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SOLARSOGOOD. My Installation Summary Solar PV (photo voltaic) panels were my choice of installation as I'd
always had an interest in the technology and with my house having
a due South facing roof, on the 10th November 2006 I finally had my
1.72KwP system installed at my property. My system is what is known as 'grid connected'. That is to say the system
is connected to my electricity consumer unit and can feed excess electricity
into the national grid whereupon I get paid for each unit - see below for
further details. The KwP is a rating given to solar PV panel installations to
signify the peak Kwh output that can be expected of a system at any one time
based on the type, quantity and positioning of the panels. It may well be
that my panels will exceed their rating of 1.72 KwP at any one time but
it's a gauge of output. I have already seen my panels producing 1.5 Kwh in
the lead-up to Christmas 2006. Detail Ok, so I've whetted your appetite now and you'd like to know more? System Installed:
My interest in generating electricity from sunlight started a few years
back when I purchased some solar lighting for my garden. It was a cheap and simple
affair but got me interested in something bigger, a lot bigger. I put the
idea on hold for a while but then whilst watching the After surfing the 'net and making some initial enquiries and
obtaining quotes, I finally invited Sunpowered Systems Ltd ( www.sunpowered.co.uk
) to install my system. I already knew about the government grants (see
here
for more details) towards solar PV systems and the details were also
confirmed by the installation company. They provided me with the paperwork to
apply for the grant along with the system details etc. I settled on a 1.72
KwP system as mentioned and after posting the grant application off to the
Low Carbons Building Programme I awaited with baited breath for the ok. A few
weeks later I had my grant approved and so could go ahead and instruct my
installation company to proceed. A little while later, they sent around their
surveyor to check the roof; method of access; positioning of equipment and he
also took various pictures to assist them on the day. The date of 10th November 2006 was fixed as my install date with a
contingency of over-running into the 11th in the event of bad weather. The
scaffolding to gain access to my roof was in place by the 9th November. At
just before Once the system had been commisioned and signed-off by the installers and
I had received their paperwork, I could then apply to receive my already
approved grant. This took five weeks to arrive. The Low Carbon
Buildings Programme have recently been swamped with grant applications
following a certain DIY chain selling home wind-turbines I understand. Best
to check with them about the current grant situation. See here for their details. Next, I shopped around for electricity suppliers who would buy my
exported electricity. I settled on Equipower from Ebico. Their web site is here ..
They fit a free export meter (*) and then pay me 18p/kwh (including ROC’s
– see below) for all electricity generated but not consumed by myself. Their
import rates are also very competive and there is no standing charge to pay. As from 8th February 2007 I became an Ofgem accredited generating
station. This means that I can claim and trade one ROC for each Mwh I produce
each year (to the nearest Mwh). My current electricity supplier (Ebico) also now handle my ROC’s on my
behalf as a part of the 18p/kwh that I receive from them for my exported
electricity. So, that's it - my installation done! Have a look at My Photos to see what it looks like. (*) an export meter measures the amount of electricity flowing back into
the national grid from my solar PV system. It registers when I am
generating more than I am using. I also have a normal import meter
that only registers when I am using more electricity than I am generating
e.g. overnight/winter. |
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