interest free loan over 10 years supposedly. “Home Energy Scotland application” … – but their email has energy savings trust…. takes a bit of digging on google and then a nonsense half hour phone call with someone asking if you have energy saving lightbulbs etc – they then send you a code and a link by email, which you need to do the application.

Application needs a quote from an MCS approved installer – they have a list of people…

i invited 4/5 of them to quote – still trying to work out if the quotes are good value or if they are pricing to max out the spend of the loan.

one sent a “quote” = £6k for solar and £6k for batteries to get ball rolling and said they would send a propoer quote once we had desired spec in mind for battery and panels etc

Currently waiting for Energy Saving Trust loan (£6k solar + £6k battery) – 11 panels going to go on roof and trying to figure out best battery option…

Daffy
Full Member

Say for example, my 13kWh Battery was £6800 and a 5kWh Battery was £3k. I need to figure out if that £4k is worth it. At 10p/kwh difference between export and import, That’s 40000kWh worth of power I’d need to store to make back the difference. I’m not going to do that in 10 years, probably not in 20.

A 5Kw battery would, as you say act as a capacitor and get me through the peak period, thus making the best of the system without the massive buy in costs of larger batteries. I’ve got nearly 20kWh here now, but had flux been available in January, I might not have installed the additional 6.5kWh.

I’m looking at pretty much this calculation at the moment – whether to go 5/10/15kWh battery when our daily usage is ~20-22…

looking at battery spec, some have 10000 charge cycles, some have >6000… thinking this needs to be checked for the 40000kwh worth mentioned above to check battery wont be goosed before it has paid for itself? 40000 / 5kwh = 8000 cycles so 6000-10000 is critical?

Do you just assume 1 charge per day or will it be charging once on solar and once through night? effectively halving the life of the battery?

My basic calc is that instead of electricity being 34p/kWh, it will be 12p, so 22p saving if run through battery x 90% efficiency / depth of discharge reduction? = 20p saving at today’s prices…

5kwh battery x 365 x 20p = £365 return each year per battery?
Libbi 5kwh battery = £3200, therefore 8.7 year payback?
10000 cycles / 365 (once per day) = 27 year lifetime!?, though more likely to be twice a day?

Growatt is £2500 cheaper for 10kwh setup, £2100 for extra battery (i.e. £4600 more for the same capacity), less power in and out and >6000 cycles for the lifetime. Installer is pushing libbi as the much better system / work better with the app and zappi… more like a 5.7 year payback on the growatt if they function well enough?

Also looking at specs on foxx / pylontech / puredrive which have been recommended by other installers… quite a variety of cost / lifecycles / ratings

Looking back through my historic energy rates:
2016 – 10.21p
2017 – 12.33p
2018 – 12.37p
2019 – 12.37p
2020 – 15.09p
2021 – 14.88p
2022 – 27.84p
2023 – 33.91p

Will batteries continue to make sense for next 10 years? More chance of rates rising than falling or will wholesale market adjust to renewables?

ideal thanks

We’ve got a flat garage roof in Glasgow (approx 5.5m x 4m / 23m2) that gets sun most of the day, effectively our only potential for south facing. The house is E/W and North facing and is Victorian semi so wouldn’t be appreciated by neighbours… Looking at option of putting 10/12 panels on the garage and rear extension, or 9 on garage and 3 on a frame next to the garage out of sight…

Would be going over a 2 year old sika liquid plastic roof – looking at the plastic trays for ballasting or else knock up a frame with pads to spread the load. There is a small ~300mm parapet upstand around the roof so shouldn’t be “too” exposed to wind…

Is there a go to DIY package on the web, or a go to panel type that is considered the best value for money for this type of setup? There seem to be loads to choose from.

My facebook feed is now full of firm after firm offering 12 panels + inverter + battery deals from £5k to 13k… Plenty of DIY kits come up in google but it would be good to have a real recommendation from someone who has done something similar.

Electric company car coming in May will change our usage / might be looking at car charging point and a house battery setup too? Hard to know which way to go.

Sale of our existing car may provide some of the funds for this project. Looking for a bit of energy future proofing but will only do it if numbers work. I appreciate Glasgow and flat roof aren’t perfect.

We consumed 7783kWh last year, = 21kWh per day. Expecting this to go up next year with car charging.

Any help would be greatly appreciated, thanks.

Thanks for input above… good to know about gooutdoors experience.

I haven’t seen any hmrc guidance on wheel size but I’m sure it won’t be an issue. 🙂

The bike will be used for cycling to the office now and again (working from home – how does that work…).

One sentry review had it at 18kg or so but still fun. I’d discounted it because of the other things on offer but will look again

Aethers look like great value, though all the choices will make it even longer to choose – will need to check C2W works and then get researching

Cool thanks – i’ll take a look.

estate yes. Giving it away at 3300!

We paid more than we should have from Arnold Clark last year (£7k+), great condition and history so keen not to give it away and it’s hard to find a petrol replacement than is anywhere near as nice for under £10k (wife’s commute has recently shortened to a 10 minute drive).

Mazdas on eBay / gumtree / autotrader seem to vary a lot. Can see the same car up from £4K to £8k. Even if you don’t buy mine, I’d recommend it as above… overlooked by many, reliable, fast, spacious etc.

For sale: Mazda 6 sport (as above) 10-plate, 46k, 2.2l diesel 180bhp with all the extras, £5500.

Cracking car for someone doing 20k/year

Can anyone recommend a dehumidifier? Meacos looking good on Amazon reviews.

We have a long unheated extension off our kitchen which sits in the shade and has signs of bubbling paint on the coldest wall. Humidity currently at 80%+ when kitchen is at 50. Thinking to try a dehumidifier for a week or two to reduce this and carry on using in the house for clothe drying etc.

House is 1900 semi. Fairly draughty, though with pvc double glazing (with vents).

Thanks in advance for suggestions

ride the powell-mason cable car from one end to the other when you arrive. good way to start. takes you up and over the top. jump off at lombard street, walk about and then jump back on to go down to the piers (really touristy area but probably has to be done). take a walk round to get the boat over to alcatraz (need to book in advance!) – takes a couple of hours but gives a good view of city / GG bridge looking back. Once back on dry land, hire the bikes from their and cycle over golden gate bridge. (you can do a round trip and get ferry back across the bay if you dont fancy the cycle back.) Trip over the bridge is a must.

Try and get to Haight Ashbury etc, lots more to see other than just the tourist spots…

Get a super burrito at some point from one of the numerous mexican places (can’t remember the brand name). Also, one of the best pizzas ever is from an italian (fracis ford coppla’s favourite – see google again sorry).

SUCH a good city.

waiting for reply from brother to confirm he doesn’t want to keep it – will let you know asap

where abouts are you simon? Just looking for frame?

medium sambob?

will check them out thanks

sorry for hijack: what gloves for skiing & boarding, preferably around the £30 mark? any good deals around at the moment?

just stayed in the hotel notting hill (new hotel) – next to heineken brewery / reichsmuseum – very good hotel for £100 after 10% off from hotels.com. central location / next to trams. recommended

Loving the responses – thanks everyone.

Need to take 6 weeks of work and go everywhere by the sounds of it!

Will continue the research tonight, with even more places to look at.

Thanks for the comments – weather is a bit of a concern – just looking at average temps there – except for Rome, most places seem to be similar to Britain.

Now looking at Rome and Bruge!

We have been to Paris many times and just fancy something different. Happy to do museums / history / bars / restaurants / sightseeing. Think all these cities have plenty to do. Not bothered about red light district / amsterdam cafes but heard it’s a good city to see.

The old road bridge is literally falling to bits – gaps in places where you can see to the water.

Once the new one is complete, the old one will be getting fixed.

Also, the old bridge will be used for public transport / taxis / bikes (eventually).

Civil Engineer too here:-

Surely you just need to find a different job in construction / work on an interesting project or something? get a job which send you abroad? find a new challenge?

Long time to retrain / problem of having little experience / need a 1st class masters degree from Cambridge to stand a chance?

Maybe a life in F1 isn’t as glamorous as it sounds? travel to interesting places would be good but fluid mechanics of an exhaust doesn’t sound any more interesting than working out forces on a bridge

maybe I’m ranting but it you have a 5 year degree in a not bad subject! Dream job in F1 might be hard to come by

To go back to my post, there isn’tmuch between them really. If it was my money, I wouldn’t get either. Go for older Audi/BMW etc.

my 2 cents,

had 08 golf for company car for 6 months – nice car, though basic and small. no problems and felt solidly built.

Got 58 plate focus as long term company car (1.8 tdci zetec) – higher spec, better to drive / faster & bigger boot. City mpg is just over 30, motorway at 70/80mph gets you up to 50mpg.

The bad news about the focus, clutch failed after year one. a colleague with exact same model/vintage car had same problem 2 months later. not sure if it’s a bad batch or if there is a problem with the 1.8 tdci. In the last 2 months, the clutch has started to slip at 90mph again. Definitely on it’s way out – 2 clutches in 25000 miles. The central locking is making a funny clunk at the passenger side lock. The drivers electric window vibrates as it reaches the top randomly.

I always say I prefer the focus as long as I am not paying the fuel bill / servicing / repair costs.

If it was my money, I might not feel the same… tough one.

Going for the new 2011 plate focus to replace the existing one next month.

Can’t beat the Henry Westons cider (special vintage reserve)

Looking at moving at the moment

Fish & chips and orange squash isn’t really an argument for staying somewhere.

The UK is Okay, but other places clearly have something to offer.

Only thing I want to stay for is family and friends and familiarity – otherwise keen to explore.

Everywhere has it’s pros and cons I guess

i’m really liking mine – desire is better but twice the price.

first “smartphone” i’ve had – better than i thought it would be – battery needs charged each night when using it frequently but i guess most smartphones would probably be the same.

no lag with mine

would recommend it for value for money terms – good deals around too

2nd cockfosters for free parking on a side street for a few days – dont do what we did and drive right into london, relying on our (non-driver) hosts saying there would be plenty of places to leave the car overnight near a tube station!

drove for 2 hours from north to south, and then 2 hours back again

never trust a non-driver…

i think glenmorangie is £15 in morrisons atm…?

i’d learn before you go…

say £150 at snozone / xscape would get you four 2 hour sessions. spread them over a month and you’ll be in a much better position to go abroad.

quite hard to do 6 days straight on holiday as a total beginner

parcel monkey?

sent a frame next day delivery for £18 a couple of days ago. they might go a bit bigger for no extra cost…

just mailed you one

Could sell you my used Alpine stereo from if you were interested? was an insurance replacement i had fitted last year and since getting a company car it is no longer required.

Has an apple ipod conection, not sure if that would suit you?

Alpine make some of the best stereos about.

was £150-200 last year. would sell for £75

still looking to sell?

I've got a very similar condition patriot frame from the year before – wouldnt mind the change to the 5 if the price was right…