Energy Prices (Strictly NO referrals!)

[SDK^]

Assuming you don’t need drive anywhere though I assume. You seem to have 100% efficient energy transfer too ?

32 kwh into my car each night is about 100 miles, so enough daily driving distance for me.
As for transfer losses, that's minimum impact when grid energy is 7.5p and there will be some solar generation, even on the shortest darker days to cover that.

Well I wouldn't consider a 65" or 55" screen a PC monitor

I'm sure my old 42" panasonic plasma uses loads, except its never on.

Loads of people use large TV's for monitors now, just look in the Monitors section of this forum for evidence of that. HDMI 2.1 and higher refresh rates make them very appealing.

 

[Simon]

Yeah all good just remember 32kWh into your car is probably 35kWh ‘used’.

Not sure of efficiency of grid 240v into a home battery.

 

[jpaul]

There isn't some magic company you can invest in that will save you money and centrally generate energy. If there was they would probably just finance it themselves rather than giving you a cut of the profits.

the local (to you) onshore wind proposal , as mentioned, is the debut of that.

 

[touch]

If you really want to start skimping on power, when you leave for work in the morning switch your mains power off at the circuit board until you get back home

Then die from food poisoning when your freezer contents have been continually thawed/refrozen every day.

 

[b0rn2sk8]

Then die from food poisoning when your freezer contents have been continually thawed/refrozen every day.

Haha yeh I was going to mention that small issue.

I’ve just gotten into the habbit of just unplugging anything not in use, be that computers, microwaves, etc etc.

The only things that don’t get unplugged is the router, security and the fish tank.

 

[HungryHippos]

the local (to you) onshore wind proposal , as mentioned, is the debut of that.

Alright but this is just an idea no concrete details yet right? I'm not wanting to go hunting for information so if you know more please share.

I have no doubt that centralisation is the best way to go but ultimately I have to remain realistic, I can do solar today, I can't really see any other viable options today or even near future.

 

[jonneymendoza]

Haha yeh I was going to mention that small issue.

I’ve just gotten into the habbit of just unplugging anything not in use, be that computers, microwaves, etc etc.

The only things that don’t get unplugged is the router, security and the fish tank.

Poor people who have home labs

 

[Simon0001]

Then die from food poisoning when your freezer contents have been continually thawed/refrozen every day.

If your only out for say 8 hours and have a modern fridge it shouldn't defrost in that time

 

[Andrew Moore]

I ran some numbers and found myself disagreeing with the expected solar repayment times in that table as well.

My new system going in will cost £8250 for 4.44kw of panels with an 8.2kwh battery.

I reckon those two will save me about £1k per year or so, and the system should generate 3.5-4mwh per year.

Winter won't look as good but should be basically free electric for a lot of the year, with the battery and a fairly high usage anyway, I should be able to use most of what the panels generate over the course of the year.

Thats a price now isn’t it! Essentially about half of one of my quotes with a slightly larger battery but less generation. Given the price of panels it makes me think my being over charged by a good £3.5k if not more… I think some more calls are in order.

 

[HungryHippos]

Thats a price now isn’t it! Essentially about half of one of my quotes with a slightly larger battery but less generation. Given the price of panels it makes me think my being over charged by a good £3.5k if not more… I think some more calls are in order.

Yes, it's worth getting a few quotes in. It's worth noting this quote/job was all agreed a few months ago (awaiting DNO signoff which takes 3 months for export bigger than 3.6kw).

If you use a lot of electric and have the space for it, I'd go bigger though, I don't really have the roof space or I'd definitely get more panels added.

Some extra panels whilst they have the scaffold up is relatively cost effective.

Prices seem to have gone up lately from the types of quotes I'm seeing people get now.

 

[gpuerrilla]

One of the installers said this happened when the original FIT tariff was going. Lots of interest and fly by night outfits trying to cash in, so bear that in mind.

The products probably are in short supply from the new demand and slow manufacturing. Some of the equipment will cost slightly more than it was if bought near the start of 2022.

 

[CuriousTomCat]

The only changes I've done is switched to using Persil to wash my laundry because it works in cold water (my previous detergent needed 30c minimum)

Also I packed the empty shelves in my fridge with loft insulation so I don't loose lots of cold air when I open the door. I always make sure the freezer is packed with food because a full freezer is cheaper to run.

That's it. I don't need to cut back on anything.

 

[Haggisman]

If your only out for say 8 hours and have a modern fridge it shouldn't defrost in that time

Then as soon as you turn the power back on, it's going to run continuously for an extended period to bring the temperature back in line.

A decent fridge/freezer with the seals in good condition with the door kept closed should be losing very little heat, so even if kept plugged in it will use very little electricity. I measured ours with one of those plugin watt meters and the use was negligible (iirc it was about 10p/day, almost all of which was during the day (due to opening & closing the door))

The only changes I've done is switched to using Persil to wash my laundry because it works in cold water.

I wonder if there is any real difference in Persil vs generic stuff to make it work in cold water, or just marketing?

Also I packed the empty shelves in my fridge with loft insulation so I don't loose lots of cold air when I open the door.

Yummy, can't beat some nice fibreglass in your fruit and veg! (I assume you've sealed it in something?)

Bottles of water are probably better for this since they are a) food safe b) have a higher thermal mass than loft insulation, and c) You have the added bonus of lovely fridge-cold water to drink (although obviously refilling with warmer water cancels out some of the energy savings!)

 

[LabR@t]

Open a window

Yes totally sensible in the winter when trying to save money

 

[Richie]

For anyone out of the house during the day, solar would only be a significant benefit if you also had battery storage given that any real generation will happen when it cannot be used.

Feed battery during the day which then feeds back into the house in the evening.

Not knocking solar but the advocates for it in this thread have only just had it installed... I'd like real use figures for a full year (not extrapolated or assumed) to decide properly

 

[Simon0001]

Yes totally sensible in the winter when trying to save money

Dry your clothes outside

 

[Mercenary Keyboard Warrior]

I replied to your similar assessment earlier in the thread - https://forums.overclockers.co.uk/t...energy-prices.18948056/page-313#post-35715006

For domestic you either eat the cost of the new rates or you do something about it (solar). There isn't some magic company you can invest in that will save you money and centrally generate energy. If there was they would probably just finance it themselves rather than giving you a cut of the profits.

Solar payback under 10 years is fine if you assume you won't move soon, and that adding solar will add some value to the house, which it most likely will especially with high kwh prices.

To me it's a no-brainer investment if it's priced well.

Plus of course parts of the system would be easy to take should you decide to move and the prospective buyers play hard ball thinking you will leave it anyway.
This is far more likely i think than with current energy prices people not seeing value from a fully installed (and demonstratable) owned solar system.

Battery, inverter etc are all "easily" removed.

 

[LabR@t]

Dry your clothes outside

yes in the summer or in the winter if the weather permits

 

[jonneymendoza]

yes in the summer or in the winter if the weather permits

Or indoors

 

[b0rn2sk8]

The only changes I've done is switched to using Persil to wash my laundry because it works in cold water (my previous detergent needed 30c minimum)

Also I packed the empty shelves in my fridge with loft insulation so I don't loose lots of cold air when I open the door. I always make sure the freezer is packed with food because a full freezer is cheaper to run.

That's it. I don't need to cut back on anything.

Please take the loft insulation out of the fridge and put in ICE packs and bottles of water.

As the other person said, they have a decent thermal mass and will help stabilise the temperature when the door is opened.

It’s the same trick people use on green houses (barrels rather than bottles kind) to keep the temp stable. It keeps the peek temp down in the day and the minimum up overnight (helping to prevent frost damage in winter too).