mjmooney Posted March 13, 2012 VT Supporter Share Posted March 13, 2012 They seem to becoming increasingly popular. Anybody got them? Opinions? Advice? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wiggyrichard Posted March 13, 2012 Share Posted March 13, 2012 Makes your house look shite and the initial outlay is pricey. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CrackpotForeigner Posted March 13, 2012 Share Posted March 13, 2012 Yeah. They work best in sunny weather. But tbh I dunno if now would be the best time to invest in them. They are still pretty inefficient, and there is a lot of research going on to improve the technology. I'd expect some big breakthroughs in terms of performance and/or cost in the next few ears. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mjmooney Posted March 13, 2012 Author VT Supporter Share Posted March 13, 2012 Makes your house look shite and the initial outlay is pricey.I agree about the first, and the second I assumed. I thought the issue was the period that it takes to start paying back, in terms of reduced bills. But some company has been plugging it around our way, and claim that we could get them fitted for free under some government scheme. I don't believe them, but I'm still interested enough to find out a bit more. Also, do they have any impact on how well your water/central heating works? I don't want problems with only being able to get half a bath of tepid water, etc. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
b6bloke Posted March 13, 2012 Share Posted March 13, 2012 you could apply online to get a govenment grant to get them free but yet to know anybody get approved, we all just got an e-mail saying that we were not suitable and listing loads of reason but not indiating which reason you fell under. Some interesting reading Here I think with anything like this it will be great to start and as soon as a large amount of people get on board the government jump in with a tax which makes it less worthwhile. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wiggyrichard Posted March 13, 2012 Share Posted March 13, 2012 Makes your house look shite and the initial outlay is pricey.I agree about the first, and the second I assumed. I thought the issue was the period that it takes to start paying back, in terms of reduced bills. But some company has been plugging it around our way, and claim that we could get them fitted for free under some government scheme. I don't believe them, but I'm still interested enough to find out a bit more. Also, do they have any impact on how well your water/central heating works? I don't want problems with only being able to get half a bath of tepid water, etc. Im having to price for them more and more when doing quotes now. As far as im aware, the free installation has had the rug pulled from underneath it now Mike for domestic installations (or its going to be). We dont tender for houses, but all school tenders and council works are having them installed. I think its something like 5 or 6 years to regain your money on a domestic system. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
blunther Posted March 13, 2012 Share Posted March 13, 2012 As I understand it, the government used to pay you a good sum each year to have them, as well as the savings that you'd get on your bills. You could either foot the bill yourself and receive the subsidy, or companies fitted the panels free, and took the government subsidy. I believe the best time has passed now though as the subsidy has halved recently. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MrDuck Posted March 13, 2012 Share Posted March 13, 2012 People I know over here that have them rave about them - saved absolutely heaps on their power bills once the initial investment was recovered. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CrackpotForeigner Posted March 13, 2012 Share Posted March 13, 2012 People I know over here that have them rave about them - saved absolutely heaps on their power bills once the initial investment was recovered. Isn't that because of the insanely generous government Special Offer, where they pay you for the solar electricity you generate? My father-in-law went panel-tastic. Now he actually gets paid up to $1,500 a month for the power he generates. And he's "comfortably off" anyway, the capitalist pig. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mjmooney Posted March 13, 2012 Author VT Supporter Share Posted March 13, 2012 Thing is, we may not be in this house for much more than another five years if we downsize when I retire. So I also have to take into account the effect on the house's value and saleability. I suppose some buyers might see them as a good thing, others not. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wiggyrichard Posted March 13, 2012 Share Posted March 13, 2012 Thing is, we may not be in this house for much more than another five years if we downsize when I retire. So I also have to take into account the effect on the house's value and saleability. I suppose some buyers might see them as a good thing, others not. Like i said in my first post Mike, the thought of having those on the front of my house (assuming that is the direction you would catch the most sun light) would be a massive put off for me when buying another house. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mjmooney Posted March 13, 2012 Author VT Supporter Share Posted March 13, 2012 Thing is, we may not be in this house for much more than another five years if we downsize when I retire. So I also have to take into account the effect on the house's value and saleability. I suppose some buyers might see them as a good thing, others not. Like i said in my first post Mike, the thought of having those on the front of my house (assuming that is the direction you would catch the most sun light) would be a massive put off for me when buying another house.Yeah, the front is south-facing. I don't like 'em either (aesthetically speaking), but who knows - some buyers might think the savings on power would be the main thing. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mjmooney Posted March 13, 2012 Author VT Supporter Share Posted March 13, 2012 Oh, and another thing - is there much additional kit that has to go inside the house? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TrentVilla Posted March 13, 2012 Moderator Share Posted March 13, 2012 I'm currently in the process of moving house and while house hunting one of my criteria (amongst many) was that it couldn't have solar panels on the front and according to the estate agent this is becoming an increasingly common request of buyers. If a house had them fitted on the rear then I would consider it but on the front? No, I wouldn't even consider the house regardless of the savings available for having the panels. I would suggest if you think you are likely to move in the near future you consider this as one of the factors when deciding if you are going to go for panels. On the topic of panels while I can see the positives of them I personally think to fit them people should have to obtain planning permission because you are dramatically altering the look of your house. A friend of mine lives in a victorian semi detached house and his neighbour has just plastered them all over his roof. The look of his house is terrible and it will have an impact on the value of my friends house when he comes to sell. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Stevo985 Posted March 13, 2012 VT Supporter Share Posted March 13, 2012 Thing is, we may not be in this house for much more than another five years if we downsize when I retire. So I also have to take into account the effect on the house's value and saleability. I suppose some buyers might see them as a good thing, others not. Like i said in my first post Mike, the thought of having those on the front of my house (assuming that is the direction you would catch the most sun light) would be a massive put off for me when buying another house.Yeah, the front is south-facing. I don't like 'em either (aesthetically speaking), but who knows - some buyers might think the savings on power would be the main thing. I was going to say similar. I imagine there would be a lot of people willing to sacrifice aesthetics for significantly cheaper bills, and so i think it would add value to your house. Not as much as you'd pay to get them installed, but I reckon if you got them now, then you'd add enough value to be making a bit of money in 5 years whether they've paid for themselves by then or not. I'm no expert though, just an educated guess Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wiggyrichard Posted March 13, 2012 Share Posted March 13, 2012 Oh, and another thing - is there much additional kit that has to go inside the house? You would loose most of it in the loft Mike. Couple of isolators, relay's and a panel. The way it works is that Western Power or whoever your energy supplier is, effectively rent your roof, and you get paid a fee for having the pleasure of a great **** off photovoltaics array lumped on your roof. The energy produced is basically pumped back into the national grid. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mjmooney Posted March 13, 2012 Author VT Supporter Share Posted March 13, 2012 On the topic of panels while I can see the positives of them I personally think to fit them people should have to obtain planning permission because you are dramatically altering the look of your house. A friend of mine lives in a victorian semi detached house and his neighbour has just plastered them all over his roof. The look of his house is terrible and it will have an impact on the value of my friends house when he comes to sell.Next door has them. I will ask her what she thinks, but she's away at the moment. The house on the left is mine: Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Stevo985 Posted March 13, 2012 VT Supporter Share Posted March 13, 2012 Good to know I had the right house... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mjmooney Posted March 13, 2012 Author VT Supporter Share Posted March 13, 2012 It does look like a temptingly big area of roof. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TrentVilla Posted March 13, 2012 Moderator Share Posted March 13, 2012 Nice house although your drive looks as narrow as a Liverpool fan's mind. Honestly though I would personally be totally put off the house on the right with those panels. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts