Solar panels and battery - any real world recommendations?

Journey said:
I couldn't honestly recommend Giv now as my top pick, I think they are just having too many issues, and as you said earlier you just want it to work you shouldn't have to be technical or even have to understand something you want as a turnkey solution.
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To be fair, GivEnergy support proactively got in touch with me today, fixed the issue out of hours (I needed to manually power cycle the unit when I was at home) and explained that they caused todays issue when wrapping up one of the problem caused at commissioning.
 
b0rn2sk8 said:
The 100% thing is just a different marketing approach between gross capacity to usable capacity. My ‘100% DoD 13.5 kWh battery is nearer 15kwh in gross capacity.
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I am aware but it's more the sense that you actually get the advertised capacity, or should do, my 8.2 is more like a 10 apparently behind the scenes, but they advertise 8.2 100% DoD, and that is what you can safely use without messing with it.

The 5.2 are 80% DoD and I think still advertised at 5.2, but you can't use 5.2, I'd prefer the real usable space to be the headline figure.
 
Yeah I think there is deffo some opportunity to tighten up whats being advertised in regards batteries.

IMO they should state 0c, 10c and 20c capacities and in all cases they should be real world useable, not seemingly some aspirational lab tested perfect conditions value.
Because right now in the UK the numbers advertised vs the numbers achievable can be significantly different.

The advertising the usable with 100% DOD seems to be a GE thing though from what I can tell.
 
Just realised I posted on wrong threat.
New home being built end of this year.

We have solar panels but builder/solicitor are saying different things.
Its unclear if the panels will be used for heating or electricity?

Anything to consider or push for?

Plan to have electric car in the future so would be nice so save some money.
 
Lighters said:
Just realised I posted on wrong threat.
New home being built end of this year.

We have solar panels but builder/solicitor are saying different things.
Its unclear if the panels will be used for heating or electricity?

Anything to consider or push for?

Plan to have electric car in the future so would be nice so save some money.
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As much Solar as will practically fit on south, west and east aspects.

Install PV for electricity and a decent amount of battery storage.

Given you are still planning, change your heating/hot water to a heat pump based system.
 
Not sure why the solicitor is worried about how your solar installation is used. Is the answer not all of the above but based on a priority. e.g. priority should be heating (assuming air source), then car, then house.
 
Lighters said:
Anything to consider or push for?
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Make sure the main roof of the house is pointing due south, if it's not turn the house around while you can ;)
Then fill the east, west and south roofs with panels, the more the better.

Presumably you'll be using a heat pump, so electric will be used for heating.
 
SpeedFreak said:
Not sure why the solicitor is worried about how your solar installation is used. Is the answer not all of the above but based on a priority. e.g. priority should be heating (assuming air source), then car, then house.
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Car is the lowest priority IMO, if you’ve got an EV and a place to charge it at home, you can charge it for 7.5p/kWh. You can export excess solar for 15p/kWh.

The main driver for installing solar on your own home is economic. The last thing you want to do is put it into an EV at twice the cost of grid electric.

I get the environmental argument but it’s not usually the main driver and that aim can be achieved by doing other things and the grid will get to net zero over the medium term anyway.

Edit:
Totally agree on the point about the solicitor (and a builder to a certain extent), not sure why they’d be involved. Get the project manager to engage a renewables specialist to look at both the solar and heating side of things. You want to get that right upfront.

Assuming it’s going to be a fairly large property, you’d want a fairly chunky battery storage system but a renewables specialist will be able to walk you through options.

Edit2:
Don’t forget, if you go heat pump on the heating, you won’t have to pay for a gas supply to be installed to the property and you avoid those standing charges for ever. A heat pump which is installed from scratch in a new build designed for it will be cheaper to run than a gas boiler.
 
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Unfortunately developers seem to still be ticking the box as opposed to getting sensible

Some new houses near me. probs 4 bed but could be 5 bed they are installing in roof systems.
Great!, well not really since they are installing 4 panels. So your either going to need to rip off the roof to do it properly or just go over the top with rails.
So bloody dumb!
 
Mercenary Keyboard Warrior said:
Unfortunately developers seem to still be ticking the box as opposed to getting sensible

Some new houses near me. probs 4 bed but could be 5 bed they are installing in roof systems.
Great!, well not really since they are installing 4 panels. So your either going to need to rip off the roof to do it properly or just go over the top with rails.
So bloody dumb!
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It’s no different here.
 
woop installation date confirmed...8th feb
company could install it on the 1st but i'm at work so have to delay it a week
not a bad turnaround...2-3 weeks
 
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Lighters said:
Just realised I posted on wrong threat.
New home being built end of this year.

We have solar panels but builder/solicitor are saying different things.
Its unclear if the panels will be used for heating or electricity?

Anything to consider or push for?

Plan to have electric car in the future so would be nice so save some money.
Click to expand...

They might be asking because if the solar is just a couple of panels, it may not be whole home solar, it may just be there to feed into heating hot water for example. I've seen some places do this, it ticks some green box but if anything it makes it harder to add your own system later.

What you want is a proper solar installation with more panels, and an inverter (maybe with battery) tied into your consumer unit so that you can use it for everything!
 
Yeah its like the Dutch houses we have discussed before. The whole roof is designed to be full solar panels.
Its not that different in weight, and you don't pay for a whole load of roof tiles, so whilst its expensive its a full roof that shouldn't need any maintenance within a reasonable timeframe.
You just design the roof to overhang based of full panels.

The in roof systems I have looked at are pretty clever. In reality probably more leak resistant than traditional tiles. An individual panel will also not come off, like tiles can and do.
They have in effect in built guttering running between the panels.

Of course you also have the tesla roof tiles. Which seem pretty good as well. I am not sure on the look myself but still massively better than how most of us have our panels floating above our rooves.
 
Are all solar tiles black, or are there brown ones more like the terracotta form factor?

I'm musing a second string of panels on the side aspect of the house, I could just get frames and put them on the wall but if I could do that and throw a side of solar roof tiles up whilst the scaffolding is up that would be an interesting option.

If SWMBO gives it Permitted Development...
 
b0rn2sk8 said:
To be fair, GivEnergy support proactively got in touch with me today, fixed the issue out of hours (I needed to manually power cycle the unit when I was at home) and explained that they caused todays issue when wrapping up one of the problem caused at commissioning.
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All fixed now? I know someone else who has just had an AIO fitted, and it's taken then 3 weeks now to fix it, the fix was replacing it!
 
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