Solar Panels - Do They Make Financial Sense in 2023?

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Title	:	Solar Panels - Do They Make Financial Sense in 2023?
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Shame we’re not using PV-T (or it’s not accredited) The Abora panel is upto 89 efficient
Comment from : Jo Bloggs

Here's the thing I can only afford one Irrespective of cost is it better for environment if I have solar panels installed ( current mains gas heating) or get an ev car?
Comment from : Ted Journey

Seems like it should be THERMAL panels outer layer, on sky scrapers and carsOther side would be ledThe led's can light up from the heat, powering solar panels beneath them
Comment from : gee humor

South Germany I have a month old 102kWp with 77kWh battery, all the kit is from RCT Power GmbH We have a really good SSE roof that was crying out for a PV and that is why I invested, we get around 1140 kWh/m² per year here, compared to around 950 for Manchester, where I'm originally from We get 820 ct/kWh (71p) for feed in and pay 33ct/kWh (28p) for what we use from the grid So we were using 4800kWh a year which will drop to best guess of 1000kWh a year The feed in electric should cover the winter usage and be break even, with the standing charge and all The whole system was €26k which is around £225k For this i secured a 10 year bank loan fixed at 28 so I worked out that I have around 16 years to payback, which is quite long, but this is based on electric staying at the price that it is today This is the factor, we have currently high inflation 69, which means even if inflation drops by 2025, the price of electric is going to go up over the next years and stay there We will also have higher demand due to EVs (although I don't believe EV sales will grow significantly after around 2026) and therefore the electric price will increase due to this increased demand I think it's an investment that is not without risk, (battery life etc) but it is one where we've dropped our fossil fuel consumption by four fifths and hopefully it will make us richer pensioners when all is paid off
Comment from : Robert Woods

I think you need to add the cost of borrowing (or opportunity cost of earning interest) in your sheet?
Comment from : Jason Burford

Hmm, so the capex divestment will take 10 years on average to break level Meaning for the proceeding 10 years it should in theory become an asset Question is, will energy prices stay this high particularly if electricity is removed from the gas spot prices, or once the Morocco power line is complete? Or once the 8 new nuclear reactors come online? Difficult one We should also factor the increased house insurance cost as the panels constitute an elevated fire risk & reinstatement cost
Comment from : Mr M

Excellent video, well explained
Comment from : calderjack

What is your ev charger setup to get the most from your solar panels? Does the solar power go through your 7kw EV wall charger or do you use a standard 22 kw 3 pin plug setup to charge from solar energy?
Comment from : gasmedic

So most people will pay for solar in 10 years Probably around the time you need to replace the solar panels and batteries 😂brbrIf you invest £6,800 at a 6 annual interest rate (based on my ISA) for 25 years, your investment will grow to approximately £20,058 Div 25 years is £802 a year So unless your at the 80 - 100 mark I don't see the benefit
Comment from : SupermanKelly™

I have solar power just to deny the government to profit
Comment from : Adrian Solomon

Prices are going up But the cost of manufacturing Solar PV panels has halved in the past few months Someone's making huge profits
Comment from : RWBHere

In principle I would like solar but we’re not certain how long we’ll be staying in our current house I recently signed up to Ripple Energy’s latest solar park project Fingers crossed it will yield some results next year
Comment from : hooloovooloo

Can you please do - buying only batteries on a ToD tariff (intelligent octopus)
Comment from : Sidewinder1009

I think that the Flux tariff changes your argument for people with a good battery and an EV You do need both the import and export rates to give the true balance
Comment from : Thomas John Birks

The virtuous circle is panels, battery, EV and micro generator for hot water The EV enables cheap electric tariff to supplement the solar in winter and makes the maximum of self consumption in the summer Love the videos, very helpful
Comment from : Stockdale

Definitely invest in battery storage For one thing, it acts as a buffer to smooth out load vs solar generation eg if the sun goes behind a cloud and the oven's on you don't start drawing from the grid I think I've heard the payback on batteries is less than solar if you use a time of use tariff, in fact some people would argue it's better to invest in just batteries if you can't afford bothbrAlso, get as big a battery as you can afford if purchasing solar I wish we'd bought double the size we did when it was VAT free so to make even more use of cheap rate electricity in the winter
Comment from : solarfusionuk

The secret sauce for your own Solar is using it to charge a USED EV, since 2017 I have saved £12,000 not buying diesel with no increase in home electricity consumption, makes the payback period much faster
Comment from : Edwyn Corteen

Strange you've done a "is Solar Panels worth it" with a EV only tariff though Would of made sense to do Flux as thats what people can actually get on without buying an EV
Comment from : gsdevme

Just had solar and battery installed a week ago by a brilliant company based in Cardiff Your videos were a help building the right system for us, 48kw array with 48 kwh batteries adding another 24kwh battery soon You can calculate your savings quite easily using your consumption figures in Watts from 2022 (not the price) I also wanted to add solar for the future as it will take 7 to 10 years to pay back Currently raining and I am getting 05 kw off the south facing array Max in the sunshine was 48 kw last week (18 kw over 8 hours) House right now using 013kw with just desktop PC, router,fridge freezer etc running I also changed all our light bulbs to LED over the past 5 years (10 LED down lights now draw the same as 1 Halogen bulb and the LED's are brighter, 50 Watts compared to 500 Watts) I charged my EV car when sun was out with excess solar and got 30 charge while dryer and washing machine was on Importing about 2 kw per day from the grid so £40 to £45 per month bill including standing charge and that's a £100 to £150 saving per month (Minimum of £1000 a year balanced over 12 months) Car charging will save £40 at least per month on top of house consumption Online quoted install costs don't include additional install wiring and consumables which will vary house to house because of access and cable runs My system cost £10,300 with a 5 kw inverter so a similar system will cost between £10,000 and £12,000
Comment from : R B

Luckily jumped into solar PV back in early 2012 So managed to lock in the original FIT contract All I will say is that I am very very happy with the investment I put on my roof Very similar annual generation profile to yours and interestingly as I have always tracked the generation I can confidently state I have seen no reduction in solar panel generation over the years when the panel data sheet suggests I would have seen some reduction by now
Comment from : badfly1

Renewables electricity can be so abundant that the supplier will pay you to take the electricity brbrThe connection fee will be the big costbrThe national electrical power grid will just balance the gridbrbrEvery building has an electric vehicle br20million buildings and vehicles in Australia br300million buildings and vehicles in the USA brVehicles daily drive is building to building brVehicles are parked 23hrs a day brSelfparking EV will just connect to the grid like the home robotic vacuum cleaner Hahaha Hahaha brbrThe EV has a big battery for the long drive but will be topped up daily for the daily drive, 7kwh brbrNobody is going to waste the available stored electricity in the big battery every daybrbrThe auto manufacturers know this double benefit from the EV batteries brbrThe grid knows you and will know your EV brbrThe existing grid will be UNLOADED and perfect for balancing supply if needed
Comment from : Stephen Brickwood

What I really like about Octopus is the work they are doing to make this make sense for different scenarios After a comment I left on Twitter they sent me a message letting me know that Flux was my best bet as I have solar and a battery but no EV yet I was concerned as I am also investing in Ripple and thought that excluded me from joining Octopus and getting onto their clever Tarifs as Ripples Partner is Coop powered by Octopus
Comment from : randomjasmic

Good video More than a financial saving you are also saving the planet 🌎 if u can afford to buy solar it’s a no brainier If u continue to pay the electricity company you never get your money back … so if u can afford it and the conditions are right get on with it 🌱🌎
Comment from : Stuart Webb

So if you dont have the money to pay for the install you will need a loan or if you have the cash you can get nearly 4 interest a year If you dont spend enough time at home using the electricity or have an EV as well not a great deal
Comment from : David Lewis

What about the new octopus flux tarriff, pays much higher for export, I am going to move from intelligence this week and give it a try during the summer when I have more excess from m panels
Comment from : noel green

Just had 6 panels crammed onto our Victorian mid terrace roof, and a givenergy battery (inspired by a previous video of yours) and really looking forward to getting some actual data on how effective they are Sadly the givenergy dongle is refusing to connect to their cloud platform atm but fingers crossed it'll be up and running next week 🤞🏻
Comment from : Olly Skillman-Wilson

Good analysis I think electricity prices should come down and payback period would go back to 15+ imobrWould like your view on Ripple energy community solar, they are low on details about cost per kWh ATM though
Comment from : giridhart

New roof required £15k😢
Comment from : alan T

I don't know in the UK if its possible to download from your power company your hourly consumption throughout the year as it is critical in establishing a solid percent utilization To achieve you will also need to somehow estimate hourly production by month to better plan your ideal FV size and potential savings/payback In Spain all companies supply this information
Comment from : rmenendez1

The fit payment is running at 60p at the moment with another 12 years of inflation to go
Comment from : Robert Urban

You haven't factored in the cost of batteries and the relatively shorter life compared to the PV system as a whole?
Comment from : AvivLasVegas

Have you considered adding a hip end to your house instead of a gable to get more solar? Or do you have loft conversion?
Comment from : Keith Bellringer

Very informative video as usual and I appreciate the time it must take to research and produce them brOne thing I've noticed is the potential missed to invest the initial outlay cost and possible returns is never mentioned in these types of videos not just by you but everyoneI don't mean just have it sat in a savings account but invested properly Not done it myself because I'm piss poor but my son basically doubled his 10k investment in less than 4 years in a medium risk package with nutmeg It's far better return than the solar well at least it has been for him because his energy usage is so smallbrI'm on with my first small diy install at the moment and have another system already planned for in a couple of monthsbrIf I'm producing more than I use I'll have to have a squint at used EVs again brKeep up the good work I always take a lot from your vids
Comment from : Kevin Hoey

Individual homeowners have no negotiating power with power companies or hardware resellers Renters and most home unit owners generally cannot install solar panels A better solution is a subscription model for optimally positioned wind and solar farms
Comment from : Sir Gregory

solars and tesla battery works well great video!!
Comment from : Evening Star

I guess you might not be aware but MCS is not the only way to gain the export licence A Flex-Orb will get you an export tariff with British Gas who will pay 6p 50 more than Octopus You do not need to switch to BG, You can remain with Octopus though I think that the moment BG are cheaper for gasbrEven though I did a fare amount of research I was not aware about MCS until the installation started as my main consideration was using an NIC approved contractor as I have “Island non essential” and generator input outlet if ever needed and the most frustrating part was that I contacted Octopus Solar installation department who took 2 months to get back in touch with me by which time the installation was almost complete and they said they were unable to do “Essential” I would have to get a separate electrician, and my roof was not large enough to fit the required amount of panels, but when questioned it was because their chosen Solar panel supplier did not do the panels that were requiredbrI think this MCS Certification is an attempt at a closed shop and a lot of the installers are geared towards what they can do rather than what you might want to achieve When I spoke to Octopus they said they speak to a lot of people who are not aware of the MCS requirement It is not a big deal for me as I have no intention of supplying electricity at 4p when they want to charge me 45p Worse than the Banks
Comment from : Mike Joseph

What a shockingly quiet audio
Comment from : LORD Steve Wilson

We've only just had solar panels (and a battery) installed in the last few weeks so dont have enough data yet to know about payoff period etc What I do know is were generating much more than we currently consume Having said that we will be looking into electric heating at some point and I haven't looked into how to get our EV charger to use the excess solar yet
Comment from : Plastic Creations

Do They Make Financial Sense? Yes
Comment from : Nic Densley

Nice work EVM!
Comment from : Mark Norman

You missed the best tariff on the market at the minute, certainly for the summer months You mentioned FLUX but never did the maths It gives a short window for battery/car charging but the longer, sunnier days give export at 22p and 34p! between 4pm and 7pm Best summer tariff by far, use intelligent tariff from OctoberbrRegards,brBill
Comment from : bill young

I don’t think anyone will ever have zero export unless they are storing in a home or car battery; peak solar production is often at times when usage of power is low Solar plus some battery capacity is a good plan
Comment from : dan theman

Don't add export to usage Export is a negative cost Do it again
Comment from : DrRogB

Opposite here in France - 6c a kwh between 2330 and 0730, FIT of 27c for solar export About 30c import during the day So I try and do everything between 2330 and 0730 and export as much as possible
Comment from : Tony Powell

We need a new roof so are at the early stages of looking at in built solar panels, any advice gratefully received
Comment from : Tallypup Thompson

The more people getting solar the merrier Helpful video Idea…pass on the next foreign family holiday…pay for solar 👍
Comment from : Chris S

Spot on sir
Comment from : thepete129

No brainier indeed Solar for the win!!!!!
Comment from : slug781

Over the last few years I have invested in panels, batteries, ashp, ev House is 100 electric, I do 1300 miles per month, this month Octopus will pay me I am now on Flux and I feel great being green For the most part it is all home improvement work every addition adds some value to my home It is a journey well worth starting What I would say is do not skimp on panels, while 4kw is enough for most if you have the roof space for more get more Panels are very cheap Once you have them you can add more options bit by bit as funds allow Shop around for installers until you find one who speaks clearly and is helpful who suggests different panels, inverters etc rather than just pushing kit they currently have in stock Some good deals to be had
Comment from : Trevor Hall

Great video thank you
Comment from : hamwic BI

Last time I did the research for panels, the best deals were for those living in the USA Here in England we have to pay much higher prices, usually around double That was about a year ago, so not sure how things are in 2023 This guy gives brilliant information on solar and batteries etc, but he is in the USA wwwyoutubecom/@WillProwse
Comment from : EgoShredder

May i ask have you seen the state of first4solar at the momentbrI did as you said and now like many cant get my promised deposit, great cant get MCS nowbrProbably be ignored as i have been before
Comment from : Simon Loker

We’ve been laughing all the way to the bank with our solar, battery, 2x EVs Reducing our day to day living expenses and leaving more cash in the hand at the end of the month it’s such a no brainer
Comment from : KiwiShoot

Panels now down to £100 each so no brainer
Comment from : Bernard Charlesworth

Do you know if smart thermostat work with heat pumps? If they do which do you recommend?
Comment from : Alex Shooter

If you assume you are going to live that long or are going to keep living in the same house For anyone under 40 that is settled it makes sense For me at 68 it's not a good investment For my Daughter is does not make sense, she is in her first house and will not I expect be living there that long It would be interesting to find out how much it will add to the house price I sold a house that had it and it made no difference to the price
Comment from : Keith Denton

My issue is my roof is tiny I can afford the solar panels no problem I suspect your £6800 system with a smaller inverter and 5 less panels is likely to set me back £55k for less than 2000kWh per year brSo a smaller non MCS accredited system may end up being the way to go for me and just try to use everything I generate
Comment from : gavjlewis

Great to have an update We used your first video as part of our research before getting our solar We did over estimate what we thought we could use, though For others to learn from, We are on track for 35 usage over a full year 38kW install, with no real divert options No hot water cylinder, no car charger We are home at the weekends and 2 days working from home Rest of the week we are home about 530 Regular do 3x washing machine use, 3x dryers and 2x dishwashers a week Switched to an oil filled heater during winter when wfh to use more of the solar I even heat water on the induction hob when home and exporting I store the water in a few thermos flasks to use when cooking and washing up
Comment from : Mike Harvey

Simple rule of thumb, each kW installed delivers about 1000kWh per year
Comment from : Paul Goffin

Can you do a program on battery only options as I live in a terrace with a small roof so solar is not a cost affective option but cheap rate storage may be the answer Thanks
Comment from : Geoff Bruce

Need to add interest payments on borrowing for installation cost Anyone with a mortgage could overpay by install cost amount so mortgage interest rate can be applied
Comment from : Alex Barr

EVM I live 45 miles from you, moved to Octopus and had the (smart meter) installed 2nd November 2022 Yet to this day it (169 days) has never worked! DCC has not boosted the signal and Octopus had not kicked them up the backside enough! So all this money saving better tariffs, export, ev tariff I was promised don't work without a Working smart meter Would be interested in your thoughts on this matter?
Comment from : James Hoyles

what does make sense is cheap fossil fuelsas people will find out next winter
Comment from : David Fletcher

🎉
Comment from : zjzozn

What is the life expectancy of the batteries?
Comment from : David Scott

I’ve got a 4kw solar on order with a Tesla power wall and my Eddie divert for the hot water Hoping to save a fortune as live in Eastbourne which is apparently the sunniest place in the uk
Comment from : Stewart Woodford

im on FiT and i get 20p kwh as i live alone i import nothing and i have E S & W facing panels so i can charge the car all day now i have a powerwall and try to use as much power as i can in the day , yesterday i put 30kwh in the car , but it was a nice day
Comment from : rodden1953

Great video I used to do these calculations professionally, so I used this experience to design my own solar PV system to meet the typical daily usage pattern of my home (Data obtained from the smart meter) Any excess power warms the HW tank via an EDDI unit and a small EV takes the rest, so export is minimalbrDespite living in dreich central Scotland in a house with a less than ideal east/west orientation, the system will have repaid itself in under 8 years
Comment from : Brian Griffiths

Quick question - is you import and export prices fixed over the hole day?
Comment from : Thor Meyer

Revisit your comments concerning gas prices this time next year The European wholesale gas market will push uk gas & electricity prices to never imagined levels Shareholders in power companies will become billionaire’s while folk freeze & starve
Comment from : Commuter branch line