Associate
Yes, not sure if they could also install more panels above the velux windows on the rear extension?
Solar panels and battery - any real world reccomendations?
- Thread starter GinG
- Start date
Not worth it, I was quoted 11 jinko 440 panels, 5kw g3 inverter, 9.5 battery for around the same price, hies, mcs, dno, scaffs
p s. with the enphase microinverters in octopus quote, shading is not an issue
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Associate
Sorry for the noob questions, but I have no idea what a Jinko panel is or any of those letters lol
Associate
Who else should we go to for quotes please, is there anything specific that we need to be asking for / panels to avoid etc?
Thanks
lol basically
Decent panels 440w rated
Rest is all givenergy kit
You want battery storage so when it's out of daylight hours the battery will run your home, it will charge by solar in the day time and charge via night cheap rate
All those codes mean it will send excess to the grid, protect you if company goes bust and approval via your electricity provider to accept excess to the grid, so you can get paid etc (in a nutshell)
Associate
Thank you....this is a proper minefield for somebody like me with nae knowledge 
Any more advice will be very welcome, or a list of companies to try.
Thanks
Any more advice will be very welcome, or a list of companies to try.
Thanks
Soldato
I'm going to presume you don't know anything about batteries, in the summer they allow you to use excess solar at night as its been stored in the batteries. In the winter you can charge them at cheap rate for use during the day & nights - not much sun in the winter. There's other things they come in useful for, like saving sessions.
If there is no shading issues then you don't really need micro inverters - small inverters fitted behind each panel on the roof.
There is certainly space above the Velux windows for 3 panels, also on the rear you may get some. It also might be possible to move the panels on the main roof upwards and get another row on.
You really need to do some research so you understand the jargon before committing to anything. Jinko is a manufacture of panels, 440 means the panels are 440w, 5kW G3 is a Givenergy inverter, thats rated at 5kW, 9.5 is a 9.5kWh battery. HIES and MCS MCS is a con but, if you want to get paid for export your need to use an MCS registered installer. DNO is your distribution network operator, and they have to be informed of the installation, or if your inverter is bigger than 3.68kW you have to apply for permission.
Hopefully there are people on here in your area that can recommend an installer.
Soldato
@father-ted With your usage you really are going to need a shed load of panels, £220 a month equates to around 24kWh a day, roughly - do you know how much you do use?
There are national installers but really you want to speak to local installers in your area. As much as MCS is a bit of a racket, they will have a list of installers in your area on their website. I've got a system by made by GivEnergy which is good kit, they have a list of installers on on their website, they that would be a good start.
IGNORE any adverts you see for solar on social media, once you start searching you will be bombarded. Like all good trades, good installers do not advertise on social media, they simply don't need to.
These explainer videos cover the basics:
www.youtube.com
www.youtube.com
IGNORE any adverts you see for solar on social media, once you start searching you will be bombarded. Like all good trades, good installers do not advertise on social media, they simply don't need to.
These explainer videos cover the basics:
A Beginner's Guide to Home Solar
If you're thinking about getting solar for your house and are not sure where to start, this video will inform you of the basics. You'll quickly find that wit...
www.youtube.com
How to Choose SOLAR Wisely and Avoid Costly Mistakes
If you're serious about getting solar, in this video, I'll take you through the major system components you'll be needing, together with a couple of optional...
www.youtube.com
Associate
No idea tbh.....I can check on my latest bill, will post back with the details.
Blown away already by the great advice on here, thanks fellas
wow that's a really good deal for £6700!
unbeatable really
Tell me about it, was quoted 7k over 3 roofs, I went with 12 panels option and needed a couple of optimisers due to chimney / shading
All cabling etc, heck they even went to get me 10 tiles to replace as they were cracked, they put the strings in ducts
From quote to install all within a week, they did all the dno etc, sent the completion pack, with certificates, pleased so far
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Associate
You mite know me from my Youtube channel DevonKoi I run my Koi pond and workshop off a Diy solar setup and that has cost me near 2.5k to setup. And I have a full house system that went on back in March as people are saying hear have battery's on a system and save your solar to use over night then in winter time you can use the cheap night time to charge them. Plus as they are saying fit as many panels as you can get on the roof first time or you will want more later. the only thing i will add is if you go down the battery path get as bigger one as you can stretch to money wise I have 19kwh on the house and near 5Kwh on the workshop/Koi pond. The pond is a power sucker 24/7 summer running hear is near 400w so 9.6Kwh to run that for 24 hours summer and in winter I can get it down to 120w but that's still 2.8Kwn in 24 hours it takes some finding from the solar in the dark days of Winter
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Soldato
@father-ted it may well be worth looking at a Tesla Powerwall 3, it has 11kW inverter, 13.5kWh battery (more units can be added), 3 PV string inputs.
Do some research for reviews of installers, and also make sure it's the PW3 and not PW2 they install.
Do some research for reviews of installers, and also make sure it's the PW3 and not PW2 they install.
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Associate
All great advice, thanks guys
Associate
Registered for a quote, thanks
Just watch out for installers adding a ‘Tesla tax’ - it once was a very premium product in short supply and installers had a habit of adding a large margin to install it because they think you have a lot of money. In reality it’s a one day install for one guy and it needs very little in the way of sundry items.
It’s £5800 plus installation which is very competitive these days. Solar panels are on top of course.
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Soldato
@father-ted Another thing to consider is whether you want whole house backup, this means if there is a power cut the solar and battery takes over until the grid comes on (or you run out of battery/solar). I believe the PW3 has this built in. It can also be done with various other systems, I have it built in with my particular Victron system, other systems may need a gateway. Worth checking the change over time, I have seen some (I think it was SolarEdge) that was slow to change over and that meant the power went off briefly.
As pointed out above, some installers will really ramp up the costs for an easy very large profit, so best to post any quotes you're interested in on here. My neighbours got a quote from some company they saw advertising somewhere, very basic system, and was quoted £16K, when they said they couldn't afford it the quote magically dropped to £10k, still far too expensive for what it was.
As pointed out above, some installers will really ramp up the costs for an easy very large profit, so best to post any quotes you're interested in on here. My neighbours got a quote from some company they saw advertising somewhere, very basic system, and was quoted £16K, when they said they couldn't afford it the quote magically dropped to £10k, still far too expensive for what it was.
Associate
Just checked the electricity bill:Over the last 7 month period we have averaged 865kw of usage per monthNo idea tbh.....I can check on my latest bill, will post back with the details.
Blown away already by the great advice on here, thanks fellas
@father-ted With your usage you really are going to need a shed load of panels, £220 a month equates to around 24kWh a day, roughly - do you know how much you do use?
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