The power of Solar
- Further Green
- Oct 28, 2016
- 3 min read
There are two types of solar that can be harnessed for the home Solar thermal and Solar PV.
Solar thermal uses the sun to heat water that can be used for heating and hot water for the home. Where as solar PV which converts the sun's energy through the photovoltaic effect into electricity. This is done through panels that are either placed on a roof or a field, south west facing ideally to get a more even production rate throughout the day.
Here at de-Co we are more interested in Solar PV In an ideal world paired with a battery storage system so that you can actually use the energy that you produce throughout the day.
We can offer you advice and design the best system for you with our certified installers and take you seamlessly through the whole process. Whether you be in London or Edinburgh we are here to get your own solar farm up and running.
Solar PV has a number of key benefits which include:
They reduce your need to buy from the grid
You can receive money for the energy that you generate and don’t use (even thought the feed in tariff has been cut it can still produce a small income for your household).
Minimal maintenance needed and a long life span.
Protects you from energy price rises
Energy travels the 93 million miles from the Sun in approximately 499 seconds or 8.31 minutes, arriving in the form of light and heat of varying wavelengths. We can convert this sunlight into electricity by the use of photovoltaic cells that harness that energy and convert it into something that we can use. When the sun’s rays strikes the molecules in a photovoltaic cell it knocks electrons loose that in turn generate electricity as they flow through it.
This process doesn’t require bright sunshine and hot conditions to work as it is invisible rays that are actually causing the panels to produce electricity. This means that even in a temperate climate like here in the UK we can achieve high production rates from the panels.
Companies and universities are working at an amazing pace to bring the price down and produce new technologies (the clear solar panel being a massive break through) that decrease our need to burn fossil fuels. With this development over the last few years, the cost of installing a PV system in your home has dropped drastically. There are added benefits like Feed In Tariffs (FiT) that mean you can earn some money from your installation. However this has also dropped and will continue to do so, that is why I believe you should really plan to use the energy and pay less on your electricity bill than to try and make money from the FIT.
The Feed in Tariff was introduced in 2010 by the government and the amount that you receive is determined by the total installed capacity of your solar PV system. Do the energy savings, benefits of FiT, override the initial cost of installation? The problem when judging this is that you have to take a number of things into account including the location, the size of the installation, the government subsidy available and the type of photovoltaic cells you choose before you can work out how much you are going to save and your ROI. There’s no doubt that the Feed in Tariff is an attractive proposition for many people who are looking to find a cleaner energy supply and a possible investment for the future. As a very rough estimate as it is so dependant on the site, situation as well as the system used, a 4kWH system could create around 3,400 kWh which would give you an estimated return of £404 a year.
Whilst people want to be sure that they are lowering their carbon footprint when installing solar panels, they also want to be saving, in the long term to make it a viable option.
Whilst it may seem to be a good idea to have PV installed to reduce your carbon footprint, for such a big investment it helps to have some more in-depth information about the long term benefits across the whole life of your system. As a general rule of thumb, your installation will probably last the next 25 years if looked after properly.
Because it benefits, having solar panels installed it is sometimes considered as ‘permitted development’ (depending on your local council/ planning authority) means that you may not have to seek planning permission, but obviously you still have to check. From a legal standpoint, you will also need to contact both your insurance provider and mortgage company to ensure they agree to the installation.
