Free Solar Panels

Raj · Post by **Raj** » Wed Jun 13, 2012 2:08 pm

We had a company come round offering free solar panels.

They basically stated it was completely free and fully insured (in case the roof collapses, etc due to the panels) but you're tied in to a lease of 25 years. The panels have to stay there for 25 years and you get the electricity produced but they get the 21p per kilowatt produced. They fully maintain them, etc, etc.

Is there a catch or is really worthwhile? Cost savings in leccy bill seems to be about £100ish per year at present but if prices go up then could be more savings.

Thoughts?

pvr · Post by **pvr** » Wed Jun 13, 2012 2:42 pm

Yes, very strong thoughts indeed. Do NOT go for that.

1. Note that you "mortgage" part of your roof in effect and you can not do whatever you like with that anymore without permission. You can not change a roof tile without their permission, or anything for that matter in that area.
2. If you sell your house, the new buyer is required to take this on. This may reduce the saleability of your house as I for one would not buy a house with a covenant attached.
3. You have to insure the panels. Some insurance companies will not cover them. But ALL your "free" electricity savings will be "eaten" by the insurance increase.

I can go on and on, but if you have access to the Which guide, you can see their review and verdict of this "free" electricity (i.e. negative verdict, if you want panels - buy them yourself).

X5Sport · Post by **X5Sport** » Wed Jun 13, 2012 2:57 pm

pvr is absolutely right.....don't do it! The fine print has more caveats than Prime Minister's Question Time!!

I think you also need to get your mortgage company (for those who have such things) to OK it too - and they may not be happy.

At least if you buy them then you keep the tariff....

Post by **sp3ctre** » Wed Jun 13, 2012 3:27 pm

... add to the fact that they look hideous and in most cases are an eyesore for the neighbours. They are all well and good for those countries where they have flat roofs so you can't see the panels from the ground, but in the UK they look horrible.

... all that for what is less than 2 tanks of petrol per YEAR? (ok, so it may increase)

Sanj · Post by **Sanj** » Wed Jun 13, 2012 4:02 pm

I dunno - bit bling on the house..... :noexpression:

Raj · Post by **Raj** » Thu Jun 14, 2012 12:48 am

Tbh, the replies kind of confirm my thoughts anyway so have opted against it. Cheers all.

ITBarbie · Post by **ITBarbie** » Thu Jun 14, 2012 9:35 pm

Mr ITBarbie was asking me to consider this and I did a fair amount of research and totally concur with the others. Walk away.

Rusty · Post by **Rusty** » Thu Jun 14, 2012 9:48 pm

Looked at it when the grants first came out, we had the survey done, they couldn't even agree between themselves what sort of return I would get and even how many panels would be installed, then they changed panel suppliers and it all went downhill. All that on top off the research I did which concurred with the above statements firmly put me off taking it any further. Needless to say, we don't have any panels on our roof either.

DO NOT DO IT !!!!!!!!!!!
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scooby1doo1 · Post by **scooby1doo1** » Thu Jun 14, 2012 10:06 pm

A bloke at work bought 8 panels him self, he was told that for the panels he's got he would get paid in the summer months, because he will be making more leki then he uses. But get a reduction in his bill in winter months.
Now I don't no how true this all is, just going off what he was told, and what he told me.

But if you have a good south facing roof and you make are making money, then at 21p a kw over 25yrs they going to get a lot of money from you.

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Turks · Post by **Turks** » Thu Jun 21, 2012 5:11 am

I know a guy who is doing this and he admits that it is ripping people off. He offers the free Solar Panels on the house and you get the electricity generated when you need it however any excess generation is sold to the grid and he gets the proceeds. Most electric is produced in the day when most people are at work and no lighting, kettles, ovens and tumble dryers are being used. Therefore, while you are at work, he is making money from your roof!

Basically, they are exploiting you by using the real estate you have worked very hard for and rewarding you with an effective annual rental of around £100!! If they were to rent a field or land with the same m2 of the roofspace they take off homeowners it would cost them much much more than that annually!!

Additionally as others have said, they are hideous and can very easily devalue your home by making it undesirable.

Stay well away or ask them for a rental rather than electricity... what is your roofspace worth?

Turks.

Raj · Post by **Raj** » Sat Jun 23, 2012 12:45 am

As mentioned, plenty of reasons to not bother and I haven't.

Turks I agree wholeheartedly that it is a con tbh. The real benefit of the panels is the feed in tariff the company gets as the electricity you get for free is very minor by comparison.

weirdfish · Post by **weirdfish** » Sat Jun 23, 2012 9:36 am

I was talking to my brother in law the other day, he rents an annexe on the side of a large farmhouse which has solar panels all over one of the outbuildings, when he first moved in the owners asked if he would not use the tumble dryer etc unless he had to, and to replace any blown bulbs for low energy one, ( already fitted ), obviously they were after maximising their return from the panels.
After he'd been their a couple of months the owner actually said to him to use as much electric as he could, strange he thought, but their is a limit on what the companies will buy back from you, and the owners hade easily reached this limit, so had electric to spare, obviously who ever surveyed the job had not done their sums etc. and the owner had bought far too many panels in the first place.
Anyway, as you said, just forget it.

scooby1doo1 · Post by **scooby1doo1** » Sat Jun 23, 2012 10:51 am

These are to save money yes, and to save energy making energy yes.

I see these things going up weekly, yes there not so good looking, but if all the street as erm done and you don't who looks the odd one out.
I don't walk up my drive every day, or any day for that matter and think WOW look at my lovely roof.
But saying that my south facing roof is at the back.

I did look into this my self, but would buy them out right. And I don't have the spare ££££'s for 12 panels to cover the roof.

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jeegnesh · Post by **jeegnesh** » Sat Jun 23, 2012 3:57 pm

[quote="weirdfish"]
I was talking to my brother in law the other day, he rents an annexe on the side of a large farmhouse which has solar panels all over one of the outbuildings, when he first moved in the owners asked if he would not use the tumble dryer etc unless he had to, and to replace any blown bulbs for low energy one, ( already fitted ), obviously they were after maximising their return from the panels.
After he'd been their a couple of months the owner actually said to him to use as much electric as he could, strange he thought, but their is a limit on what the companies will buy back from you, and the owners hade easily reached this limit, so had electric to spare, obviously who ever surveyed the job had not done their sums etc. and the owner had bought far too many panels in the first place.
Anyway, as you said, just forget it.
[/quote]
He can sell the excess back to national grid believe they pay 3p per unit tell him to check this out, if he already got it installed and has excess then it's free money for him.

jeegnesh · Post by **jeegnesh** » Sat Jun 23, 2012 4:00 pm

Considered buying these but you need over 20m2 on a single roof and I got too many slants I believe. Didn't care about the look as they would go on the backside of the house. But it's rather a large outlay, however coming down but don't think it will matter as my roof doesn't have enough space in a single area.

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