Solar Panels & Wind Turbines

Solar Panels & Wind Turbines

Didn't find your answer?

I have read the literature etc and at first glance there seem to be significant advantages.

I am not a green -I am only interested in the financial returns

Any thoughts please?

Replies (7)

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By rayhelmke
05th Sep 2011 12:45

10 Years

It can take up to/around 10 years to get your investment back; you then have 15 years of tax free income - estimated at around £1,000pa for a typical 3 bed house.

Another option - plenty of companies will install the panels for free, they take the benefit of the payments but you get the benefit of lower electricity costs and no initial outlay.

That’s about all I know....

A friend works for Evo Energy (based in Nottingham and not to be confused with other companies of similar names) - not a recommendation, but he has been with them for while and seems very happy - they said they have had enormous growth in the last few years

 

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By thisistibi
05th Sep 2011 13:34

Moving house

You have to ask yourself what happens if you decide to move house.  I am simply not conviced that the panels increase the value of the house - i.e. a buyer would probably not repay your investment in solar panels.  Possibly you could take them with you - but that raises new questions: will your new property be suitable?  do you need to pay an installer to remove them and re-install them... and at what cost?

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By cathygrimmer
05th Sep 2011 13:48

Just taken the plunge

Well I've just contracted to have solar panels put on my roof. What finally decided me was a (very experienced) IFA friend who said she was having hers done as she thought it was one of the best investments around! Mainly I like the idea of going green - but also knowing it will pay for itself in about 9 years (per the estimate I have), and quite possibly sooner given that fuel prices are likely to increase, helps me justify earning my green credentials.

My veiw is that they will increase the value of the house - given the current fuel prices - if I were to sell. At the moment, the cost of installation is low compared to the cost of the panels so, if the purchaser wouldn't pay more for them, it might still be cost effective to take them with me in the first few years. After that, the cost of panels is likely to have come down and the efficency gone up so it might not be worth it.

We shall see how it goes - I'll come back in ten years and tell you if I think it was worth it!

Cathy

[email protected]

 

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By DMGbus
05th Sep 2011 13:55

Maintenance costs & useable life

There is a question mark about ongoing maintenance costs and useable life so far as I am concerned.

With regard to maintenance it might be matter of getting someone up on the roof every so many years (or annually?) to check that electrical connections are clean and tight / not corroding plus to wipe down the panels.    With the current UK attitude to Health & Safety it is my understanding that scaffolding would need to be hired, assembled and disassembled for this annual (or whatever) maintenance with the ingherent high costs.

I am not a structural engineer, but I do wonder if modern computer-aided design roof structures (*) can carry the extra weight involved with solar panels.

(*) As in made as light as possible / as weak as possible / as cheap as possible to be capable of carrying just roof tiles plus light snow with no foresight for future extra loads /weight as in these solar panels.

Then, when the roof may need repairs at a future date (either because of normal wearing out of timbers or accelerated decay due to weight strain) presumably the costs of roof replacement will be considerably more because of the presence of solar panels.

 

 

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By rayhelmke
05th Sep 2011 13:57

When you move

If I’m not mistaken, even when you sell your house, you can still get the gov't grant money or you can elect to pass this to the new owner.

I would have thought that the house would increase in price, but only marginally and taking the panels with you, would simply not be worth the hassle and the cost.

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the sea otter
By memyself-eye
05th Sep 2011 14:25

I have them on my mansion

The 'free' ones- 20 of them. I don't believe they will detract from house values as energy prices are only heading north and anything that saves money is a bonus as Scottish power have just upped my electricty costs by 38%.  Solar panels are rapidly becoming a common sight and therefore more acceptable (if that's the correct interpretation) to house buyers.  

Ok, I don't get the benefit of the feed in tarriff (the supplier does) but he bears the risk that it will be curtailed/withdrawn in the future  - highly likely in my view especially when savings rates are so low and the yield on solar panels is about 8% all subsidised by the cash strapped, government.

The supplier also has to do any repairs, particularly the inverter which will need replacing in about 10 years (so I'm told). If he goes bust, ownership defaults to me. 

It's too early to say what savings I'm making yet but as I also have a solar panel installer as client (not the same company) which gives me a feel for the way the market is going, as more and more companies jump on the bandwagon, installation prices are coming down

Also, I can buy the installer out of the deal, at any time albeit at a price I wouldn't want to pay. But again I can afford to sit tight and am happy to take the free power generated.

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By Lords
06th Sep 2011 10:55

Solar Panels-wind turbines

Thanks to all for comments

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