Here Comes The Sun!

The Story of Our Solar Power

When we purchased Cornerstones in Spring 2009, it was with a view to retiring here in 2020.[The Government moved the goalposts after that, so we didn't get our pensions till 2021] But at the time, we considered how to make our 'forever home' energy efficient. We knew that loft insulation was a priority, and did that promptly. Six months in, there were major problems with the plastic oil tank. But that was sorted quickly [and mercifully without any cost to us] and the new tank had a life expectancy of around 15 years. That has just been replaced with a metal oil tank, a planned expenditure. 

But in 2009 we wondered about solar panels. It is a bungalow, with a large south facing roof. But we decided against it for a number of reasons

• cost - we had just taken on a mahoosive mortgage, and didn't think we could afford it
• timescale - we were advised that after about 15 years the panels become less effective - we didn't really want them to be at the end of their efficiency as we moved in permanently
• recouping the outlay - it was going to take a very long time.

But when we finally got here in 2021, we revisited the solar panel idea. This time, our conclusions were very different

• technology has moved on, and so they are not as expensive as they were
• back then, you had to 'make hay while the sun shines' [or cook the dinner, have a shower, run the washing machine...] now  there are batteries to store the power for later use in the day
• we could pay for it up front by using part of the pension pot

We wanted a local company to do all the work - many of the larger solar panel companies are national, but subcontract the installation to small local firms. That is not always good if problems arise later. Bob found D W Electrical Services based in Yarmouth, and Dudley Whiting came over and visited. We were really pleased with his knowledge of the subject and his helpful advice. 

It is just two years since he fitted our system. 

We have 22 panels on the roof, and a 10KW battery unit to store the surplus energy.

This means that on a day like yesterday, we generated power and used it for showers, cooking, etc [we've had weekend guests which did mean extra showers] first thing in the morning we used a little more power than we had available - but over the day 95% of our use came from the panels/batteries. While we were at church, sitting in the garden after lunch etc and using minimal power, the batteries we 100% charged and we were feeding surplus to the grid. 

We have an excellent app on our phones which gives us all the information about power generated, consumed and sold. So I can tell you almost instantly that 

on Saturday, we generated 30.68 kWh, used 9.57kWh* and fed 21.11 kWh to the grid.

0.32kWh were from the grid [we took early morning showers] but overall the panels provided 97% of out energy.

July 2024 thus far we have had an average of 95% from the panels each day

This year we have had, in total, 75% from the panels

In the two years since installation, 79% from panels. 

But we have fed 52% of power generated back to the grid, and the money we are paid for that more than offsets the 21% purchased. Thus our electricity bills are 'negative'

I must stress that this is only working so well because we have the batteries. [They are about the size of two large suitcases] These store surplus energy for later use.  Neighbours who just have panels end up paying more/saving less because they can only use generated energy while the sun is shining. 

We estimate that we will have recouped the installation costs within 5 years of the panels arriving. It has definitely been worth it, and we are grateful we were able to access the funds for the project up front. 

I would definitely recommend solar panels - and if you are considering it, feel free to email me and ask any further questions. Bob did a phenomenal amount of research before we parted with our cash - and I am grateful to him for that. It isn't something to rush into, but it is so good to feel that we are using this wonderful sunshine to provide the energy we need for our home.