Solar Panels Three Years On

Our solar panels have now been installed for exactly 3 years.

Over that time they've now generated 9588kWh of electricity - this would have been nearer 9800 kWh due to an inverter fault in 2012 that lost around 200kWh of generation being produced.

You can see how this generation is broken down by month and year here

Solar Panels Three Years On

Solar PV kWh generation each month

You can find out the amount of Solar PV electricity we have generated as kwh generation each month on our Solar PV website

http://solar-panels-review.321web.co.uk/monthly-pv-solar-panel-generation.php





Solar PV kWh generation each month

The kWh amount of solar PV electricity generated each month varies massively across the year with summer running at around 4 times the amount in winter. The amount during each day varies as well with the peak around midday.



kWh amount of solar PV electricity generated each day

October 2014 Sunny Boy Data Loaded

The data from our Sunny Boy inverter for October 2014 has now been uploaded to the website. As of next month we will start to have 4 years worth of data to compare as our solar panels were installed in November 2011.

View Annual Solar PV panel output in Kent UK

2014 has been very mild so far, I wonder how the winter will compare to last year when we didn't have more than one night of frost over the whole winter period.

October 2014 Sunny Boy Data Loaded

How Are Solar Panels Fitted to a Roof?

How are solar panels fitted to the roof of your house?

Metal bracket/clips are screwed to the rafters under the tile and then the mounting system is attached to them. The tiles should then sit flat against the brackets so there is no damage or change to the tiles on the roof.

Are Solar panels still a good investment despite Feed In Tariff drop?

Do Solar panels still give a good investment return?

The Feed In Tariff (FIT) rates have plummeted since 2011 but are solar panels still a good investment? When FITs were announced in 2010 the cost of solar panels were around £16,000 for a 3-4 kWp system and FIT payments were around 45p per kWh generated.



Do Solar panels still give a good investment return?

Since then FIT rates have dropped substantially but solar panel installation prices have done so too meaning that the relationship between solar PV panels and FIT has stayed roughly the same. The main difference between the returns now and in 2011 is that the current Feed in Tariff is only guaranteed for 20 years rather than the 25 years for the pre-2011 FIT rates.

So £16,000 for a system paying 45p FIT is much the same return as a £5000 system being paid out at 15p FIT rates. The solar electricity generated will be the same for a system regardless of the FIT rate paid so the returns should be comparable.

Do you agree or do you think that solar is no longer a good investment?

Do Solar Panels Generate Power in the winter if it is sunny?

Do solar panels generate power in the winter if it is sunny?

On sunny winter days solar panels will still generate electricity and can do so at fairly high rates. Solar panels are affected by temperature and on hot summer days the peak electricity output will be reduced as the temperature increases so winter with cooler days will help raise that peak.


Do solar panel generate power in the winter if it is sunny?

Against the improvement from temperature the length of day is reduced and the sun is much lower in the sky which will reduce the amount of solar panel electricity generated. Obviously on snowy days the electricity generated will be zero when the panels are covered in snow and when the panels are frosty as in the photo of our panels above they won't produce any power until the sun comes up and melts the frost off them.

The power generated from solar panels in the UK in winter is much lower than during summer months as you can see from the tables in the links below. December average from our panels is around 100kWh for the month but summer months such as June can generate well over 400kWh. So in summer the solar panels generated four times as much electricity as in winter - or in winter the electricity produced by solar panels is one quarter of the amount in summer.

Solar Panel electricity produced in winter

Solar power generated in January
Solar power produced in June

Monthly summary of solar electricity produced

Fitting Electric Oven - How to Connect New World NW601F Built In Electric Oven

The built in electric oven in the house had broken so I bought a new one from the fantastic AO.com. Ordered on a Sunday and the new oven was delivered the next day - an amazingly good service!

The New World Newworld NW601F Built In Electric Single Oven was shown as requiring professional installation by an electrician but on delivery it appeared that the connection to the power supply was identical to the existing oven so could be connected very easily.

Replacing Electric Oven - How to Connect New World NW601F Built In Electric Oven

How to Access the Terminals on New World NW601F Built In Electric Oven?

The rear of the oven has a black plastic cover that conceals the electrical terminals, you may need to use a small screwdriver to unclip the tabs that clip into place preventing the cover opening accidentally. Once the cover is open the terminals are visible so you can connect the N, L and Earth cables to the oven with the blue, brown and green cables. Once done, refit the oven in the kitchen and screw the sides to the units.



Fitting an electric oven to existing socket

Fitting an electric oven to existing power supply

How to open electrical terminal cover on New World oven

How to open electrical terminal cover on New World oven

How to fit New World NW601F Built In Electric Oven to power supply