Solar panels and battery - any real world reccomendations?

[TNA]

So we are (almost, waiting on an Eddie) installed! Yesterday we spent 1p on electricity and exported enough to cover the standing charge of gas and electricity. Super happy. Installers were excellent and everything has worked first time. 4.9kw of panels, 12kwh of batteries, 5kw LUX invertor and an iboost (kindly provided to use whilst waiting on the Eddie, harvi and Hub to arrive). All for just under £9.5k

That seems like a good price. Where did you get that from? I assume no longer available at that price?

I am more than likely just going to watch our usage for the next year or two and get it then. By then demand will die down and supply and tech will improve. Definitely want batteries though, at least 6kwh. I may go for putting solar panels on both sides the roof which should be a lot more than 4.9kw. Then just stop using gas and go all electric in the house.

 

[Phoenix211]

Can pm you details if you want. Honestly, I'm not sure if they are quoting prices like that now but I only got the quote in April so who knows. Same people the did SBo's install as well.

 

[LordVader]

Got another quote. Much bigger array on 2 roofs with tricky scaffolding required. Install to be done in a detached garage

 

[TNA]

Can pm you details if you want. Honestly, I'm not sure if they are quoting prices like that now but I only got the quote in April so who knows. Same people the did SBo's install as well.

Sure. Go ahead

 

[TNA]

Got another quote. Much bigger array on 2 roofs with tricky scaffolding required. Install to be done in a detached garage

Easier to read if you embed the actual image like so:

 

[Vertigo]

Hi all,

I've been curious about solar for a while but a bit confused as to options, specifically when it comes to lower-power solutions.

My usage is mostly what I'd describe as "low level constant" rather than "bursty".
Firstly I have what I'd call my 'base level' of constant draw, which is the total of everything that's on all the time. This is the average draw during the night when I'm asleep or if I'm out of the house. This averages around 300W which breaks down as the fridge freezer, chest freezer, various devices on standby plus a fair amount of tech.
During the day, when I'm working from home, this rises to around 500W, the additional 200W being my computer and monitors.

Now, if I assume the daytime usage accounts for 16h of each day, that works out at roughly 10.4kWh of usage per day! On the basis of around 28p/kWh right now, that's nearly £90 a month just on this "base usage", before I even factor in the higher-current "bursty" usage like running appliances. Is my maths right here?

As the bulk of my usage is thus this constant lower-level draw, wouldn't I be able to deploy a low-power solar system, together with a battery, to put a serious dent in this usage?
To make things even simpler, a lot of the equipment contributing to the base 300W draw is in the same location, so I was envisioning some kind of standalone battery, like a UPS, into which this equipment could be plugged and is then connected to both the mains and the solar panels, using the latter to charge when possible and the mains for any surplus.

Am I just talking nonsense here?

 

[Puzzled]

Is there much point in looking at an install this year now with the delays and shortages, just thinking it likely won't be installed for a few months and we'll be going into winter.

As we are now at home during the day, a simple solar panel install (no battery) might help bring our costs down as we would use what is generated rather than storing it for later.

 

[SoliD]

Hi all,

I've been curious about solar for a while but a bit confused as to options, specifically when it comes to lower-power solutions.

My usage is mostly what I'd describe as "low level constant" rather than "bursty".
Firstly I have what I'd call my 'base level' of constant draw, which is the total of everything that's on all the time. This is the average draw during the night when I'm asleep or if I'm out of the house. This averages around 300W which breaks down as the fridge freezer, chest freezer, various devices on standby plus a fair amount of tech.
During the day, when I'm working from home, this rises to around 500W, the additional 200W being my computer and monitors.

Now, if I assume the daytime usage accounts for 16h of each day, that works out at roughly 10.4kWh of usage per day! On the basis of around 28p/kWh right now, that's nearly £90 a month just on this "base usage", before I even factor in the higher-current "bursty" usage like running appliances. Is my maths right here?

As the bulk of my usage is thus this constant lower-level draw, wouldn't I be able to deploy a low-power solar system, together with a battery, to put a serious dent in this usage?
To make things even simpler, a lot of the equipment contributing to the base 300W draw is in the same location, so I was envisioning some kind of standalone battery, like a UPS, into which this equipment could be plugged and is then connected to both the mains and the solar panels, using the latter to charge when possible and the mains for any surplus.

Am I just talking nonsense here?

In theory yes, but in reality the low power system of say 1kw would be fine in summer months for 6 hours a day, but would be generating maybe 100w or less in the daylight winter hours and obvioulsy nothing at night, so you actually need to scale up your system so that you have the capability to run it in these winter months where you'd need a 5 or 6kw system to power your base draw which could be supplemented by a battery to account for when solar is hardly generating anything or overnight (which obviously happens all year round).

 

[crazyDAJT]

Just switched to Octopus yesterday and already have a smart meter install booked for next Wednesday. Role on 7p/kWh!

 

[LordVader]

Easier to read if you embed the actual image like so:

Any thoughts on this price?

 

[TNA]

Any thoughts on this price?

I am not well enough versed in prices yet to give an opinion to be honest. Based on what I do know I would say 1-2K too much, but then with demand and supply being what it is who knows? Best bet get a few more quotes in to compare.

Just switched to Octopus yesterday and already have a smart meter install booked for next Wednesday. Role on 7p/kWh!

Do you have an EV?

 

[ci_newman]

Any thoughts on this price?

They dont appear to have included bird protection - you absolutely want that to prevent birds building nests underneath them

 

[crazyDAJT]

Do you have an EV?

I have a PHEV, + a 8.2kwh house battery, so during the winter 90% of my electric is going to be at 7p

Edit: so I’m expecting my real rate to be sub 10p / kWh during the winter and effective zero from April to October.

 

[94JDH]

Any thoughts on this price?

I'm assuming around 400w panels? If so 8.8kW array - approx 9K in costs, batteries 1K plus £500/kW so additional 6K - giving a total of 15K. This is based on costings earlier this year, so actually not a bad price.
Why not go back and ask them to throw in bird protection (like another poster suggested) for a deal if you're happy with the spend?

 

[TNA]

I have a PHEV, + a 8.2kwh house battery, so during the winter 90% of my electric is going to be at 7p

Edit: so I’m expecting my real rate to be sub 10p / kWh during the winter and effective zero from April to October.

Was hoping you would say you didn’t have a EV of any kind and there was a way of getting on there without it

I have a Diesel SUV. At least I get 55mpg on average out of it though. Have managed to get as high as 70+ mpg, but those only happen on certain routes and when it’s only me in the car

 

[crazyDAJT]

Was hoping you would say you didn’t have a EV of any kind and there was a way of getting on there without it

I have a Diesel SUV. At least I get 55mpg on average out of it though. Have managed to get as high as 70+ mpg, but those only happen on certain routes and when it’s only me in the car

My last 3 fill ups have done around 900miles each and I have averaged over 100mpg. Most long journeys I’m doing 80+mpg. In and out of the office is all electric.

I don’t believe Octopus actually check. I just asked to move to them to get on Go and they immediately offered a smart meter install the day they took over.

I let you know in two weeks if they check.

 

[TNA]

My last 3 fill ups have done around 900miles each and I have averaged over 100mpg. Most long journeys I’m doing 80+mpg. In and out of the office is all electric.

I don’t believe Octopus actually check. I just asked to move to them to get on Go and they immediately offered a smart meter install the day they took over.

I let you know in two weeks if they check.

Cheers. What car you got? Very nice mpg

I have a 3008. Been extremely happy with it. Worth more now than what I paid for it over a year ago. Would have been awesome if it was PHEV. The Mitsubishi Outlanders I was looking at were PHEV, but the interior of those are from like the 90’s where as the 3008 looks better than anything else in its price range for an SUV, so ended up with that.

 

[crazyDAJT]

Audi A3, but this is now turning into a car thread. The point is you can massively leverage battery’s with solar. My experience is we can’t use enough of the solar at the time it’s generated.

 

[TNA]

Audi A3, but this is now turning into a car thread. The point is you can massively leverage battery’s with solar. My experience is we can’t use enough of the solar at the time it’s generated.

Ah it’s fine. It is relevant imo. But yeah, good point.

 

[-Ad-]

Any thoughts on this price?

Seems a bit spendy by £3k in my eyes.

Go play with teh calculator and planer on www.easy-pv.co.uk.

I just did a rough system plan for similar components and 9.6kWh of Pylontech batteries and it came to around 9.5k ex VAT and shipping. So you're component and material costs are not afully over, the installer will obviously have some markup for ordering, designing etc etv.

Install costs seem a spendy as ever, a sign of the times.

But they've partially broken the quote down, so it's better than most.

My only concern is they've not listed the G99 DNO application which needs to be done before anything is installed. As your DNO might not even approve export over 3.68kW, so this system might not even be viable until the G99 has been submitted with a decision given by the DNO for your export.