Took the plunge innit

hardworkinghippy · Post by **hardworkinghippy** » 04 Aug 2010, 22:55

Well done !

Looking forward to seeing the internal gubbings and getting a report on how much you're producing.

biffvernon · Post by **biffvernon** » 04 Aug 2010, 23:23

Looks like you've had an exciting day.

wonder where the name Ploughcroft come from. Seems a bit agricultural.

emordnilap · Post by **emordnilap** » 05 Aug 2010, 10:15

Well done RC and good luck. Here's to a new chapter in your life.

RenewableCandy · Post by **RenewableCandy** » 05 Aug 2010, 11:52

biffvernon wrote:Looks like you've had an exciting day.

wonder where the name Ploughcroft come from. Seems a bit agricultural.

For all I know they may have started out building and repairing farm roofs and then gone urban. I know they came to PV/SHW via their roofing experience.

Either that or it might have been somebody's surname.

RenewableCandy · Post by **RenewableCandy** » 05 Aug 2010, 13:33

We have LIFT-OFF!

Oooh the power has gone to my head (well, to the washing-machine actually).

At the moment it's clouded over, but the roof is still putting out 297 Watts of welly (it says here on the portable Welly-o-meter).

Andy Hunt · Post by **Andy Hunt** » 07 Aug 2010, 20:38

Look at all that lovely silicon!!

Congrats RC!!!

hardworkinghippy · Post by **hardworkinghippy** » 07 Aug 2010, 22:11

I'm so happy for you !

One day I'll have my very own washing machine.... sigh.

RGR · Post by **RGR** » 08 Aug 2010, 03:06

Kentucky Fried Panda · Post by **Kentucky Fried Panda** » 08 Aug 2010, 13:26

Nice one RC, you'll need to tell us how it preforms when we get an actual sunny day

RenewableCandy · Post by **RenewableCandy** » 08 Aug 2010, 22:05

RGR wrote:Congradulations...but why did you have to PAY for your system?

Here in the US the business models are working such that I don't even have to pay for the solar panels on the roof. Why don't you Brits get one of those type deals working?

There exist free deals here too, where the company own the panels and the house gets free daytime leccy but no FiT cash. But frankly I fancy owning the panels outright and collecting all the money.

Never been to Yorkshire, have you

?

RGR · Post by **RGR** » 08 Aug 2010, 23:28

[quote="RenewableCandy"

Aurora · Post by **Aurora** » 09 Aug 2010, 05:58

RGR wrote:
RenewableCandy wrote:
RGR wrote:Congradulations...but why did you have to PAY for your system?

Here in the US the business models are working such that I don't even have to pay for the solar panels on the roof. Why don't you Brits get one of those type deals working?
There exist free deals here too, where the company own the panels and the house gets free daytime leccy but no FiT cash. But frankly I fancy owning the panels outright and collecting all the money.

Never been to Yorkshire, have you ?
Nope. Is it nice there? More protected from the horrifying effects of PO +5 than us suburban Yanks? Solar does good here, but if it isn't as efficient in your neck of the woods, might I recommend drilling some of your gas shales?

**** ***

Kentucky Fried Panda · Post by **Kentucky Fried Panda** » 09 Aug 2010, 15:23

RGR be careful, your troll roots are showing.

Andy Hunt · Post by **Andy Hunt** » 09 Aug 2010, 15:57

http://m.guardian.co.uk/?id=102202&stor ... nels-homes

With companies offering to fit homes with solar panels for free, experts say you can save more by paying for them yourself

Householders tempted by a rash of new "solar for free" offers could double their financial savings by paying for the panels themselves, experts have warned.
The advice comes as installations of solar photovoltaic panels have exploded in the UK, with the number installed in four months in 2010 more than doubling on the whole of 2009 since a government financial incentive was launched in April.
Spurred by the new feed-in tariff scheme that pays small scale generators of green electricity, a glut of companies are offering to fit thousands of homes with solar panels for free. Under the "rent your roof" model, the companies earn the tariff worth approximately £835 a year and the homeowner benefits from an annual saving of around £110 off their electricity bill. Homesun, ISIS Solar and A Shade Greener are three of the firms planning to do a deal with more than 120,000 homeowners by 2015, with Homesun promising to fit 2,000 homes in the next 12 months.
But homeowners would almost certainly be better off paying for the solar panels themselves, even taking into account interest on a loan for the upfront cost of around £10,000 for a typical home. "Looking at the figures, it [paying for panels yourself] looks like a better deal on paper," Liz Laine, energy expert at Consumer Focus, told the Guardian. She added that consumers should go into such deals "with their eyes open". Simon Osborn, policy advisor at Which?, said: "If you have the means to pay for solar panels yourself, then you may well be better off arranging to have them installed yourself." Consumer Focus has also published a checklist of 24 questions people should ask before signing up, including who has liability if something goes wrong with the panels.
Under the "free solar" model, a homeowner would save in the region of £2,750 on energy bills over 25 years, the length of the tariff offer. By paying for their own panels with a loan at 7.7% interest repaid over 10 years and earning income from the feed-in tariff, they could save around £6,506 over the same period.

RenewableCandy · Post by **RenewableCandy** » 09 Aug 2010, 18:27

RGR wrote:
RenewableCandy wrote:
RGR wrote:Congradulations...but why did you have to PAY for your system?

Here in the US the business models are working such that I don't even have to pay for the solar panels on the roof. Why don't you Brits get one of those type deals working?
There exist free deals here too, where the company own the panels and the house gets free daytime leccy but no FiT cash. But frankly I fancy owning the panels outright and collecting all the money.

Never been to Yorkshire, have you ?
Nope. Is it nice there? More protected from the horrifying effects of PO +5 than us suburban Yanks? Solar does good here, but if it isn't as efficient in your neck of the woods, might I recommend drilling some of your gas shales?

There must be a city or a state in the USA that has a similar reputation to ours: plain-spoken and careful with the cash. Ideas?