probably need 5 or so years to pay off the costs before you start making a profit.

Doesn't exactly sound like very good business practice there.
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its a brilliant business model. 5 years you get your original business investment back and then have 20 years of government backed guaranteed income linked to RPI index each year?

Remember the price you get in the first year is double by year 25.
 
£11k is a ridiculously inflated sum by todays standards. Up to 4kwp can be had for £5k to £6k everywhere. The current Feed in Tariff returns circa 12p per kw generated and should net around £500 per annum in FITs. The 'greenest government ever' Cons are in consultation to reduce the FIT to 1.6p per kw from January 2016 which will mean you'd never get back even the lower installation cost.
EDIT. FITs only runs for 20 years these days, keep up :)
 
But why is the government slashing the FIT rate from Jan16 when they should be promoting the use of green energy.
 
I've got solar cells on the garage roof (offered the best aspect) but making the cost of installation back wasn't a consideration - reducing my reliance on the grid and thus fossil fuels was.

Having said that, I make about £110 per year from sell back and my electrity bils are £300 a year lower.

lunar said:
But why is the government slashing the FIT rate from Jan16 when they should be promoting the use of green energy.
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Because the government have no interest what so ever in green energy?
 
lunar said:
But why is the government slashing the FIT rate from Jan16 when they should be promoting the use of green energy.
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Oh my dear friend.

The last thing the government wants to do is make it's citizens richer and more powerful. The main priority is to keep us under control and make money for itself and its friends in the oil and gas corporations. Basically they cant be paying you for electricity when the main reason for government is that they need to be collecting money from you.
 
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Not sure if that is true or kind of paranoia. The governments are committed to reducing emissions.
Although the FIT rate or grants may be changing, a benefit of this "might" be that the technology gets better more quickly (more efficient) and costs come down more quickly. Companies will want you to buy these panels regardless of these government initiatives and I suspect in a few years they'll be even more common.
 
Greebo said:
its a brilliant business model. 5 years you get your original business investment back and then have 20 years of government backed guaranteed income linked to RPI index each year?

Remember the price you get in the first year is double by year 25.
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I meant the way the supplier (OP) basically said it's now or never.
 
As with every government we've had they are utterly clueless about energy.

Scientist and engineers keeps telling everyone what needs to be done, but it falls in deaf ears.
And renewable are a big part of that along with rushed nuclear. Outlaw protests against nuclear on site, and get them built asap.
 
DarrenM343 said:
Although the FIT rate or grants may be changing, a benefit of this "might" be that the technology gets better more quickly (more efficient) and costs come down more quickly. Companies will want you to buy these panels regardless of these government initiatives and I suspect in a few years they'll be even more common.
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Renewable companies are going pop already, others are slashing work forces left, right and centre all due to the tory policies. Money directed for renewable's is being scraped in to be thrown at fracking.
 
To be fair this same argument has been has the last couple of times governments slashed FIT. It was down to 6 years last time as well and people were complaining about the reduction and it taking 20 years to return the money. Solar prices fell and we are back at 6 years again. While its a big chunk off its not the end of the world and I'm sure it'll go back to 6 years return.

It's just a major shame the FIT didn't decrease faster and at a less disjointed rate so there didn't "need" to be such big drops.

I just wish there was a FITs style system in Canada, i would put some on my house there. As it is there is no subsidy and electricity prices are so cheap it'll take about 20 years to return the investment.

Edit: Just to clarify, I think they have done way too big a drop in one to, but the tarriff needed to be cut. An ROI of 6 years and 19 years of profit is way to generous IMO, but it does mean people are jumping at it.
 
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wilber said:
Renewable companies are going pop already, others are slashing work forces left, right and centre all due to the tory policies. Money directed for renewable's is being scraped in to be thrown at fracking.
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The government are not throwing money at fracking, where do you get that idea from?

They really are ******* up the onshore renewables industry though. What really gets me is the zero energy home scheme the government threw out the window for house developers. That was a great plan dumped at the side of the road.:(
 
FIT are great, im not sure what the rate is for photo-voltaic panels but we install heat pumps and we just installed a heat pump for a customer, each situation is different but it cost them £10,000 with a payback over 7 years £35,000. This was a large house with a lot of heating. Its even better for commercial property as its over 20 years. Will be installing a air source heat pump to my house:cool:
 
Isn't there currently problem with solar feed back into the grid and "smart meters" which will become compulsory within the next 5 years?
 
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