Solar panels and battery - any real world reccomendations?

bigmike20vt · Monday at 17:51

My parents have just gotten a quote for solar.. it seemed pretty good to me and a quick google it seems the company are ok.

just wondering if anyone has any experience here of them? initially my parents said no after i chatted with them (my dad is 78, my mum 76 and i suggested if they do it, do it to reduce carbon footprint as well as because it is a responsible thing to do.... not to save money as at their time in life there may be better things to spend cash on..

this was with an install price of.... iirc £9500.

however on saying no the company got back and said they would do exactly the same job for £8500 and i think that may have convinced my dad. (i wont lie, i hate that kind of marketing but at the end of the day it seems a nice set up for £8500)

my main comment was that it was a really big inverter for only a 4kw system but there is no room for any more panels sadly as they have a hip roof. that is with 5 panels on south facing and 4 on the east facing.

Company is Solar Xpress
panels have 30 year warranty
inverter and battery 10 years.

Solar Panels
Sunrise Energy Co., Ltd
3.960 kW Total Solar Power
9 x 440 Watt Panels (SR-54M440NHLPro)
3,037 kWh per year

Inverter
Duracell
6 kW Total Inverter Rating
1 x PD-DH1P-6K-G1

Battery
Duracell
5.12 kWh Total Battery Storage
1 x PD-5KWH-50V-1G Duracell 5+

Journey · Monday at 17:58

bigmike20vt said:
just wondering if anyone has any experience here of them?

Duracell is just rebrand PureDrive for the most part, so careful not to get sucked in by branding, not that it is terrible.

What was the cost?

bigmike20vt · Monday at 18:02

Journey said:
Duracell is just rebrand PureDrive for the most part, so careful not to get sucked in by branding, not that it is terrible.

What was the cost?

the whole job was £8500 i dont know the breakdown. I didnt assume anything on the brand but 10 year warranty on the battery and inverter is double that on my pylon batteries and solis inverter.

maddness · Monday at 18:03

imo a 5kw battery and 9 panels is expensive

bigmike20vt · Monday at 18:10

is it really? ok that is good to know, i thought it seemed ok but am not an expert. thanks.

Journey · Monday at 18:11

bigmike20vt said:
the whole job was £8500 i dont know the breakdown. I didnt assume anything on the brand but 10 year warranty on the battery and inverter is double that on my pylon batteries and solis inverter.

Well the core hardware is about 3k +VAT so should be room for negotiation as it is a buyers market, since there is oversupply in all of the major components, and lots of installer competition.

If you are happy with the cost, I'd maybe look at just getting the solar done by one company, then add something like a 15kWh Fogstar battery, you'll end up with the same out going and a much better system for winter.

maddness · Monday at 18:21

I was quoted £7050 for 8 jinko panels, 5kw gen 3, 9.5kw battery (both givenergy), bird proofing, all the certs, scaffs, and the wiring, meters etc, hies, dno, that was 1st quote though they said that's bottom pricing, I told another supplier on this quote (they quoted me 12.5k), they said it was a scam :cry:

30 years on the panels
12 years on the inverter and batteries

They said addional panels are £120 per panel installed, optimisers 45 a pop (you only need them if there is shade)

I went with a 12 panel setup + optimisers

and then after I got another 9.5kw + charger installed

See my last post on previous page for my supplier

maddness · Monday at 18:27

Funny one
Octopus quoted me
Giv kit-
4 panels!!!!!
9.5 battery
Inverter

£9500 lol, let me find the quote

4x JA Solar 435W panels
A Giv-Energy 9.5kWh Battery
A GivEnergy Hybrid Inverter
Installation on a Single Aspect roof
Bird-Netting as standard
All electrical components required to complete the install
All scaffolding, delivery and labour costs

£9,499 (0% vat)

tamzzy · Monday at 20:00

bigmike20vt said:
the whole job was £8500 i dont know the breakdown. I didnt assume anything on the brand but 10 year warranty on the battery and inverter is double that on my pylon batteries and solis inverter.

Yeah that's expensive.

My system was £8.3k
10x 440w panels, 3.6kw inverter, 10.24kwh battery and bird cage

Would definitely negotiate down to £7k for your spec, or if £8.3k - a second battery

Journey · Monday at 20:24

tamzzy said:
bird cage

Did you get a parrot with it?

tamzzy · Monday at 21:17

Journey said:
Did you get a parrot with it?

I named it Journey

bigmike20vt · Tuesday at 09:01

tamzzy said:
Yeah that's expensive.

My system was £8.3k
10x 440w panels, 3.6kw inverter, 10.24kwh battery and bird cage

Would definitely negotiate down to £7k for your spec, or if £8.3k - a second battery

wow i am so out of touch. i have passed all the info as well as an alt company for them to get another quote on to them. i thought 8.5k was a fair price but clearly i am way off base.

i have told them to make sure bird proofing is included and said they need to haggle more, or just look elsehwere.

if i am honest at their time in life i question if it is worth it, but that is me looking at it financially. obviously there is never a bad time to lower CO2 footprint and help reduce strain on the grid.

b0rn2sk8 · Tuesday at 09:43

It’s a slightly morbid way to think about it but you could see some of the money back in the form of a slightly higher house value later or at the very least, it would be easier to sell when their time comes

bigmike20vt · Tuesday at 09:47

b0rn2sk8 said:
It’s a slightly morbid way to think about it but you could see some of the money back in the form of a slightly higher house value later or at the very least, it would be easier to sell when their time comes

true and i think it is an unspoken part of the equation in my parents minds...... however i am not going down that road as my goal at the moment is trying to get them to spend their money on stuff for them - possibly including our son - their grandson - and maybe us as well.

i would rather their money was spent making memories whilst they are able to enjoy it and not just left in their estate.

you are correct however.,

b0rn2sk8 · Tuesday at 09:49

Yup, I’d be the same but old people are not always the most logical sometimes or simply have different priorities.

bigmike20vt · Tuesday at 09:51

b0rn2sk8 said:
Yup, I’d be the same but old people are not always the most logical sometimes or simply have different priorities.

absolutely and every family has different circumstances. For us tho, i wont lie, of course money would be nice, but we dont need it really.... but time spent with loved ones is priceless (esp as they live 200 miles away from us so we do not get to see them as often as i would like, esp their grandson.

(christ i sound like a mastercard advert

but i digress, sorry.

Journey · Tuesday at 12:24

bigmike20vt said:
but i digress, sorry.

Don't apologise it is a very valid point, if you execute the install effectively though, you could end up saving them the same cost in 5-6 years, and the monthly saving could go towards doing 'stuff'

200sols · Tuesday at 12:27

My installer is offering 12 panel systems for £4437. Thats pretty tempting for the NE roof.

Journey · Tuesday at 12:28

200sols said:
My installer is offering 12 panel systems for £4437. Thats pretty tempting for the NE roof.

That's a nice price, about £860 per kWp.

Ron-ski · Tuesday at 13:24

200sols said:
My installer is offering 12 panel systems for £4437. Thats pretty tempting for the NE roof.

That's not much more than my 15 panels addition is going to cost, although I am having to pay VAT.

I'm also using PV Ultra which is more expensive than normal PV cable.