Just got solar panels.

[maby]

...

EDF have a modified Economy 7 tariff called 20:20 which kicks in earlier than midnight (about 9pm I think) cutting off about 7am. The difference is not as large between the 2 rates, i.e. the night rate is higher than Economy 7 but the big advantage can be the night rate applies all weekend - when many of us might be using more energy (especially charging our PHEV ) during the day.

That EDF 20:20 tariff is particularly good because there is no price premium for the daytime rate. I did discuss it with them and was on the point of applying when they explained that it was only available to people with a Smart Meter installed. I asked to be put us onto 20:20 and have the Smart Meter installed and they explained that they could not do that - they only installed Smart Meters for existing customers and you could not ask for one, they decided if, and when, to install it. I was going to have to switch to EDF as my supplier, choosing one of their standard tariffs, then wait for them to install a Smart Meter - which they would do when they got round to my part of the country. At this point, I lost interest in the whole thing!

 

[rtw]

I can't find the 9.9p Sainsbury tariff but I suspect it's only for dual fuel customers and there's no gas here. Also 20:20 isn't available here. But I'm definitely going to do the sums on switching to a single rate anyway.

 

[Ozukus]

RTW

The best Economy 7 Rate I could find at the time I switched to 9.9p with Sainsbury was a 13p/7.5p split between the 2.

That meant that 43.5% of my electricity usage would have to occur during off peak and with my usage pattern being closer to 80% peak then it wasn't viable.

The mother-in-law has it but she also has storage heaters, has the washing machine, tumble and dishwasher on timers and only a 24" LCD Screen.

By the time I add the 50" TV, Satellite, Home PC, Network Storage Device, Sonos, 3 Tablets, 2 smart phones, handsfree phones, DAB radios, surround sound, etc, etc. then I can honestly say that I don't believe that off peak is designed with modern living standards in mind.

 

[rtw]

Apologies to Regulo/Goldfinger for hijacking this solar panel thread >.<

My split is 11p/7p, so the off-peak usage only has to be 25% to be the same cost as a 10p single tariff.

Looking back at the last 4 months usage (before the Outlander) I am the same as Ozukus at around 20% off-peak, so would've benefitted from a single tariff. However, when looking at actual £s it's only around £10 difference over 4 months, so I'm not going to lose sleep about it. I'll look at it again when my current fixed rate period ends and car charging is included in the usage figures.

Thanks for the insight!

 

[Goldfinger]

These replies also point out why E7 is not worth it for us....

Growing kids watching the TV, usual whites goods working quite a bit through the day etc....

But back to panels???

How do I search for who fits the 300 watt ones?? Never knew they existed, I thought they were all 250 watt??

But just how much extra are they though??

 

[anko]

Contrary to popular notion, most solar PV installations don't push electricity back into the grid and so won't turn back the meter.

When it is not pushed back into the net and you do not use it yourself, then what happens to the electricity generated by the PV installation? ...

Any surplus energy feeds the local power network, ie. your neighbours, ...

So, the idea that solar PV installations push electricity back into the net is not just a popular notion?

 

[greendwarf]

...

EDF have a modified Economy 7 tariff called 20:20 which kicks in earlier than midnight (about 9pm I think) cutting off about 7am. The difference is not as large between the 2 rates, i.e. the night rate is higher than Economy 7 but the big advantage can be the night rate applies all weekend - when many of us might be using more energy (especially charging our PHEV ) during the day.

That EDF 20:20 tariff is particularly good because there is no price premium for the daytime rate. I did discuss it with them and was on the point of applying when they explained that it was only available to people with a Smart Meter installed. I asked to be put us onto 20:20 and have the Smart Meter installed and they explained that they could not do that - they only installed Smart Meters for existing customers and you could not ask for one, they decided if, and when, to install it. I was going to have to switch to EDF as my supplier, choosing one of their standard tariffs, then wait for them to install a Smart Meter - which they would do when they got round to my part of the country. At this point, I lost interest in the whole thing!

Sorry, I didn't know about this - I was originally a London Electricity customer before they were taken over by EDF and have had the 20:20 tariff for about 10 years - long before they thought of this SMART meter nonsense

 

[rtw]

So, the idea that solar PV installations push electricity back into the net is not just a popular notion?

Yeah, you got me. It was more a comment focused on most meters not going backwards and strictly speaking the surplus never reaches the main grid, just the network your side of the local transformer.

 

[maby]

...

Sorry, I didn't know about this - I was originally a London Electricity customer before they were taken over by EDF and have had the 20:20 tariff for about 10 years - long before they thought of this SMART meter nonsense

I think the Smart Meter rollout is likely to be an issue for many people wanting to switch to E7 type tariffs in the near future. The energy suppliers are being pushed by the government to install smart meters for all their customers, but the platform is in a state of flux and they are dragging their heels a bit till it has stabilised. On the other hand, why would they bother installing the old E7 specific meters now, knowing that they are going to have to rip them out again in a couple of years?

 

[anko]

So, the idea that solar PV installations push electricity back into the net is not just a popular notion?

Yeah, you got me. It was more a comment focused on most meters not going backwards and strictly speaking the surplus never reaches the main grid, just the network your side of the local transformer.

I see. Then it is the same here. Although I think all our meters are able to turn back, or have separate counters for in and out.

 

[maby]

So, the idea that solar PV installations push electricity back into the net is not just a popular notion?

Yeah, you got me. It was more a comment focused on most meters not going backwards and strictly speaking the surplus never reaches the main grid, just the network your side of the local transformer.

I see. Then it is the same here. Although I think all our meters are able to turn back, or have separate counters for in and out.

I think that is likely to be the case everywhere - power distribution up to the sub-station is three-phase - they will not want us to significantly unbalance the phases by pushing large amounts of power back from a single phase.

 

[anko]

I think that is likely to be the case everywhere - power distribution up to the sub-station is three-phase - they will not want us to significantly unbalance the phases by pushing large amounts of power back from a single phase.

I have 16 * 250 Wp panels. On a sunny day, they may generate 3.5 - 4.0 kW. Less than that is being pushed back, as there is always something consuming electricity. If they are concerned with that, then how about them being concerned with the imbalance my car creates when it draws 3300 Watt flat for 3 hours?

One guy adds panels, the other guy adds a PHEV, yet another guy does both. In the end, I think they hardly notice.

 

[steve2001]

There is a thread or two somewhere on here re charging using pv and there are plenty of technical experts on the forum who can discuss (somewhere else rather than hijacking this thread perhaps!).

Hi, all,
I've had solar panels for a month now, and on a sunny day, I'm seeing a peak of 1.4 kW generating (I'm not ideally situated). Considering the time of year, do the experts (that means you) think I'll be able to charge my PHEV for free in the summer, using the supplied charger? I'm home most days, so I could stick it on whenever the sun shines. If not, is there any way of reducing the charging current, even if it means extending the time taken to charge?

Clear skies all day today so my panels generated 9kW over a 7 hour duration. Peaked at 2.2kW at noon. I reckon they will be good for 25-30kW per day come spring/summer and will easily peak at their max rating of 3.68kW.
I've been at home today so I did not charge overnight after checking the weather forecast yesterday. The PHEV has been on charge most of the day in between short school-run trips, but it will have taken all of the surplus leccy not being used by my house consumption. And it won't have gone to my neighbours via the local network for a change

So Regulo - if you can charge during the day I reckon you will get most of your charging for free from the sun - result!

 

[Regulo]

Thanks for that, Steve. That was what I was hoping to hear. As long as I can charge mainly during the day in summer, I should get the majority of my PHEV needs for free! BTW, my panels only totalled 3.184 kW today, it hasn't been very sunny down here.

 

[Hypermiler]

Thanks for that, Steve. That was what I was hoping to hear. As long as I can charge mainly during the day in summer, I should get the majority of my PHEV needs for free! BTW, my panels only totalled 3.184 kW today, it hasn't been very sunny down here.

Should get yourself up to God's Own County - been a glorious day up here! We have an application in to Northern Powergrid for 10kwp of pv, fingers crossed - would have been great today...
H

 

[Goldfinger]

As I just posted on another thread....

We get our charge point fitted Friday. But, the company doing also does solar PV.

I queried them after the quote from another company and he said I could get MORE panels
for not much more £££.

So some time next week, he's coming back properly (with more time as he was running late), to do a proper quotation.