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Three Things You Should Know About Domestic Solar PV

January 5, 2011

London,UK (RPRN) 01/05/11 — Heatscape offer high specification Solar PV Panels to homeowners in the Midlands and Yorkshire.

Our solar panels are available whether your budget is £500 or £15,000 with both options providing the same free electricity (the difference for the cost is explained later).  With Solar PV being a relatively new technology there are a lot of myths which we wish to dispel, and three main facts you should know.
  

1.       All solar panels are not the same.

A lot of companies are currently offering domestic solar panels, however, not all solar panels are the same. The marketplace is currently bombarded with different offers, and thinking that you get the same with a free system as you do with a £15,000 couldn’t be further from the truth.

 

The free systems, in the majority of cases come with a £500 survey fee, our £500 option has no hidden charges and £500 is all you pay to receive free electricity during daylight hours. The (+/-)£15,000 options are known as the investment option because you stand to gain £900+ a year in addition to free electricity during daylight hours - to discover how, read on.

 

The majority of solar panel companies will only fit FREE or £500 Solar PV panels to roofs that are +30 or -30° south, whereas we work within +90 or -90° of south, increasing the likelihood that you will be able to benefit from free electricity - we are also the only company offering this.

 

Most companies who supply solar PV only offer systems of 3.6kWp in size, whereas we will install the maximum sized system your roof can house up to 11KWp . The larger the system the larger the saving, and as the only supplier in the UK supplying this type of system you are guaranteed to save more money with us.

 

 

2.       They even work in typical British weather.

It is a common misconception that solar panels only work in the sun - this is not the case.

 

Solar panels provide you with free electricity in cloud, rain and ice as well as in the sun. Your solar panels will be working effectively in the depths of winter and even more so in the height of summer.

 

 

3.   Installing solar panels on your roof offers more financial benefits than just free electricity.

It is widely known that if you have a solar panel system installed you will benefit from free electricity during daylight hours, and therefore a saving of between £217 and £433 a year (based on a 3.85kWp system installed – Energy Saving Trust, 2010). The savings you will make look set to rise year upon year as 2010 has seen rises  of up to 9.4% on energy

bills from 5 of the big 6 energy companies. With EU targets to switch 15% of all our energy generation to renewable sources, the probability is that it will continue. According to Uswitch (2010) , £200bn must be found by either the taxpayer or the energy suppliers - and it is likely that our energy bills will bear the brunt of the investment.  

 

As well as making savings on your energy bills, there are also other benefits you will be privy to.

Firstly, installing a solar panel system will make your property 33% more attractive to potential buyers (Energy Saving Trust, 2010) compared to the same house without Solar PV - which in this market is a substantial benefit.

 

Owning a solar PV system that is installed on your house will increase its value.  Philip Sellwood, Chief Executive of the Energy Saving Trust, states, “It seems Britons are willing to pay more for a home with a renewable energy source so investing in a solar panel or a wind turbine could add to the resale value of a property and could be as attractive to house hunters as a new kitchen or solid wood floors.”  

 

Installing solar panels also allows you to take advantage of Feed in Tariffs (FITs) which will generate you an extra £900+ worth of income a year, guaranteed for 25 years by the Government (this is on top of receiving free electricity). FITs allow you to sell electricity generated back to the national grid. For every KW the system produces, whether or not you use it, you will be paid 41.3p. Not only this, the money you receive is tax free and if you paid the same money into an ISA at 3.5% the system would need to produce 4KW a day for the same return (PloughCroft Solar, 2010). A solar system offers a higher rate of return compared with traditional investments, which is also a guaranteed rate that follows the Retail Price Index which means the rate will increase with inflation. The yield from the solar system is around 10% per year, making it a fantastic financial opportunity.

 

The difference between the two budgets, £500 and up to £15,000 is as follows:  with the £500 you benefit from free electricity during daylight hours, you don't own the panels outright and therefore you won’t benefit from the FITs. With buying the system outright you will receive free electricity and the FITs. In our opinion, if you have the money and are going to stay in the property for more than 10 years, then buying the system outright makes more sense than the £500 Option – as you’re roof will become a cash machine! The £500 Option is for those that don’t want to put up the large cost, but want to receive the huge electricity bill savings
 

Solar PV is a technology that is worth investing in, the sooner you invest the more benefit you will gain, if not only to get free electricity.  For more information please visit www.heatscape.co.uk

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