Solar Production Thread
- Thread starter jowwy
- Start date
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Alex321
Veteran
- Location
- South Wales
21.1 kWh here - with 13 of that exported.
Just reading about AEG's new high efficiency solar panels. They come with a 40 year warranty and a guaranteed output of 87% at the end of the 40 years. Operating range is -40 to +85 😮
With prices dropping continuously and output and efficiency increasing I wonder at what stage it's going to make economic sense to swap out the original panels in an older installation.
With prices dropping continuously and output and efficiency increasing I wonder at what stage it's going to make economic sense to swap out the original panels in an older installation.
Of more interest would be an increase in output . Thus double output for example , and swapping out existing sized panels ?
Yes, with efficiencies and output steadily improving and the cost of panels rapidly decreasing it would make sense in some situations to swap out existing panels for those with higher gain. You may well need a new inverter to handle the extra power, and the local DNO may set a limit on how much you are allowed to export to the grid.
Legs
usually riding on Zwift...
- Location
- Staffordshire
We don't have a substantial amount of unshaded south-facing roof; our arrays, which were installed on 4 January, are split 4x 450W facing east and 10x 450W facing west, which is less than optimal at this time of year. It's interesting seeing how the power from the two strings compares, and when during the day the cross-over occurs. We've not bought any energy at daytime rates since the panels and batteries were installed.
We've had at most 6.6kWh/day so far, with a peak of just over 1.5kW on the recent full-sun days, which is quite tame. Today, which is truly dingy, is the first time that we've been struggling to cover the baseload - currently making a pathetic 104W!
However, I'm looking forward to the summertime when we're getting good exposure onto our west-facing panels in the late afternoons/evenings, exporting on Octopus Outgoing Flux at 28p/kWh
We've had at most 6.6kWh/day so far, with a peak of just over 1.5kW on the recent full-sun days, which is quite tame. Today, which is truly dingy, is the first time that we've been struggling to cover the baseload - currently making a pathetic 104W!
However, I'm looking forward to the summertime when we're getting good exposure onto our west-facing panels in the late afternoons/evenings, exporting on Octopus Outgoing Flux at 28p/kWh
You will definitely see a step change come summer. This time of year, solar is not strong and good production days are definitely a bonus!
I was told when we had our system installed that solar in winter is a bonus and it is very much about effective use of battery storage and off peak rates and then in summer, exporting excess solar.
In the round, the value of solar can only be seen when you look at it across a whole year balancing out the peaks and troughs.
I was told when we had our system installed that solar in winter is a bonus and it is very much about effective use of battery storage and off peak rates and then in summer, exporting excess solar.
In the round, the value of solar can only be seen when you look at it across a whole year balancing out the peaks and troughs.
Legs
usually riding on Zwift...
- Location
- Staffordshire
We participated in our first Octopus Saving Session tonight, the first time we’ve discharged to the grid. We couldn’t get the inverter settings right to start with, so missed a bit of time at the start, but we got going at 17:18 and so got a good 42 minutes in. Our DNO limit us to 3.7kW, and Octopus were only paying 1400 Octopoints (£1.75) per kWh this time, so we made just over £4. Better than a slap round the face with a wet fish, though!
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I'd set ours to export from 18:00 to 19:00 but I needed to poke it into action, finally started at 18:10.
Was exporting at 6kWh so about 5kWh exported for £8.75-ish.
It was 5pm to 6pm today for the saving session
After a moment of panic I checked and I had set the correct time. I always have to double check due to having to set the time using the 24hr clock.
Legs
usually riding on Zwift...
- Location
- Staffordshire
Rumours of a Savings Session tonight 6-7pm. Don't expect a big payout though...
EDIT - confirmed 6-7pm, £1.75 per kWh
@kipster @Tenkaykev @Buck
EDIT - confirmed 6-7pm, £1.75 per kWh
@kipster @Tenkaykev @Buck
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