I am going to be getting solar installed shortly after umming and ahhing for a couple of years. Although feed in tarrifs have dropped to unattractive records, the price of solar equipment and installs has also dropped to keep people interested.
As it may interest some members, I will post up what I am getting as soon as I have confirmed it and will post up some photos when its done.
It will be a minimum 5kw system and likely bigger. I am not one of those people that sits there and calculates payback times, I consider the money spent an investment as it ads value to my home. How much bigger than 5kw I dont yet know, I also have to find out just how big I could go due to roof space. Its sun all day with no shade which is great.
For those not up with tariffs, in Victoria the feed in tariff is now only 8 cents. So during the day when you are producing power, any you dont use feeds in to the grid and you are paid 8 cents for each kw you feed in. Although this isnt much, with new smart metering there are a number of peak, off peak and shoulder tarrifs meaning you can pay only 12 cents a kw off peak when you are buying it back. Based on that, for every 3 I give them during the day, I can take back 2 at night at no cost.
I have made some initial enquiries and have already decided what company I am using (pending them being able to supply equipment of my "approved" list) but wont be be doing anymore till Monday.
Will keep you posted
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Looking forward to hearing/seeing how you go, as I'm keen to do the same.
I too am looking at same thing min 5Kw system. I am very interested to find out which company you went with and what model inverter and panel type you choose.
Cant wait to hear how it all went.
I would suggest others to start seriously looking at going solar after reading my local newspaper.
Today it has been confirmed that the 500MW Power Generator at Wallerawang, NSW, despite promises made during the last State elections to the contrary was recently sold to a Chinese company who because they claim 'there is a Commercial Coal shortage' and a 'Declining trend in energy demand accross NSW' are going to 'Immediately Mothball one Generator'
To those who dont know the area, this is know as the "Western Coal Fields' which actually extends from under Sydney Harbour to the west below Katoomba and around Wallerawang before turning North to encompass Kandos to Ulan then across the Hunter Valley back to Newcastle and the area in between.
Just a few square kilometres of numerous grades of coal including Shale that was converted into kerosene and Petrol in the past.
Just a kilometer from the Power station is a functioning colliery who is spending a few million $$$'s upgrading their Rail loading to export coal to Japan and China.
This colliery did until recently supply coal to this Generator and still does to the nearby Mt Piper station by a conveyor belt so we're at a bit of a loss to explain the 'shortage of coal' !!!
The report phrased it correctly when they say its the "Shortage of 'CHEAP' Commercial Coal'
Those of you interstate may say this doesnt relate to you but as your all connected to the Grid, you can bet if the other Generators can see a way to profit by this they will along the same way Petrol prices rise because of unrelated actions overseas.
I have never disputed there were economies needed when the Stations were owned and run by the Goverment but now we like many others are seeing what happens when operations are privitised without restraint.
I stand unequivicably behind everything I say , I just dont ever remember saying it !!
Maroda (14-04-14),Uncle Fester (19-01-14)
Looking forward to it admin.
I find the "feed in tarrifs" a joke, it was only ever a carrot in the first place.
The real cost saving is every Kw you take off your bill. Thats where the money is.
I was having with a beer with a guy yesterday whom is still on 31cents until October this year and he knew a fellow that was on 61cents... which was news to me. Could be bullshit.
He was also upset that when they shut the power off in Melb over the Heat Wave, that he wasn't earning any money for the solar power he was producing.
He was also sooking that his power got turned off, when he makes his own.... Some people have no idea how things work.
When you get your system up and running, take notes on what you can produce on a good clear, cool day. Then determine what headroom your Inverter has left.
Add some panels to match the specs of your inverter.
A lot of people i speak too, are already talking about getting a larger inverter.
Good Luck with it all.
I have saved over $200 a bill just from switching from Origin to Momentum Energy.... if i add solar to that, I'll be doing even better.
Out of interest, how is the price of your system compared to these guys:
That price is the system less installation, they have an installed price on another page.
If someone was inclined, they could install a solar system without having the "Solar Meter" installed and it would still work, you just wouldn't get any credits, but you would reduce your bill by what you produce You also wouldn't get the rebate.
I know a few people that have done this. The legality is another issue. But the Inverters come with isolation in the event of power failure or you get your power disconnected.
Last edited by ol' boy; 18-01-14 at 04:38 PM.
JasonC (20-01-14)
As you say Oceanboy that many dont know if the Mains go off for any reason, your system DOES not feed into the grid for very obvious reasons.
This is where if you had batteries connected, it would definately be an advantage.
I wonder how many may find their current system isnt upgradeable?
I stand unequivicably behind everything I say , I just dont ever remember saying it !!
Good to see there is a fair bit of interest given the replies and thanks on the original post.
Oceanboy, he likely wasnt bullshitting you on the tarriff some people are receiving 68 cents.
While this sounds great, you have to take in to account that when these people bought their systems they were horrendously expensive compared to now. Realistically, its never been more affordable than what it is now. Although I will probably go a bit over the top, all the average person needs to do is calculate how many kw's they use during daylight hours and get a system that will generate enough to cover their use over that time. Off peak rates for those with smart meters means that outside that daylight period, you will be paying probably less than half the peak rate.
ol' boy (18-01-14)
I see Energy Matters are Glen Clarke have a good name for installs around Melbourne.
Post some of your research admin, its hard to keep up to date with this stuff.
Well, I have taken the plunge and gone for a three KW system which will be installed next week.
The reason I haven’t gone any bigger is obviously money. The system is made of 12 Renesola panels and an aurora (Italian) inverter. Total cost $4.290. This was the cheapest of three quotes that I got, The most expensive one was $6.800 for the same system
do the electricity companies down there switch you onto different
pricing tariffs once you install solar.
i have read some where that once their system was up and running they were switched
to a different pricing structure which was a few cents per Kw more expensive.
Ive also looked at it but my home is a gable roof and looks east west so would
be a total waste of money for me.
dont say linux if i wanted it id install it
I was always under the impression that a lot of the talk was just that, the salesmen said stuff but omitted facts.
ie every unit you generate you receive 63c which actually meant every unit you generate over what you use, you will receive 63c
if you didn't have surplus it was just unit for unit.
Admin, i await your research with interest as i will probably be guided by your experiences
There is a fine line between "Hobby" and "Madness"
Short answer is yes, however I was advised by my installer and Service provider well before a panel ever went on my roof.
I can't remember exactly what the increase was but I feel sure it was around the 8 - 10% level.
But much of that was offset by going to a guaranteed payment plan, I just pay x amount per fortnight
I have a 3Kw system on a north westerly facing roof and my electricity bill for the period 08 Oct 2013 to 08 January 2014 was $62.51
I fed back into the system 664kWh.
I initially forecasted that my 3Kw system would save me about 30% over a year, I've re run the figures and now I estimate the saving is closer to 68%
In hindsight I should have posted my Facebook status as: "I've blown the head gasket on my 1997 XR3i" rather than "I've just buggered a 14 year old escort".
The police still haven't seen the funny side, my lap top's been confiscated and the wife has gone off to her mum's.
jimbo123 (18-01-14),jok11n (18-01-14),LeroyPatrol (18-01-14),ol' boy (19-01-14)
I am sure NSW started with a rebate around 68 cents but soon realised that was unsustainable when the resale figure was around 40 cents.
Diavolo13666, you dont have to mount the panels on your house roof.
I have seen them on sheds,carports and in one case it was an inclined panel used as a 'Privacy screen', just so long as they can get the maximum Sun exposure.
Unfortunately for those on small inner surburban lots, it will take more than creative thinking to instal Solar panels for them.
I stand unequivicably behind everything I say , I just dont ever remember saying it !!
Pretty reasonable hardware from what I have read Tony so you wouldnt expect any problems. You didnt mention who the installer is so make sure thats exactly what they have with them when they turn up to do the job.
I have read numerous instances of companies quoting for certain brand equipment then turning up with something else.
As to research Oceanboy, I will start with who not to go with :
Eurosolar or True Value Solar.
There are stories galore about these 2 companies, both heavily advertise on TV and use sales reps who know very little about what they are selling. Panels could be anything from anywhere and same for inverters. Eurosolar were just prosecuted for lying to customers (I think someone posted a link to it), TVS do it daily.
ol' boy (20-01-14)
I presume you live in a state owned electrcity state? We can sign up with whatever retailer we want to. As I mentioned, smart meters provide many pricing options and as you do not need to buy electricity during the day, you just need to find the best off peak rates. Some retailers offer 3 different TOU (time of use) tariffs over 24 hours.
ol' boy (20-01-14)
the only benefit for grid connected solar I can see now, given the feed in tarrifs are so crappy, is that if you are at home during the day and you only use what you produce you pay nothing for those kW essentially
is that how it works? ie. I produce 3 KW and I use 3 kW during the course of the day = no cost of supply?
so if you aren't home during the day, benefit is minimal
Yep, your own personal circumstances will make a difference as will what state you are in and what you get paid and buy for.
I am currently burning through a minimum of 20 kw's a day and amazingly half of that is at night thanks to my son and his new octo core X Box and collection of TV's and other gadgetry. Using my split system over winter when my gas ducted blew up, I averaged a whopping 35 kw's a day !
As I mentioned with personal circumstances, I am home all day , I have a quite large roof facing in the right direction and zero shade. After that last bill, my fortnightly direct debit for power is a whopping $140. I have borrowed 30K (added) to my mortgage to buy solar, a garage and finish some outside landscaping. Borrowing that 30k is costing me about $90 a fortnight. So I already have a $100 a month saving before I even start. I have changed my mortgage to interest only for a few years, I am no longer stressed about paying a house off though will probably go back to interest and principle once my son leaves home (he has just turned 17).
I just spoke to Daniel at and he is coming down tomorrow afternoon to have a look at my roof and give me a quote. This is the company I prefer to go with based on lots of reading for 2 years. Oceanboy also mentioned , if for any reason I dont go with Solar Sunwerx he would be my next stop for sure.
I understand price will be a major consideration for most people, but to me quality components and workmanship are just as important. This install is also a major investment to my home and will no doubt boost the value as well.
I am in the unfortunate position that I cant work and my wife is working full time so my prospects for making more money are nil. So I have to look at what I can do to reduce spending. To me an empty roof is a wasted space so if I can do something with it, why not ? I will fill it with panels, well as far as I reasonably can. 8 cents a kw isnt a lot to get payed, but paying as low as 12 cents off peak to buy isnt particularly expensive either. So basically, every 3 excess kws I give them during the day, I can grab 2 back at night for no cost. Even if I produce more than totally zeroing my power bill, anything else can go towards my gas bill.
ol' boy (20-01-14)
I have always wondered if the installation of Solar added value to the sale price of your home?
In my mind it doesn't, its just the same as a vehicle with LPG, once in the second hand market, it seems to have no real cash value.
How ever, i can see in a suburban home it might been seen as "Value Adding".
One area of people i have seen interest in Solar, are the soon to be retiring. Doesn't seem to matter how rich or poor they are or how many investments they have, once a normal working cash flow is gone, its all about reducing your monthly costs.
I drove around Geelong yesterday with this thread in mind, noticed a lot of Solar Installations, more than ever!!!
Some schools are nuts, one i drove passed must have had 180 panels +
As you say admin, using the basic 5Kw system as a benchmark, its amazing what the cost is now as compared to 4 or 6 years ago.
Makes you wonder what it will be in another 4 years?
I used to do some Solar Installs a few years ago, but its just not cost effective for a standard electrical contractor to install Solar in todays market of "Solar Only" business's that sell whole systems installed for the price it costs me to buy the material.
Last edited by ol' boy; 20-01-14 at 02:01 PM.
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