Solar Panel Storage Batteries

[jenkinsbrynmair]

we've got the first 'Eco' holiday village allegedly in the UK in the valley. There are no heaters at all in the lodges, everything is just insulated to the hilt. Seems to work, it's been going nearly a year now and no complaints. I've been there and yes, they are warm

 

[roche]

When you look at the governments so called "energy strategy" published this week, you see just how little they understand energy usage. You also start to question if in fact it is in the governments interest to reduce energy use, as it will in turn reduce tax take. The whole system seems to have continued increasing consumption baked in, and no will to try and change it.

 

[JamezF]

You also start to question if in fact it is in the governments interest to reduce energy use, as it will in turn reduce tax take. The whole system seems to have continued increasing consumption baked in

Agree on both points. I can't help wondering how many energy suppliers might also happen to be Tory donors. If you want to reduce energy bills, I reckon the simplest, cheapest and fastest way to do it is to help people use less energy.

I am not an economist, and in fact neither are any of my best friends, but I can't help feeling that if you have a government policy that targets, and defines "success" as, annual growth then increasing consumption is the only way to do that.

James

 

[oliver90owner]

As I see it.

ASHP is rarely cost effective at the moment. In the long run, as more electrickery is generated from renewables (ie less fossil fuel burned) the overall CO2 emissions will decrease - but the individual homeowners will not particularly be better off while the ratio of energy cost remains as it is. My daytime leccy currently costs 4 1/2 times that of natural gas. System efficiencies may be different, but it is just not economical (to me) to give up my gas fired central heating boiler at present.

GSHP is the way to go for the homeowner but simply very expensive to implement unless using trenched slinky as the source or lucky enough to be able to use a water source for the energy.

There is no way I will be installing ASHP - at least for the foreseeable future.

 

[enrico]

As I see it.

ASHP is rarely cost effective at the moment. In the long run, as more electrickery is generated from renewables (ie less fossil fuel burned) the overall CO2 emissions will decrease - but the individual homeowners will not particularly be better off while the ratio of energy cost remains as it is. My daytime leccy currently costs 4 1/2 times that of natural gas. System efficiencies may be different, but it is just not economical (to me) to give up my gas fired central heating boiler at present.

GSHP is the way to go for the homeowner but simply very expensive to implement unless using trenched slinky as the source or lucky enough to be able to use a water source for the energy.

There is no way I will be installing ASHP - at least for the foreseeable future.

Mine is fine, it just has to be fine tuned to work to its full potential. There must be a few people on here that wish they had taken me up on transferring to octopus! I am averaging 11 p per unit!

 

[Wilco]

We

Mine is fine, it just has to be fine tuned to work to its full potential. There must be a few people on here that wish they had taken me up on transferring to octopus! I am averaging 11 p per unit!

We were switched to Octopus when our old company went under, which was a shame. We're on the same tariff we were apart from Octopus whacking up the daily charge recently. I looked to switch to an Octopus tariff a few times but our old rate is still cheaper.

Whilst their customer service are helpful, something weird happened to our formerly in credit balance and I'm also a little put off by the Octopus answer to 'the cost of renewable energy generation is dropping, supposedly better than FF, and should not be affected by the surge in FF prices so why is your electricity more expensive?'. Felt a bit fobbed off with the claim that renewable energy providers are in demand so Octopus pay a premium for renewable electricity. (notwithstanding it all being fed into the same grid regardless of provenance).

Edit: apologies if I've already grumbled about this on here.

 

[enrico]

We


We were switched to Octopus when our old company went under, which was a shame. We're on the same tariff we were apart from Octopus whacking up the daily charge recently. I looked to switch to an Octopus tariff a few times but our old rate is still cheaper.

Whilst their customer service are helpful, something weird happened to our formerly in credit balance and I'm also a little put off by the Octopus answer to 'the cost of renewable energy generation is dropping, supposedly better than FF, and should not be affected by the surge in FF prices so why is your electricity more expensive?'. Felt a bit fobbed off with the claim that renewable energy providers are in demand so Octopus pay a premium for renewable electricity. (notwithstanding it all being fed into the same grid regardless of provenance).

Edit: apologies if I've already grumbled about this on here.

I understand . Doesn't suit everyone, I am lucky in that I can maximize the hours overnight at cheap rate, also I was able fix for a year before the second price rise so I am only paying 5.5 p for five hours. Not looking forward to my tarrif expiring in September so trying o get batteries in place by then

 

[roche]

Agree on both points. I can't help wondering how many energy suppliers might also happen to be Tory donors. If you want to reduce energy bills, I reckon the simplest, cheapest and fastest way to do it is to help people use less energy.

I am not an economist, and in fact neither are any of my best friends, but I can't help feeling that if you have a government policy that targets, and defines "success" as, annual growth then increasing consumption is the only way to do that.

James

Whenever I look at going off grid, or reducing energy costs, it always becomes obvious that the biggest saving is to use less. Insulation is such a quick fix... It was interesting a few years ago, when there was a bill about making energy efficiency of a building part of a landlords responsibility responsibility, that my MP, whose family is a large scale landlord, voted against. Until vested interests are shifted, then there is little possibility of sanity coming to the energy market.

 

[Gilberdyke John]

Whenever I look at going off grid, or reducing energy costs, it always becomes obvious that the biggest saving is to use less. Insulation is such a quick fix... It was interesting a few years ago, when there was a bill about making energy efficiency of a building part of a landlords responsibility responsibility, that my MP, whose family is a large scale landlord, voted against. Until vested interests are shifted, then there is little possibility of sanity coming to the energy market.

Not all landlords are multi property owners. Some are trying to make ends meet by renting out a family property and too many fall foul of bad tenants they cannot get evicted for various reasons. Inflicting expenditure on them is neither fair or just. Personally I wouldn't even consider letting a property I owned - if I had one spare it would immediately put it up for sale. Maybe there's a case for no property to be rented? Money paid in rent could be used to repay a mortgage. Maintenance and improvement would be down to the occupant in the same way as houseowners currently "enjoy"

 

[jenkinsbrynmair]

Money paid in rent could be used to repay a mortgage.

Instead of being used to pay the 'buy to let' mortgage of a landlord

 

[roche]

Not all landlords are multi property owners. Some are trying to make ends meet by renting out a family property and too many fall foul of bad tenants they cannot get evicted for various reasons. Inflicting expenditure on them is neither fair or just. Personally I wouldn't even consider letting a property I owned - if I had one spare it would immediately put it up for sale. Maybe there's a case for no property to be rented? Money paid in rent could be used to repay a mortgage. Maintenance and improvement would be down to the occupant in the same way as houseowners currently "enjoy"

Energy efficient properties have lower running costs and therefore are more desirable as a rental. Apart from the initial cost of upgrading, it turns into a bit of a no-brainer. Apart from that there is the moral imperative to not waste energy. If legislation is needed to ensure that happens, so be it. It's sort of similar to people protesting about windturbines spoiling the view - without them, in due course, there will be no view to spoil.

 

[Bryang]

We


We were switched to Octopus when our old company went under, which was a shame. We're on the same tariff we were apart from Octopus whacking up the daily charge recently. I looked to switch to an Octopus tariff a few times but our old rate is still cheaper.

Whilst their customer service are helpful, something weird happened to our formerly in credit balance and I'm also a little put off by the Octopus answer to 'the cost of renewable energy generation is dropping, supposedly better than FF, and should not be affected by the surge in FF prices so why is your electricity more expensive?'. Felt a bit fobbed off with the claim that renewable energy providers are in demand so Octopus pay a premium for renewable electricity. (notwithstanding it all being fed into the same grid regardless of provenance).

Edit: apologies if I've already grumbled about this on here.

Our energy supplier, Green Network Energy went bust. We were transferred to EDF.. Our credit of £385 disappeard into thin air. From end of March (in a normal year) our gas central heating is turned off, and our electric usage is low. So we build up a large surplus over summer. Tried to get planning permission to install a GSHP via a hole drilled down to the old flooded mineshaft below my house. they refused without any reason given.

 

[jenkinsbrynmair]

Our energy supplier, Green Network Energy went bust....... Our credit of £385 disappeard into thin air

Had dealings with them a few years ago, my mother also switched to them when she moved home. Right bunch of cowboys if our experience was anything to go by, luckile we switched at the first opportunity.

 

[Gilberdyke John]

Instead of being used to pay the 'buy to let' mortgage of a landlord

Precisely.

 

[Gilberdyke John]

Energy efficient properties have lower running costs and therefore are more desirable as a rental. Apart from the initial cost of upgrading, it turns into a bit of a no-brainer. Apart from that there is the moral imperative to not waste energy. If legislation is needed to ensure that happens, so be it. It's sort of similar to people protesting about windturbines spoiling the view - without them, in due course, there will be no view to spoil.

They might be more desirable but will a sitting tenant pay more? Even getting inside a property with a bad tenant can be devastatingly difficult. Some of the bad ones simply don't pay any rent and it takes court proceedings and bailiffs over many months to clear up the mess.
As to the view - do you actually live near a windfarm?

 

[roche]

They might be more desirable but will a sitting tenant pay more? Even getting inside a property with a bad tenant can be devastatingly difficult. Some of the bad ones simply don't pay any rent and it takes court proceedings and bailiffs over many months to clear up the mess.
As to the view - do you actually live near a windfarm?

Tenancy and tenants can be a minefield. Improvements probably need to be made at tenancy changes.
As to living near a wind-farm, no I don't, but my mother lived next to what was the largest one in the southern hemisphere - she liked it, and I always found it pleasant and sort of gratifying to be near. I always like seeing them.

 

[cwinte]

Our energy supplier, Green Network Energy went bust. We were transferred to EDF.. Our credit of £385 disappeard into thin air. From end of March (in a normal year) our gas central heating is turned off, and our electric usage is low. So we build up a large surplus over summer. Tried to get planning permission to install a GSHP via a hole drilled down to the old flooded mineshaft below my house. they refused without any reason given.

I wonder who "they" are that refuse such a good idea.
Personally I'd like to go for DSHP, dual source which can be switched between a smaller shallow ground loop and air source depending on heat demand and forecast/time of year averages. There are a few DSHP systems around and I think they seem to offer better characteristics in the long term for higher yield and efficiencies in a wider range of scenarios. My own modelling of GSHP over a few years quickly showed the limitations on that approach, the air source can avoid over-chilling ground (with the low efficiencies of that) in Feb/March. Seems quite complex modelling a DSHP switching sources etc (though I have collected a few years of local weather & soil temperatures data to use as input) so not finished that task yet!
Anyone any experience?

 

[Newbeeneil]

I wonder who "they" are that refuse such a good idea.
Personally I'd like to go for DSHP, dual source which can be switched between a smaller shallow ground loop and air source depending on heat demand and forecast/time of year averages. There are a few DSHP systems around and I think they seem to offer better characteristics in the long term for higher yield and efficiencies in a wider range of scenarios. My own modelling of GSHP over a few years quickly showed the limitations on that approach, the air source can avoid over-chilling ground (with the low efficiencies of that) in Feb/March. Seems quite complex modelling a DSHP switching sources etc (though I have collected a few years of local weather & soil temperatures data to use as input) so not finished that task yet!
Anyone any experience?

Never heard of DSHPs but they sound a very good idea. Expensive I would assume.

 

[Bryang]

Never heard of DSHPs but they sound a very good idea. Expensive I would assume.

"They" are the local council Planning department. The "overseeing"/responsibilty for the old colliery sites and colliery spoil tips was awarded to the local councils/authorities in Wales. Communicating with them is like talking to a brick wall, it is easier for them to say NO than look into/at the suggestion.

 

[cwinte]

"They" are the local council Planning department. The "overseeing"/responsibilty for the old colliery sites and colliery spoil tips was awarded to the local councils/authorities in Wales. Communicating with them is like talking to a brick wall, it is easier for them to say NO than look into/at the suggestion.

There are many good potential uses of old mines, my son used GIS to survey the whole mid and southern UK for mine sites suitable for mass storage of electricity (by pumping water up to a reservoir off-peak green power and at peak demand generating city-scale power). No sites matched all the many criteria (safety, near grid, near green source, size, depth, geology, flat area, not above large populations etc etc). Suitable coastal cliff tops were easy to find. There was a company with the kit, ready to do it but wanted a little grant help for the first site - which HMG were uninterested in.
We really need to change the political outlook or we will NO ourselves out of a future.