Anyone got or thinking about getting solar panels?
If you’ve got them how are you finding them? How much of your electricity do they provide? Did you save much off your bills? What KW or type do you have?
If you’re thinking about getting them, which ones? (They seem to have come down in price a lot recently… loads of sellers on eBay).
I have a number of solar panels. In the roof of my car is 110watt panel which charges the Aux battery to run the fridge and lighting when I am travelling.
I have a couple of 40 watt panels on my car port roof to keep the batteries in my car and camper fully charged when they are not in use. These have come in really handy during the pandemic. They are older panels rendered spare by upgrades of older equipment
The camper itself has a small 40watt panel charging 100Ah battery but it is really only used for lighting and the TV so doesn’t need to be bigger.
When travelling on longer trips I also carry a 160watt folding solar panel for when I am off grid camping. In actual fact they really are just a backup because generally speaking the one on my car and camper are sufficient for most occasions but they might come in handy on dull days.
In the car I also carry a cheap and nasty PWM Solar Controller from an old spare which would enable me to charge my car starting battery in an emergency. Never needed to use this.
BTW the solar controllers in both my car and the camper are the far more efficient MPPT type.
I have thought about putting solar on the roof of my house and may well yet but given my age it is a moot point whether I will see a return especially as electricity prices come down because of the use of renewables
I have a south facing back garden and roof so I would be interested but depends on costings. Also is it correct roof has to be insured also strengthened to hold the solar panels
When we had the survey done on this bungalow, the surveyor recommended PV panels be installed on the roof in order to generate some lecky for the grid. What the surveyor didn’t take into account is our roof is on a north-south axis so where the panels would be installed would be either east- or west-facing. I haven’t bothered investigating.
I would like to know if anyone in the government has proposed PV panels be installed on the roofs of all out-of-town shopping malls, large factories, warehouses, etc. There has to be millions and millions of square metres of roof space going spare on these buildings.
How weather proof are they? I have found solar devices tend to be sensitive to rain. I’m guessing with cheaper solar panels it could be the same and then what? Are there industry standards for this? Plus who repairs them if there is a wiring issue due to degradation?
I was watching something last year where people who had solar panels fitted and tried to sell their house, found out they couldn’t sell them as they only part owned the roof, ! the solar panel company owned part also, I think though, they hadn’t bought them outright and were kind of part renting them, I forget the full details, but be aware of this if your thinking about solar panels
They are weather proof.
At the moment there is too much generation at midday because panels were aligned for midday sun but now the authorities have asked that more panels be directed toward the NE and NW to spread the load over the day.
It used to be that electricity at night was cheap to keep the generators on line but that is no longer the case, too much generation during the day is making it difficult to keep steam powered plant running during the day
Looks like you got a great set-up there Bruce! Did you install them yourself?
Many of the ebay listings here are suggesting people should be able to DIY most of it.
I haven’t heard that before Susan. If you plan on getting them installed by a solar panel company it might be worth checking to see if you’re eligible for any grants 
East or west work pretty well too …it’s north facing that perform the worse from what I’ve heard Percy.
I’m guessing a solar panel company or an electrician knowledgeable about them… I am going to ask an electrician I know whether he can install them 
I’d personally avoid those solar panel companies as they’re just too expensive! They will charge you 10K to fit a kit that you can buy for about 3K (tho you need to add roof fitting and them to be fitted on to that). Still 7K profit seems excessive to me!
Yep, though “install” is a bit of an over statement for the panels on the carport roof, they rely entirely on gravity, indeed after occasional storms I have to get the step ladder out to turn them the right way up.
The one on the car roof had to be fixed to the roof bars obviously which involved some aluminium angle iron, drilling and pop rivets but it didn’t take long. I did a similar installation on my son’s Navara however that took a bit longer because we installed a 2.5 metre awning at the same time which hides the solar panel.
I suppose so, Azz, but we’ve already shelled out over £25k so far bringing this bungalow up to snuff. We still have other jobs that need doing before we even start to consider spending another £10k on having PV panels installed on the roof.
Actually if its gonna cost me £10 K I may as well.just take my chances cause I may not get my money back or live long enough to warrant spending my savings .
I had a guy out yesterday morning, surveying my property for solar panels, apparently he told me you have to be all electric.
I’m hoping I qualify, …me being me, I had no idea how they work, then he tried explaining to me, they work off the electric, told me not to have everything on at once, he said something about saving £300 a year,anyway, if I qualify I will get more details, so will let you know,
He was in my house yesterday morning for over an hour, checking the windows/ loft/ outside etc,etc,
They also contacted me, so my fingers are crossed that I qualify.
Is this your own property Pauline ?
Qualify for what? Is there a gov grant?
They contacted me and told me it’s being done through the government, I didn’t want them to be honest, i then discussed it with my son, who told me to go for it as it will help greatly with my electricity bill.
Do I own my own house, if I didn’t they wouldn’t be able to carry out the work,…anyway, I may not qualify…they will be in touch, if I qualify, they will be fitted within a month.
And yes, I own my house outright, my neighbour at the back of me rents his, over £800 a month, 
…for a one bedroom house!
I asked because we thought about it .
Never did anything about it though
I’ll let you know if it proceeds,Muddy,.and how it goes,
All the information I get I will post here…that’s if I qualify,
