Free solar panels?

[churchilldog]

So what do we think to this then?
http://www.isis-solar.com/

apparently free solar panels, and the payment from the govt is taken by the company who install the panels- the homeowner get to use the electricity generated on site.

I'd be interested in your opinions!

p.s. Mods please move to a more appropriate forum if you wish- I just couldn't see which was appropriate!

 

[yaleguy3]

Well, If you take part in this free offer exactly what are you getting for free as it says the solar panels remain the property of isis.

What you are actually doing is allowing isis to use your roof to take advantage of a government scheme that will earn THEM money.

Here is an example calculation based on the scheme taken from another source.

"As an example, a typical domestic solar electricity system, with an installation size of 3 kWp can generate:
£1,000 per year from the Generation Tariff
£36 per year from the Export Tariff
£140 per year reduction in current electricity bills.
This gives a total saving of around £1,200* per year.

* Based on a 3 kW system installed on a south facing, 45 degree, roof with little or no shading and annual solar radiation of 989 kWh/year. This assumes 50% of the electricity generated is exported back to the grid. The figures may vary depending on how much is exported."




So you see while you may possibly save £140 a year on your fuel bill (isis claim you could save up to £300) depending on the weather isis will pocket £1100 a year from the energy companies index linked for the next 25yrs.

You will have compromised your abilty to sell your home because A. solar panels look awful and B. The new owner will have to agree to the ongoing contract with isis when purchasing your home.

You pays your money and you takes your choice as they say.
I personally wouldn't like to give away the potential to sell my home for the sake of £140 possibly saved a year in fuel bills especially when someone without a vested interest in selling the home is going to be earning over £1000 a year for themselves.

Ask isis if they will split their income?

ie you and isis both share the full benefit.

 

[Paul Barker]

As above, you are renting your roof out for 25 years, a legal contract will secure this agrement to your title deeds.

You are better advised to borrow £12,000 or so have the work done yourself and you gain the reward, which would not only pay the loan costs but also pay it off within 11 years but you continue to benefit for a guaranteed 25 years.. The value of your home is said to increase by 9% by doing it this better way, as when you sell the house the new buyer benefits rather than buying a house where someone else has rights on the deeds.

 

[clf-gas]

Ditto Paul and Mark above.

Why give up your roof space so a company and the Gov can make money off you. Granted your lecci bill will come down but when the panel prices fall you wont have anywhere to put them as your tied in

 

[big-all]

do the figures add up how much do they get paid per kw!!!

they recon half of 989 so 494 units thats over £2.20 they need to get per kw to reach £1.100

also 494 units at say 12p would be a £60 saving if the house holder uses half or £120 for the whole year using the full output!!

 

[Paul Barker]

big all if the figures didn't add up these companies wouldn't pile all their money into peoples roofs.

Go on the sma website where you will see real examples of what real people are generating.

It does pay!

the banks pay very little, it's about the only investment at this moment in time worth making.

 

[yaleguy3]

Without the govt subsidy the solar panel industry just wouldn't stack up.

If you pay £12,000 for a system and you only saved £140 a year it would take 85 years just to get your money back.
Allowing for inflation you would be over 100yrs before you broke even.

We aren't in sunny enough climes and the catch 22 is that if we were in sunny climes we would not need the extra electricity to generate heat.

Solar panels unfortunately aren't efficient enough.

I personally think there are ways to harness the suns heat/rays more effectively than the conversion of one form of energy into another and back again.

When I have invented it I will ring you from my gold plated helicopter.

 

[big-all]

big all if the figures didn't add up these companies wouldn't pile all their money into peoples roofs.

Go on the sma website where you will see real examples of what real people are generating.

It does pay!

the banks pay very little, it's about the only investment at this moment in time worth making.

thanks paul i love crunching numbers
i tend to be sceptical when someone is selling things
i am not interested in impossible to acheive "up to"
i am only interested in actual figures over a large random sample

 

[Paul Barker]

We aren't in sunny enough climes and the catch 22 is that if we were in sunny climes we would not need the extra electricity to generate heat.

I thought Algeria was a lot more sunny than the UK!

 

[ajstoneservices]

Paul's pretty much summed the deal up.
Take a look at this http://www.energysavingtrust.org.uk...ity/Consumer-guidance-on-free-solar-PV-offers

 

[Paul Barker]

Also take a look at a few websites where you check out the pricing for having it fitted and benefiting yourself instead of some big corporation.

 

[Mickymoody]

Surely the reliability of the panels has to be questioned? Surely the panels aren't maintainence free, so added cost should be added?

 

[Onetap]

Surely the reliability of the panels has to be questioned? Surely the panels aren't maintainence free, so added cost should be added?

They belong to the company, so they sort it out. There could be problems if your roof starts to leak.

It's the RHI, a tax on fossil fuels to pay an incentive on renewable fuels sources, so much per kWh payable for some years, from which the company take a profit, pay off their investment and pay the owner of the roof. It's probably a better return than the building society at the moment. There's similar payments available for solar-thermal, wood fired boiler, wind mills, heat pumps, etc..

 

[ajstoneservices]

Surely the reliability of the panels has to be questioned?

It has been that is why only approved panels as listed on the MCS can be used.
http://www.greenbooklive.com/page.jsp?id=4

Surely the panels aren't maintainence free, so added cost should be added?

there is very little if any maintainence needed.
http://www.energysavingtrust.org.uk...Solar-electricity#Costs,savingsandmaintenance

 

[Mickymoody]

To be pedantic - I'm thinking mould/moss build up on the panels, as you would expect on any roof, and degradation in the wiring between panels, as you would expect with any outside installation.

So basically, you have to get a roofer in to clean the panels, and the cabling might degrade, before the outlay is recouped. Or a panel could fail randomly.

I have a panel, that's designed to top up the battery in my car, but the current is so low, it doesn't work, and upsets the car alarm. Maybe I could use it to top up a mobile phone, but the current is so low, it would break the battery, that needs a high current zap..