Household Solar

Bart

Bart

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Boxer L4H2 van build
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Ok so since owning our MH which we use off grid , i have become familiar with How Solar works etc and what is required to get a successful set up working in a MH.
However now i have got the energy bug i am toying with Solar ( to supplement our existing 240V )in the home when we move houses.
There is just 2 of us so usage should not be OTT
Are the solar panels used in homes different ? & is the energy stored is 12V batteries or what way does a house installation differ from a MH installation.
 
Friend of mine installed solar, reckons he'll be 107 when the loan is paid off.
 
House solar uses a grid tie inverter, which means the phase of the sine wave is 'in phase' with the incoming AC grid supply. They will be a lot higher voltage supply too, and as far as I know there are no batteries.

You would be better off having an off grid system if your usage is small, where you could totally switch the incoming grid AC off. There's a lot to consider first though most importantly average annual sunshine where you live.
 
Start here
Only certain people can install a system its a closed shop.
You then get the "feed in tariff" (FIT) payment for all the electricity you you generate and you get the electricity.
You can export to the grid but instead of having an expensive export meter to measure the amount exported it is assumed you export half of what you generate.
The closed shop people charge hamsomely for their services. The pay back time is so long you need to be dedicated to the cause, gullible or a local council to think its a good idea.
 
What an interesting post. We spend so much time on here extolling the virtues of using next to no electricity, the other side of the coin, huge panels and normal house and the bottom line is, MH rules still apply. Run your home like a motorhome. Use as much gas as possible. All LED lighting, everything else as efficient as possible.

And if you do this the saving will be so good that you won't need solar panels. Logic: in the MH we survive on 600wh a day and 1000wh of mains costs us about 10p. So apart from washing machines you could aim for 50p of electricity as day. Who needs solar.

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One of the local electrical wholesalers was running training sessions a few years back, no qualification's needed. Two or three day course I think. Once completed you could install and certify the installation so the client got the FIT payment.
If you don't worry about the FIT payment, which I think is now around 4 p per kw anybody can install them.
 
It's cheaper to heat your water on gas, yet there are no hot fill washing machines now. They are all electric heat.
 
Because wm now use less water than they used to, so by the time the hot actually gets to your machine, it will have filled as much as it wants and turned the water off.
Its an eco thing, no idea if it really makes any difference.
 
i run a lead into my house from the inverter in my trailer . powers fridge and if its really sunny the big freezer. .i find the fridge costs about 25p a day if run on mains through my meter and actually the big freezer only 10p. i do its sunny also power other small items off the lead as well. mind this year its not been as sunny as usual. i parked my trailer in a different place and a neighbours tree blocks the sun a bit .
but i shall be moving it to its place soon.
it does take a huge battery bank to really make lots of solar work at home . thats being independant of mains .
usually you sell power to the mains . after you have used yours .
i like my way . makes the trailers solar work all year.
 
We bought a 4 kw array back when the FIT was really good (so of course the panels were more expensive then). We generate over 4000 kWh per year which gives us an income of over £2000 per year. We adapt our electricity usage - as much as possible (eg laundry) is done during daylight hours so that we are using the electricity that it's assumed we are (as @SomeoneElse says, 50% of generation). If you're thinking of installing now, you need to take into account that the income would be reduced quite a lot as the FIT has been lowered.

However: we're in south-west Cornwall, coastal so no air pollution, the installation is facing due south, there are no overhanging trees or cables to cast shadow, and the roof is at the 'perfect' angle of 35 deg for maximum generation. You can get an estimate of what you could generate in your own latitude.

We have an excellent local company (Natural Generation) who both supply and fit, do all the roofwork etc, and have a long pedigree of alternative energy installations both domestic and commercial. The only thing they didn't do themselves was to supply and erect the scaffolding.

The one thing I'd say is an absolute no-no is what I call "rent-a-roof" where you allow a company to put their panels on your roof in return for 'free electricity' - you only get your electricity free while the panels are generating, and in effect you have a sitting tenant on your roof, which could make your home very difficult to sell if you ever wanted to, and could cause all sorts of legal difficulties about maintenance and repair of both roof and panels - etc.
Domestic battery technology is still in its early stages.

You can get some info here
http://www.theecoexperts.co.uk/
Other websites are available..... ;)

@Bart - While looking for a generation calculator I came across this:

Please note, the Northern Ireland Renewables Obligation Certificates (NIROCs) scheme is now closed to all technologies since April 2017 and you can’t receive payments from generation tariffs any more. However, you can still cut your electricity bills by using the free electricity generated by solar PV and receive export payments from the electricity excess that you sell to the grid.

http://www.energysavingtrust.org.uk/renewable-energy/electricity/solar-panels​

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CWH said:
We bought a 4 kw array back when the FIT was really good (so of course the panels were more expensive then). We generate over 4000 kWh per year which gives us an income of over £2000 per year. We adapt our electricity usage - as much as possible (eg laundry) is done during daylight hours so that we are using the electricity that it's assumed we are (as @SomeoneElse says, 50% of generation). If you're thinking of installing now, you need to take into account that the income would be reduced quite a lot as the FIT has been lowered.

However: we're in south-west Cornwall, coastal so no air pollution, the installation is facing due south, there are no overhanging trees or cables to cast shadow, and the roof is at the 'perfect' angle of 35 deg for maximum generation. You can get an estimate of what you could generate in your own latitude.

We have an excellent local company (Natural Generation) who both supply and fit, do all the roofwork etc, and have a long pedigree of alternative energy installations both domestic and commercial. The only thing they didn't do themselves was to supply and erect the scaffolding.

The one thing I'd say is an absolute no-no is what I call "rent-a-roof" where you allow a company to put their panels on your roof in return for 'free electricity' - you only get your electricity free while the panels are generating, and in effect you have a sitting tenant on your roof, which could make your home very difficult to sell if you ever wanted to, and could cause all sorts of legal difficulties about maintenance and repair of both roof and panels - etc.
Domestic battery technology is still in its early stages.

You can get some info here
http://www.theecoexperts.co.uk/
Other websites are available..... ;)

@Bart - While looking for a generation calculator I came across this:

Please note, the Northern Ireland Renewables Obligation Certificates (NIROCs) scheme is now closed to all technologies since April 2017 and you can’t receive payments from generation tariffs any more. However, you can still cut your electricity bills by using the free electricity generated by solar PV and receive export payments from the electricity excess that you sell to the grid.

http://www.energysavingtrust.org.uk/renewable-energy/electricity/solar-panels​
Click to expand...
i did look at fitting a system like yors a few years ago. but i only use about 200 quids worth of leccy a year .so they wouldnt let me go on the systems .
i could if i went bigger but then it would have to be commercial rates and not worth doing .
i had hoped to be making a few quid but really they wouldnt let me .
 
We had solar panels installed just last September. We have had a couple of issues, one us, one the installers, but it now appears to be working well. We have battery technology which runs everything when the solar isn't generating. August is our next feed in tariff date and I am very optimistic that we should make quite a tidy sum. Our electricity bill should be significantly reduced too. We cook with oil and heat with oil ( there is no gas in the village. But our water is heated in the main by the solar with a top up first thing for showers. The battery is to provide for power cuts, but we forgot about it with the only substantial power cut we had over the winter. I have to admit to feeling somewhat smug when the sun shines! (y)
 
you can also catch rain water for flushing your toilets .
i,m ideal as in a bungalow and the toilet is beside the back door so buckets are always ready.
i have considered solar powered camper pump to also feed rainwater to a instantaneous water heater for the shower.
i have drank rain water when away in the camper and have if its looking clean used it at home for drinking sometimes . mind i can get my water for the year down to 96 quid as it is at moment .
its a shame there is a cesspit that used to work good but 5 years before i moved here the old lady changed to mains sewers . they wont let me switch back shame really .
wouldnt save a fortune but every penny helps .
 
Something I don't understand is where the money to pay the FIT comes from. If the electricity companies have to buy your solar generated electricity at an inflated price who then buys it off them at a higher price?

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WillH said:
Something I don't understand is where the money to pay the FIT comes from. If the electricity companies have to buy your solar generated electricity at an inflated price who then buys it off them at a higher price?
Click to expand...

You do :D
 
WillH said:
Something I don't understand is where the money to pay the FIT comes from.
Click to expand...
"The tax-payer"
Oh, and inflated prices for all.
 
as said leccy bills are expensive as the payment they make for the so called green energy is too much.
several years ago nuclear was costing 3p a kw
gas was 3.5 p
yet for wind they were paying 7p a kw .
this was years ago before solar was around like it is now .
i do know the spanish are making a fuss as their leccy is expensive because of all the wind and solar.
they thought it was going to be cheap but it isnt .
the companies are forced to buy it but get paid for it by the consumer . you and me .
well not so much me as i dont use much . hee hee.
 
WillH said:
Something I don't understand is where the money to pay the FIT comes from. If the electricity companies have to buy your solar generated electricity at an inflated price who then buys it off them at a higher price?
Click to expand...
No one. The "customer" pays the 'feed in tariff ' as pasrt of the green energy & renewables scam.:LOL:
pappajohn said:
50p per day. :LOL::LOL::LOL::LOL::LOL::LOL::LOL:
Click to expand...
Leaving out "renewables/Green energy/electricity tax /vat, my monthly bill is usually around 20€ (y)

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vwalan said:
as said leccy bills are expensive as the payment they make for the so called green energy is too much.
several years ago nuclear was costing 3p a kw
gas was 3.5 p
yet for wind they were paying 7p a kw .
this was years ago before solar was around like it is now .
i do know the spanish are making a fuss as their leccy is expensive because of all the wind and solar.
they thought it was going to be cheap but it isnt .
the companies are forced to buy it but get paid for it by the consumer . you and me .
well not so much me as i dont use much . hee hee.
Click to expand...

they were paying 41,5p /kwh feed in tariff about 7ish years ago.:)
 
yes my prices there are very out of date but it was true. these days its all gone higher. the feed in got really daft. i,m now told here in uk its gone down alot . just as well.
i do like solar ,wind ,etc but in truth it doesnt always give enough . . the worse bit is the companies cant just turn on oil or nuclear generating easily . so they have to buy the feed in yet throw away the other .
who knows if at 11 tomorrow morning wind and sun is going to be of use . so nuclear etc has to keep going .
if your not on any mains then wind ,solar etc can be very good .
mind many farms etc in cornwall arent on mains .
they use solar ,wind ,then if need be have their own generators .
more arent on mains water or sewage . its amazing how many are on cesspits or septics , many houses pubs etc .
 
vwalan said:
more arent on mains water or sewage . its amazing how many are on cesspits or septics
Click to expand...
Yes, our current house has mains everything (except gas of course, that doesn't come down this far) but our previous one only had mains electricity: we had a cesspit and a well.
 
i know several round here that work off bore holes .
i would or have thought of deliberately selling up and finding a self sufficient run house .
but then decided i,m getting a bit old to bother.
i,m not really an enviromentalist or anything but do find it all interesting .
visiting so many countries , and then working in the waste industry all very interesting .
in the western world we do waste far too much . just waste and folk dont realize it .
 
vwalan said:
i know several round here that work off bore holes .
i would or have thought of deliberately selling up and finding a self sufficient run house .
but then decided i,m getting a bit old to bother.
i,m not really an enviromentalist or anything but do find it all interesting .
visiting so many countries , and then working in the waste industry all very interesting .
in the western world we do waste far too much . just waste and folk dont realize it .
Click to expand...
(that 'like' is an 'I agree')

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SomeoneElse said:
Start here
Only certain people can install a system its a closed shop.
You then get the "feed in tariff" (FIT) payment for all the electricity you you generate and you get the electricity.
You can export to the grid but instead of having an expensive export meter to measure the amount exported it is assumed you export half of what you generate.
The closed shop people charge hamsomely for their services. The pay back time is so long you need to be dedicated to the cause, gullible or a local council to think its a good idea.
Click to expand...
Not so: the connection to household incoming mains and final commissioning has to be done by a qualified person but you can source and install the panels & inverter yourself.

https://www.wholesalesolar.com/solar-information/diy-solar

Mine was done early on when the kit was expensive and it was done by a specialist rather than me. But to compensate the FIT tariff was high (and remains so for 25 years). We're getting a £1500 pa payback on a £13K spend. And saving over 30% on our electricity bill.
 
So we are paying you for your investment? Seems a rum deal for those that don't or can't take advantage of the FIT.
 
it is a bad thing really.
its good for some but others work in bad for enviroment jobs and have to work harder /longer to pay for the so called green energy.
it does cancel out any greenness .
 
vwalan said:
you can also catch rain water for flushing your toilets .
i,m ideal as in a bungalow and the toilet is beside the back door so buckets are always ready.
i have considered solar powered camper pump to also feed rainwater to a instantaneous water heater for the shower.
i have drank rain water when away in the camper and have if its looking clean used it at home for drinking sometimes . mind i can get my water for the year down to 96 quid as it is at moment .
its a shame there is a cesspit that used to work good but 5 years before i moved here the old lady changed to mains sewers . they wont let me switch back shame really .
wouldnt save a fortune but every penny helps .
Click to expand...
Glad we still get our water for free here in N.Ireland atm anyways , for how much longer who knows.
 
Bart said:
Glad we still get our water for free here in N.Ireland atm anyways , for how much longer who knows.
Click to expand...
mine used to be about 600 a year. now i,m not here alot and catch rain water its dropped to about 96 quid a year. i am on a meter but rainwater is good . after all 500 quid pays for the ferry to spain . hee hee.

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