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Worth getting PV for me?

  • 16-12-2019 3:59pm
    #1
    moon2
    Registered Users Posts: 673 ✭✭✭


    My electricity usage over the last year was 2,882kWh at a total cost of €734.71. About €560 of that is the cost of electricity, the rest is the standing charge and levy. I don't have a good breakdown of daytime/nighttime usage unfortunately, so I'd say the standard "Most usage in mornings and evenings" would apply.

    Using the increased grant about to come into effect I can get a 1.6kW installation for about €3,200 (no battery).

    At this level of usage, what would be a good estimate on the break-even point of a solar installation? 15 years? More?


Comments

  • #2
    moon2
    Registered Users Posts: 673 ✭✭✭moon2


    Also, what about getting a kit from solartricity.ie and popping the panels on this garage roof instead of the roof of the house.

    The garage has a modern, recently installed, fuseboard. Would I be crazy to think I could self install the panels using a flat roof mounting system and then pay a registered electrician to wire it up?


  • #3
    n97 mini
    Registered Users Posts: 8,295 ✭✭✭n97 mini


    moon2 wrote: »
    Also, what about getting a kit from solartricity.ie and popping the panels on this garage roof instead of the roof of the house.

    The garage has a modern, recently installed, fuseboard. Would I be crazy to think I could self install the panels using a flat roof mounting system and then pay a registered electrician to wire it up?

    Put a time lapse camera faced at the shed roof and check for shadows from surrounding trees and buildings.

    I have my panels on the shed roof and this time of the year there are so many long shadows (sun is low) there is virtually no generation. A shadow even on one panel knocks the whole thing out. (Can be mitigated against with panel optimisers, but they add more cost.)


  • #4
    moon2
    Registered Users Posts: 673 ✭✭✭moon2


    Good idea! I'll set that up soon. I have an old digital camera that should do the trick! I'll just wait for the next mostly cloudless day to track it!


  • #5
    unkel
    Registered Users Posts: 64,693 ✭✭✭✭unkel


    moon2 wrote: »
    Also, what about getting a kit from solartricity.ie and popping the panels on this garage roof instead of the roof of the house.

    Your electricity use is below average. Which means that the benefit of a big solar PV install (with the grant) is very limited. If you can buy a small system cheaply and install it yourself, your payback time will be shortest (<10 years)

    Your garage looks fine for a small system, but the walls round the edge will cause a lot of shadowing to all but panels right in the middle of the roof. And once you get even a bit of a shadow on one panel, it means the whole array will barely produce. Unless you use optimisers, but these cost more than half of the panels themselves, so would make your payback time grow by several years

    As n97_mini said, get an idea of the shadowing. If you can place say 3-4 panels in the middle of the roof that won't get shadowing, with a small inverter, you would take the base load of your house away for maximum relative saving and minimum pay back period


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