Solar panel cost

tmcs · 05-04-2011 07:29PM #1

Solar panel cost
Hi I'm wondering if anyone has any idea how much solar panels cost?
Both the hot water and pv panels if possible....
many thanks

Carlow52 · 05-04-2011 10:43PM

tmcs wrote: »

Solar panel cost
Hi I'm wondering if anyone has any idea how much solar panels cost?
Both the hot water and pv panels if possible....
many thanks

euro [4,000 and 6,000] respectively.

If you have access to the internet search for solar panels and PV panels

tmcs · 05-04-2011 10:55PM

Carlow52 wrote: »

euro [4,000 and 6,000] respectively.

If you have access to the internet search for solar panels and PV panels

Thanks
Its hard to get prices on the net....
any idea cost per sq meter....
or how many kWh are you getting for that kind of money
and I presume you'd get hot water most of the year for your €4000....

homer911 · 06-04-2011 08:48AM

tmcs wrote: »

Thanks
Its hard to get prices on the net....
any idea cost per sq meter....
or how many kWh are you getting for that kind of money
and I presume you'd get hot water most of the year for your €4000....

I think your question has been answered to the best of anyones ability on the internet. Your best course of action is to contact an installer and they will usually do a site survey and provide you with an estimate free of charge.

As regards hot water - dont rely on it outside of April to September.

tmcs · 06-04-2011 12:21PM

homer911 wrote: »

I think your question has been answered to the best of anyones ability on the internet. Your best course of action is to contact an installer and they will usually do a site survey and provide you with an estimate free of charge.

As regards hot water - dont rely on it outside of April to September.

Im sure theres plently of people out there that have had solar panels installed and would be able to give a far more accurate price then €4000 and €6000 (without any indication as how much power your getting for your 6 grand) and would save the hassel of getting three or four site surveys done from different companies.....

but thanks for the input homer.....i'm extremely grateful you can speak for everybody on the internet.....

homer911 · 06-04-2011 01:46PM

If you ask a general question, you'll get a general answer

Welcome to Boards! Specific questions and polite interaction will probably get a better response and make up for your lack of personal "leg work"

tmcs · 06-04-2011 02:47PM

homer911 wrote: »

If you ask a general question, you'll get a general answer

Welcome to Boards! Specific questions and polite interaction will probably get a better response and make up for your lack of personal "leg work"

You didnt give an answer of any real worth to the question....you simply suggested that everyone on the internet has answered the question to the best of their ability:

"euro [4,000 and 6,000] respectively.

If you have access to the internet search for solar panels and PV panels "

.......dont get me wrong I appreciate your advice: "Your best course of action is to contact an installer and they will usually do a site survey and provide you with an estimate free of charge"....but this is something I had previously thought about.....

......now if every question on boards.ie was answered in a similar fashion, or the other great idea: "search the internet".....whats point in boards at all?

Many thanks once again for this delightfully polite interaction:)

quentingargan · 14-04-2011 09:40AM

It seems a shame to spoil the fun here and take this in a different direction, but it really depends whether you are just looking for panels to do a DIY install, or want a turnkey package. Usually for solar thermal, a package includes changing your cylinder for a better insulated one with two coils, either 200L or 300L depending on the number of people in the house, amount of hot water you need etc. If someone quotes you without asking those sort of questions, I'd say move on.

There is a ban on mentioning brands or advertising generally, but I'll PM you a link to one site which publishes its prices. There are more.

On solar PV, to be honest, the cost is still prohibitive for most households. I would only really recommend it for holiday homes needing to meet Part L compliance, or for off-grid use. That said, the price of the component parts has come down dramatically. You can buy modules in Ireland for about €1.70 per watt peak plus VAT. So a 240W panel will cost €493 incl VAT. If you want to grid connect these you will need an inverter. However, a 240W panel will usually produce about €35 worth of electricity per year. It is viable in the UK where a very generous feed-in tariff pays householders over three times the retail price of electricity for their output.

canapat · 07-05-2011 02:16PM

I am being quoted €9,800 less €2,400 subsidy and €1300 grant nett cost €6,400 for flat plate solar panels + new cylinder 200L + pump. We are just two people in a 4 bed detached house and just use average hot water. I was told I could get the whole lot done for €3,200 by a supplier of solar tubes. Am I being ripped off??

mink_man · 07-05-2011 04:33PM

I think hot water solar panels aren't worth it, they operate well during summer but in winter when you also need the hot water you'll need an extra heating source. also if you have an electric shower you don't get use of of it.

Joey the lips · 07-05-2011 05:07PM

a typical system costs around 4700 and with the grant you get around 1700 back so that nets back to 3000. for this you get

30 tubes
twin coil cylinder
controller
fitting,

I dont know much about the pv panels.

quentingargan · 07-05-2011 05:45PM

canapat wrote: »

I am being quoted €9,800 ....Am I being ripped off??

Eh, thankfully not any more;)

There are a few sharks out there with a heavy sell... Q

ccsolar · 07-05-2011 09:17PM

Hi
Yes you are and I think we could guess who the company is, they have caught a few people but thankfully you got away.

Cc

canapat · 07-05-2011 10:42PM

Thanks folks for all your advice. Don't think I'll be buying anytime soon

Qualitymark · 08-05-2011 09:26AM

A friend in Tipp has a hot water panel system installed; it cost her €4,000, but about half of that was paid - through the Concerto grants which her locality applied for, not an SEAI grant, I think.

Hot water through the summer isn't to be sniffed at; it means you don't have your immersion switched on for dishwashing or baths for several months of the year.

I'd be very interested in photovoltaic (PV) panels for electricity, though. Anything that cuts down our use of other people's nukes, imported fossil fuel and our precious boglands' turf has to be good.

I'm told that Sanyo panels are by far the best, and that the company has a new, smaller and more efficient 250-watt panel just issued or issuing. (This comes from the greenlivingforum.net Power and Lighting forum.)

BryanF · 10-05-2011 10:54AM

mink_man wrote: »

I think hot water solar panels aren't worth it, they operate well during summer but in winter when you also need the hot water you'll need an extra heating source. also if you have an electric shower you don't get use of of it.

:eek:

Nobody ever said SHP will give you give 100% of your hot water, but this does not mean they are not worth installing. SHWP's are probable the first renewable energy options people should consider.

Foleyart · 04-07-2011 11:51AM

We put in a solar panel this year and I must say that so far it has been brilliant. Turned off the w pellet burner 2 months ago and had to use the immersion maybe twice since then. No great sunshine in all that time but the little we had was sufficient to heat our DHW. I would love to get in some pv panels. Had been thinking of a wind turbine, ideal site, but we are in an SAC area and would probably have problems with planning. ( 9 years waiting for planning for the hse.) So don't fancy going down that route again. Definitely recommend solar for DHW though.

Amateurish · 04-07-2011 01:55PM

Foleyart wrote: »

We put in a solar panel this year and I must say that so far it has been brilliant. Turned off the w pellet burner 2 months ago and had to use the immersion maybe twice since then. No great sunshine in all that time but the little we had was sufficient to heat our DHW. I would love to get in some pv panels. Had been thinking of a wind turbine, ideal site, but we are in an SAC area and would probably have problems with planning. ( 9 years waiting for planning for the hse.) So don't fancy going down that route again. Definitely recommend solar for DHW though.

Great to hear its a success for you but be aware that you might want to run the immersion occasionally to kill legionella bacteria, particularly if you use a shower off the hot water cylinder.

Qualitymark · 04-07-2011 02:18PM

Foleyart, where are you, and what company did you get to do the work? Was it dear? What kind of house do you have - how many storeys, and what size? Are you running radiators off the solar or just shower and dishwashing water?

Good tip on the Legionnaire's, Amateurish.

Foleyart · 05-07-2011 10:10AM

The house is in Connemara, 2 storey, with half roof on first floor, upstairs inset to steel frame, sitting room and office. The collector is on the first floor roof south facing. The cost was about 3.5G. We already had a 300 litre tank with twin coils. No rads, underfloor heating from wood pellet burner. I could probably send you a pm with the company name if needed. They are in the midlands and also service the wp boiler.

Qualitymark · 05-07-2011 10:54AM

Foleyart wrote: »

The house is in Connemara, 2 storey, with half roof on first floor, upstairs inset to steel frame, sitting room and office. The collector is on the first floor rooI could probably send you a pm with the company name if needed. They are in the midlands and also service the wp boiler.

That would be good, for future reference - thank you; not spending anything right now!

makeorbrake · 06-08-2011 12:56PM

quentingargan wrote: »

It is viable in the UK where a very generous feed-in tariff pays householders over three times the retail price of electricity for their output.

It's a shame that we are not progressive enough to pursue that here. Just after watching dragons den - which featured this company. IF those figures stand up to interrogation, then it would be a no-brainer.

Has there even been any consideration of such a scheme in Ireland?

Qualitymark · 06-08-2011 05:47PM

Only trouble with that model - where the company puts in the panels and you pay them back - is that it may cause hassle if you sell your house.

makeorbrake · 06-08-2011 07:21PM

Qualitymark wrote: »

Only trouble with that model - where the company puts in the panels and you pay them back - is that it may cause hassle if you sell your house.

Didn't see any mention of payment on the drip?

In any event, the key elements in the uk seem to be the fact that they have facilitated feed-in into the grid, have guaranteed feed-in rates until 2035 - and rates are healthy (not to mention tax-free).

Pretty frustrating when you look at it. Given that we are skint right now, steps like this don't cost us - it's just well thought out. It's a win-win for the individual, for the country (more employment in this sector) and is a small (but significant) step towards energy security.

Qualitymark · 06-08-2011 07:27PM

makeorbrake wrote: »

Didn't see any mention of payment on the drip?

In any event, the key elements in the uk seem to be the fact that they have facilitated feed-in into the grid, have guaranteed feed-in rates until 2035 - and rates are healthy (not to mention tax-free).

Pretty frustrating when you look at it. Given that we are skint right now, steps like this don't cost us - it's just well thought out. It's a win-win for the individual, for the country (more employment in this sector) and is a small (but significant) step towards energy security.

Sounds like a good deal then - I must have misread the page. Time for a group of Irish electricians to get together and hassle the government to set the same 'FIT' (feed-in tariff) system up here.

makeorbrake · 06-08-2011 08:34PM

Qualitymark wrote: »

Sounds like a good deal then - I must have misread the page. Time for a group of Irish electricians to get together and hassle the government to set the same 'FIT' (feed-in tariff) system up here.

Presumably the stumbling block would be the ESB......:mad:

quentingargan · 07-08-2011 10:04PM

I'm afraid I go out on a limb here compared to others in the microgeneration industry. I think the feed in tariffs in the UK are way too high. It has spawned inflation in the industry, and also came accompanies by MCS accreditation requirements which are expensive ulitmately for the end user.

Do we really want or need a scheme in Ireland that gives householders 45c per Kw hr for electricity exported, then sells it to the house next door for 1/3rd of that price? We can get electricity from mega-wind for less than a fifth of what they are paying microgenerators in the UK.

I would agree that microgeneration should be subsidised, but not to the extent that it is in the UK, where companies are tripping over each other to install free solar PVs on your roof so they can avail of the ultra generous feed-in tariffs. To my mind, a feed in tariff of 20 to 25c guaranteed with indexation for far longer than 5 years (the current limit in Ireland) would provide a target for the industry to work towards.

BryanF · 08-08-2011 12:42AM

quentingargan wrote: »

Do we really want or need a scheme in Ireland that gives householders 45c per Kw hr for electricity exported, then sells it to the house next door for 1/3rd of that price? We can get electricity from mega-wind for less than a fifth of what they are paying microgenerators in the UK.

well said, i'd like to see more co-ops and investor schemes for wind and wave projects, which as you said above are far more effeicent and have a much better EROEI than domestic PV generation.

makeorbrake · 08-08-2011 02:03PM

quentingargan wrote: »

To my mind, a feed in tariff of 20 to 25c guaranteed with indexation for far longer than 5 years (the current limit in Ireland) would provide a target for the industry to work towards.

I have not been keeping uptodate with this. Is it now possible to feed-in to the grid via domestic installation in Ireland? If so, what are the tariff's? Agree that 5 years is not long enough. They should be able to see that people need to be secure in the knowledge that they can at the very least achieve sufficient pay-back.

quentingargan · 08-08-2011 02:07PM

makeorbrake wrote: »

I have not been keeping uptodate with this. Is it now possible to feed-in to the grid via domestic installation in Ireland? If so, what are the tariff's? Agree that 5 years is not long enough. They should be able to see that people need to be secure in the knowledge that they can at the very least achieve sufficient pay-back.

Current feed in tariff with ESB only, and only to householders (not to business) is 9c per Kw Hr. There is a top up of 10c per Kw Hr for the first 3,000 units exported per year for the first five years. No guarantees after that.

Which is a problem....

handyhand · 30-05-2012 01:02PM

ccsolar wrote: »

Hi
Yes you are and I think we could guess who the company is, they have caught a few people but thankfully you got away.

Cc

I recently had one of these cowboy "consultant" operators call to my house to carry out a survey and give me a quote. The timeline was as follows:
Insists on meeting my wife AND I together at the house. Arranged for 11am.
Starts with the "offers to select our house as the demo one for the area" and says " what he has to offer us is a nobrainer in terms of his value for money to us". With folder in hand he goes through the "education stage" of the survey about solar energy. Asks intermittently are we genuinely interested in availing of this great offer? If not he has another call at 3pm in the area where that house will be the lucky one instead of our house.
Surveys the house and takes out a calculator. Opens with a quote for 9,660 euro. (3 solar panels, 300lt tank, plus the other normal components). Takes 3 reductions of 5% each off this figure for allowing him to put up a sign for his company at our premises, for allowing him to select our house for the job and for some other such reason which I now forget.
Then deducts 1,500 as a once off offer but only if we accept on the spot to bring the final quote to 6,782 or thereabouts. The time now is about 12 noon.
I look at my wife and notice that she has lost all interest at this stage because she has seen through his smokescreen (she operated a business herself). I then said to him that we needed time to think on his offer. He insists offer must be accepted now to avail of all the deductions otherwise 9660 sum will apply.
He reminds us about his 3pm call where this great offer will go to another house in the area. At this stage my wife leaves. I say to him that I will contact him at 2pm with a final answer. He then asks me to tick the "Reject" box on his sheet with this quotation. I say I am not yet rejecting his offer but he insists I am by not accepting there and then. That was the final straw. I ticked the reject box but wrote beside it "will confirm my final decision by 2pm". He left and headed for his 3pm call I presume.
So that was my experience with him. I wish I could name the company but I gather it will feature in a forthcoming consumer radio programme shortly on "selling techniques" in the marketplace.
Since then I have established that there are 2 such companies operating with these high-handed sales/marketing strategies. It is well known within the industry at this stage. I have received several quotes since from reutable companies and they are all within the 4500-5000 range (no silly deductions, etc.). So obviously my initial "consultant" with his 9660 quote was some cowboy. I also gather that his likes operate on a strict "no sell - no fee" basis so that if he does not collect a 50% deposit on the day he receives absolutely nothing for his call from the company he sells for. So obviously when he does sell he is in line for some whack of a fee.
SO WATCH OUT FOR THIS TYPE OF OPERATOR SELLING <SNIP>

Mod edit: Do not post anything remotely resembling the company name.

Solar panel cost

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