Talk Morgan Forums Community The Malvern Arms Is your PV solar array generating more

That's a good approach, I think. We've been on a pure green combined tariff from Ecotricity for years. Not the cheapest on the market, but they're a Stroud-based company with sound ethics. Ovo are also worth a look, they have some interesting offerings.

........ Which is why Jersey Electricity is relatively cheap.

Well after a few Covid-related delays, our installation is finally going ahead this week. I was interested to learn that the batteries, which are LiFePO4, don't contain any Cobalt or Nickel and are charged direct at the 400V coming off the panels. They are also not susceptible to thermal runaway and won't catch fire, which is quite reassuring. Guaranteed for 12 years and apparently (according to the installers) the evidence is that they are lasting much better than projections. We shall see.

Since we moved in last April we have paid $9.02 per month which is the minimum fee. It will be interesting as we go into winter to see if we start using the surplus. We also have a pellet fireplace as adjunct heat to the heat pump. We bought a pallet at about $220, so we will see how long that lasts this winter.

And we're up and running at last - just in time for the lowest generation period of the year! Ho hum. Still, it's all good, and watching the system dashboard juggling solar output, battery, and grid is endlessly fascinating.

Agreed. I love watching the money rolling in & get a warm glow form being so green. I am really a very sad old git.

I'm currently waiting for the battery to hit 100% charge, then I can test the auto divert to. I've got a smart socket set up in the studio with a 600W heater that will switch on when the battery is full and we have excess solar generation.

We didn't get batteries but are awaiting the deal to be part of the grid before we buy as the payback was 25 years.

It's quite a complex matter to calculate a payback for batteries, as it depends on the baseload of your house, the normal amount of excess your panels deliver, the battery capacity, how much your export is worth, your projection of future electricity prices, and of course the future time value of the money you're going to spend.

We didn't bother to figure it out exactly, we aren't doing it to save money, and it's further complicated by the fact that our house is two cottages knocked together but with 2 separate MPANs and domestic circuits, but for us without FiT payments to offset the cost I'm reckoning the batteries will provide around 4KWh/day on average that we would otherwise buy from the grid at £0.20/unit. 365 x .80 is around £300/year so a payback of 20 years, assuming the price of electricity doesn't increase.

But - price is projected to increase by about 80% over the next 20 years so actual payback is much less - plus of course having money sat in the bank is no good at all looking forward to a future of low interest rates and high inflation.

Bottom line - if you have a pessimistic view of the future economy and cash available then batteries could be quite attractive, but if you have a more optimistic view & would need to borrow the money or divert it from other investments that are providing good returns then probably less so.

Tim, that about sums it up. HO wants free cash for the bank of Mum & Dad.