Solar panels and battery - any real world reccomendations?

Welshman said:
do you have a link for the standalone with their own inverter??
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There are loads, in fact there are probably way more who do this than hybrid etc
Most of the hybrid players do this as well

How old is your inverter? Unless its really new I would be tempted to update that with a hybrid
The clamps are ok but they aren't as good as a hybrid since they are less accurate
 
Mercenary Keyboard Warrior said:
There are loads, in fact there are probably way more who do this than hybrid etc
Most of the hybrid players do this as well

How old is your inverter? Unless its really new I would be tempted to update that with a hybrid
The clamps are ok but they aren't as good as a hybrid since they are less accurate
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3mths old.....but not looking to change until next spring really
 
Welshman said:
3mths old.....but not looking to change until next spring really
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Oh thats a shame.
People will buy them second hand, or worst case you could hang on to it as a backup.

Really its a trade off how much extra would a new hybrid cost vs a new single task one.
Pros and cons of each approach.
Biggest pro being either failing keeps half your system running where as a hybrid would take both out
 
Bug One said:
Nope. You can get an AC coupled inverter. Piggybacks whatever you've currently got, measures your solar in and grid out with a pair of CT clamps, and charges and supplies from your batteries accordingly using it's own inbuilt inverter.
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so you can't add a battery just like that, it's more cost was the point I was making!
 
Mercenary Keyboard Warrior said:
Oh thats a shame.
People will buy them second hand, or worst case you could hang on to it as a backup.

Really its a trade off how much extra would a new hybrid cost vs a new single task one.
Pros and cons of each approach.
Biggest pro being either failing keeps half your system running where as a hybrid would take both out
Click to expand...
its cheaper to get a hybrid and battery, than a battery on its own.....and that includes fitting

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Growatt 3.3kWh Battery Storage Bundle (Installation included) - L&R Renewables

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I have always been 100% on board with the philosopy of maxing out on the panels.

We have one of the larger systems in private hands and the marginal benefit of every extra penny spend is less than the one before. With hindsight I should not have bought 4 battery packs.

This morning I was charging the car at 10 amps (or 2400 watts). The batteries started at 76% and are now 75% after 3 hours from 0845. It is not sunny. It is one of those days where the sun wants to break through but is failing.

On poor solar days it is the minimum output which counts. The 2 worst days in December and January saw only 400 watts and 500 watts produced. The average for those 2 months was 19kw/day for January and 14 for December. On poor days we do not even consider charging the car, and yes the batteries can and do carry us for a couple of days.

Despite all of the above, our ability to generate more electricity than we are using for background appliances means the batteries can be gently topped up. On poorer days throughout the year, we are still not drawing down on the batteries. Unless it is really bad, we tend to be making at least 200 watts surplus at all times. This is enough for 1 full kettle every hour.

We are probably off grid longer than most, and because we have tried to be good enviromental citizens, we triple insulated our loft 15-20 years ago. During the cold spell 2-3 weeks ago, I walked half a mile to post a letter. I came back a different way and our roof was the only one still completely frosty. Has this added to the value of our house? No. Payback period I estimated at 15-25 years.

Add 1 kw to your system and the panels will be say £400 plus another £400 for just installing them. Let us assume they will produce 800kw/year. (My unshaded ones on the south roof produced 1124kw last year, the south facing shaded ones were 1058kw and the East ones also shaded were 896kw. I admit we are quite far south.) So for every £1 you will get at least 1kw/year. Payback is 3-10 years depending on how you want to play it.

My extra 6.5kw battery cost me £2,000. It has been helpful in different ways but has only made a difference in saving 30-40kw per year. The only worse investment has been the kids!!!!!!!!!!
 
SoliD said:
so you can't add a battery just like that, it's more cost was the point I was making!
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I mean, you could try hooking up the DC from the battery to your consumer unit. :p

Actually, if you have an enphase setup, you can literally plug and play their battery. It's got the inverter built into the battery. But that's a rather niche scenario.

Enphase AC Battery Storage Module 1.2kWh (V1.5) with Wall Mount Bracket | Plug In Solar

Enphase AC Battery Storage Module 1.2kWh (V1.5) with Wall Mount Bracket
www.pluginsolar.co.uk www.pluginsolar.co.uk
 
HungryHippos said:
Awesome, you'll quickly find out that your system is sat there exporting like a lemon because you can't find enough stuff to use it for as it comes in! :D

ON a good sunny day these things will fly through generation.
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Mercenary Keyboard Warrior said:
IIRC hes got an EV so shouldnt have so much of an issue, assuming hes using the car
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Not got the car yet (ordered it a long time ago!), but should arrive next month all being well. The charger will be set up to divert excess into to (as long as I’m home of course!).

I think my main struggle this time of year will be guessing how much to charge up the packs on the cheap rate… the risk is either having the packs filled up too early and then Solar humming along with nowhere to go but to the grid, or running out of “cheap rate” electric and having to draw from the grid during expensive rates if I don’t charge enough.

I’m guessing in a few months I can probably just forget any charging overnight apart from when the weather gets properly miserable.

It would be really nice if you could at least get something for the export while on Go, even if just a token amount.
 
Zeeflyboy said:
Not got the car yet (ordered it a long time ago!), but should arrive next month all being well. The charger will be set up to divert excess into to (as long as I’m home of course!).

I think my main struggle this time of year will be guessing how much to charge up the packs on the cheap rate… the risk is either having the packs filled up too early and then Solar humming along with nowhere to go but to the grid, or running out of “cheap rate” electric and having to draw from the grid during expensive rates if I don’t charge enough.

I’m guessing in a few months I can probably just forget any charging overnight apart from when the weather gets properly miserable.

It would be really nice if you could at least get something for the export while on Go, even if just a token amount.
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You can still sign up for SEG so its 4p ish.
IMO unless you dead certain your not going to need the charge then charge, just maybe not to 100%.
Cost of charging too much is 7.5p-4p = 3.5p a unit where as one unit from grid that you could have charged cheaply is 40p-7.5p = 32.5p
You have to mess up overcharging a lot to balance the costs of taking units from the grid in peak.
 
Ah yeah, I see… I was under impression that on Go I couldn’t but the export is technically separate and I could even have a completely different company doing it (although I’m happy with octopus!).

So I just need to wait for the MCS cert and then I can sign up here which mentions customers on Go being one of the use cases. https://octopus.energy/help-and-faqs/articles/seg-tariff/

My Go tariff is new (only just switched) so the rates are a bit different but your point stands.

Glad I added the extra 5kwh battery - gives a bit more leeway on trying to make the most of the system.

Neighbours over the road saw me outside and came over for a chat, wanted to know all sorts of stuff and are interested in getting a system themselves!
 
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Zeeflyboy said:
Ah yeah, I see… I was under impression that on Go I couldn’t but the export is technically separate and I could even have a completely different company doing it (although I’m happy with octopus!).
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oh ffs - didn't realise you could do that (sure I read about a year ago that you needed one contract for both but thats probably me getting it wrong :rolleyes:) looks like British Gas are one of the better options offering 6.4p so putting an application in now
 
Freefaller said:
Oh so it does... is there historical data on tracker? Is it easy to change tariffs on Octopus?
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I went on Twitter and was switched over after a couple of hours after DM Octopus.

I've found one good source for the rates lately, but it's not great, posted it here: https://forums.overclockers.co.uk/t...no-referrals.18948056/page-1060#post-36188833

Would love a better one not plastered with referral schemes and such, but as is it is, I can see both gas and electric have been cheaper than cap prices by about 25% for the last month or so.
 
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HungryHippos said:
I went on Twitter and was switched over after a couple of hours after DM Octopus.

I've found one good source for the rates lately, but it's not great, posted it here: https://forums.overclockers.co.uk/t...no-referrals.18948056/page-1060#post-36188833

Would love a better one not plastered with referral schemes and such, but as is it is, I can see both gas and electric have been cheaper than cap prices by about 25% for the last month or so.
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Would you be able to swap back if you needed to?
 
Siliconslave said:
oh ffs - didn't realise you could do that (sure I read about a year ago that you needed one contract for both but thats probably me getting it wrong :rolleyes:) looks like British Gas are one of the better options offering 6.4p so putting an application in now
Click to expand...

I’m certainly no expert, but from here:

“Please note that you can apply for a SEG tariff with any SEG Licensee – your SEG Licensee does not need to be the same company as your current energy supplier. You can choose to use separate companies for your SEG payments, electricity supply, and your gas supply if you wish.

Generators are encouraged to shop around to find the best SEG tariff for them. To see the current list of SEG Licensees, please click here.”

Smart Export Guarantee (SEG) - Generators

The Smart Export Guarantee (SEG) enables small-scale low-carbon generators to receive payments from electricity suppliers for electricity exported to the National Grid, providing certain criteria are met.
www.ofgem.gov.uk www.ofgem.gov.uk
 
Zeeflyboy said:
I’m certainly no expert, but from here:

“Please note that you can apply for a SEG tariff with any SEG Licensee – your SEG Licensee does not need to be the same company as your current energy supplier. You can choose to use separate companies for your SEG payments, electricity supply, and your gas supply if you wish.

Generators are encouraged to shop around to find the best SEG tariff for them. To see the current list of SEG Licensees, please click here.”

Smart Export Guarantee (SEG) - Generators

The Smart Export Guarantee (SEG) enables small-scale low-carbon generators to receive payments from electricity suppliers for electricity exported to the National Grid, providing certain criteria are met.
www.ofgem.gov.uk www.ofgem.gov.uk
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You can indeed shop about, but I just stick with Octopus and hope one day they improve the rates.

I don't want the headaches of another supplier, and by all accounts, some of them are incredibly slow at accepting SEG applications.
 
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