Solar PV pannles ?

[splinters]

does any body have any proper knowledge about Solar PV. a friend is intending to install pannles on her house but is unsure wether to go for 2.3kw thin film or 4kw monochrystaline. she had a normal size 3 bedroom house.

 

in my mind the higher the kw out put the better but is the extra cost worth the extra output.

 

cheers tom

[RobRainford]

we are having a 4kw system installed for our farmhouse, 4 bed. on a single phase system you can now get battery storage. At night when they aren't generating you end up pulling back off the grid and you then get charged. having the batteries means you generate the nights leccy in the day and any that is over the capacity of the batteries is back on the grid anyway, so for the extra cost it makes it worthwhile.

 

Having a higher output will just mean you put more back on the grid = get paid more. So it sort of makes sense, finance can be arranged for them so it turns it into a very good way of getting free leccy!

 

Aswell as this are are installing a 3 phase system, not sure what kw output it is but will produce a lot more than we need for round the yard.

[Woodworks]

I would go for a as large a system as possible. Our system is 3.8 kW and it makes 3.8 Megawatts a year!

 

Think ours are hybrid thin film and monocrystalline. Don't think the type matters too much unless you are wanting max performance from a small area. Be aware that shading (even small) seriously diminishes their performance regardless of what the salesmen say.

 

Batteries sound like a nice idea but was of the understanding that their short lifetime and maintenance costs outweighed the savings.

[splinters]

can i ask you both and any one else who comments what make you have.

[Breezeblock]

if they are getting panels installed on the roof will it be at the correct pitch to get the max amount of gain

[carpenter1]

We have had our 3.8kw system for 2 and a half years, I am on the highest tariff they offered, but the price of the system has come down.

We have an immersun unit fitted, which puts unused electric into the hot water tank.

So I have had free hot water since about February wheb it was installed.

 

Great bit of kit, and can be fitted at any time

[armybloke]

Speak to this guy - Dale Harris 01527 875368. He can provide you with a projected output/input and tell you what you need.

 

Tell him Marco passed on the details.

[kevinjohnsonmbe]

we are having a 4kw system installed for our farmhouse, 4 bed. on a single phase system you can now get battery storage. At night when they aren't generating you end up pulling back off the grid and you then get charged. having the batteries means you generate the nights leccy in the day and any that is over the capacity of the batteries is back on the grid anyway, so for the extra cost it makes it worthwhile.

 

Having a higher output will just mean you put more back on the grid = get paid more. So it sort of makes sense, finance can be arranged for them so it turns it into a very good way of getting free leccy!

 

Aswell as this are are installing a 3 phase system, not sure what kw output it is but will produce a lot more than we need for round the yard.

 

I'd say there's very little value added in installing a system on the basis of what you can put back into the grid although it might be seen as morally upstanding.

 

It's the leccy you generate (in our case 47.673p per unit) that adds value. The 'assumed' 50% export uplift of 3.363p is fairly irrelevant.

 

The secret is to use every drop you make!

[Woodworks]

can i ask you both and any one else who comments what make you have.

 

We have the Sanyo HIT model but think they are branded Panasonic these days. Only reason for them was space was restricted so maximum output per m2 squared was preferable. There is another system here which is on a barn and they are REC. Both have performed perfectly for several years.

[timberbear]

We went for 3.8kw system using hybrid panels which produce power at a lower light level. Whilst you'll never be self sufficient it can be cost neutral. We are drawing less of the grid, when you consider your fridge draws more power In the summer keeping your beer cool at the same time your generating for a good 14hrs if your SW facing. Our income covers our yearly bill (we still pay our monthly bill) but get our generation money back each quarter and we still made £1100 on top last year!