Feed in Tariff

How much does a Solar Panel system cost?

"How much does a solar panel system cost?" is a question we are quite often asked.

Well that depends on:

- the size of system that you are looking for

- the type of solar panel e.g. silver panels are not as expensive as black ones, Chinese manufactured panels are quite often less expensive than the German manufactured panels.....etc

- the type of inverter e.g. micro inverters are more costly than string inverters but allow monitoring at a panel level normally via the internet.

- the length of time you are looking for payback. At the moment if you used half of the electricity generated you could achieve a return on your initial investment by year 8 (based on electricity saving and FIT), with the remaining...

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Solar PV System Service Maintenance Inspection

Solar PV System Service Maintenance Inspection

In order to make sure your system is performing at its optimum we are now offering a “Solar PV System Service Maintenance Inspection” starting from  £180.00  (including VAT at 20%)

Your Solar PV system will have been installed a few years now and just like your car is probably ready for a routine service /maintenance check.

On a monthly or quarterly basis you will have been reading your total generation meter to check that the system is generating, but have you been checking your inverter for any messages? Would you know if you have an issue with a panel? The answer to that is probably “NO”.

With a single 250W Panel generating an estimated £3,335* throughout...

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What is the Solar PV Feed in Tariff rate now?

What is the solar PV feed in tariff rate now? We are quite often asked this question with these changing quarterly. The solar PV feed in tariff rates that will take effect from 1st April 2015 have been announced. For the last 3 quarter ends degression has been applied to all banding rates with the exception of the rate for those systems in the 10 kW to 50 kW band. These rates can be seen on our feed in tariff page www.cgascoigne.co.uk/services/solar-pv/feed-in-tariff/ If you are interested in having a solar PV system installed please contact us for a no obligation off the desk illustration. T) 01509 341971 email)...

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Should I test and maintain my Solar PV system?

The simple answer to "Should I test and maintain my Solar PV system ?" is yes.

Once your system has been installed and commissioned by your MCS installer it is important to ensure that the long term performance of your system is not compromised . The things to consider:

- Surface contamination - PV modules can become dirty over time, with leaves, rain, and bird droppings!

- Physical damage  - objects dropped by birds

- Damage to wiring - Rodents love a bit of cable!

- Environmental degradation

C Gascoigne Ltd offer a "Test and Inspection" service. If you are interested please contact us

t) 01509 341971 e) info@cgascoigne.co.uk

and we would be pleased to discuss this with...

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WHAT IS THE SOLAR PV FEED IN TARIFF RATE?

The Solar PV Feed in Tariff rate for new installations after the 1st January 2015 has been announced and has per the degression mechanism introduced the rate has been reduced for systems  with less than 50kW capacity by 3.5%.

For systems under 4kW the rate is now 0.1388p per kWh generated; The export tariff remains at 0.0477p per kWh until 1st April 2015

All the rates can be found on our Feed In Tariff page....http://www.cgascoigne.co.uk/services/solar-pv/feed-in-tariff/

If you are interested in having a Solar PV system installed please contact...

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**Solar iBoost Special Offer**

 "Solar iBoost"

Special Offer

Supplied and installed for £ 379.20*, including 20% VAT

* based on a local, simple installation taking under 2 hours.

C Gascoigne Ltd NICEIC Approved electrician and MCS accredited Solar PV installer are your local Solar iBoost supplier and installer covering Loughborough and the surrounding areas for homes/businesses with Solar PV installed.

The Solar iBoost is a simple to install product that wirelessly monitors the energy generated by a Solar Array and diverts any exccess energy to heat the hot water in the immersion heater.

Solar-iBoost-Brochure-cglvJUly...

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Solar PV Photovoltaic Feed in Tariff rates 1st January 2014

Solar PV Photovoltaic Feed in Tariff rates 1st January 2014 were released by OFGEM on 31st October 2013. A 3.5% degession (reduction) has been applied to the FiT tariff for systems that are installed with a capacity greater than 50kW and for standalone systems. The updated tariffs can be found: - on our webpage http://www.cgascoigne.co.uk/services/solar-pv/feed-in-tariff/ or - at OFGEM https://www.ofgem.gov.uk/ofgem-publications/84190/fitpaymenttable1january2014tariffs.pdf. For any one considering installating a Solar PV Photovoltaic system it should be noted that in the Spring (1st April 2014) the FiT rate for systems installed with a capacity of less than 50kW will be reduced  under the current legislation even if the installed capacity expected in this next period has not been achieved! The miniumum reduction is 3.5% so the FIT for systems up to 4kW in size is likely to reduce to 14.38p...

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Identifying Faulty Low Yielding Solar Photovoltaic PV Systems

IDENTIFYING FAULTY, LOW YIELDING, SOLAR PHOTOVOLTAIC (PV) SYSTEMS The purpose of this article is aimed at providing the information needed to make a sensible and informed decision as to whether a Solar PV system is operating as it should by identifying faulty, low yielding, solar PV system causes. Experience tells us that most system performance issues come down to unrealistic expectations from comparisons against incomparable systems.  Before delving into a suspected problem, it must be noted that financial yields and system performances will vary significantly between manufacturers, panel orientations/pitches and site conditions.  Solar PV arrays can seldom be compared at the side of one another for these reasons. The first thing I would recommend anybody to do, beyond the obvious, would be to check the system against the forecast you should have received...

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Proposed Best Practice for Solar PV Farm developements

The Solar Trade Association (STA) has proposed best practice for Solar PV farm developments / projects. The STA has published 10 commitments for Solar PV farm developers which are designed to encourage best practice and public support for large Solar PV projects. The STA want the following commitments from Solar PV Farm developers/installers:

  • We will focus on non-agricultural land or land which is of lower agricultural quality.
  • We will be sensitive to nationally and locally protected landscapes and nature conservation areas, and we welcome opportunities to enhance the ecological value of the land.
  • We will minimise visual impact where possible and maintain appropriate screening throughout the lifetime of the project managed through a Land Management and/or Ecology plan.
  • We will engage with the community in advance of submitting a planning application.
  • We will encourage land diversification...

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Solar-PV Feed in Tariff October 2013

Solar-PV Feed in Tariff October 2013 - Ofgem have confirmed that the FiT (feed-in tariff ) will not be reduced on 1st October 2013; with the next rate review due 1st January 2014.

Although no degressions have taken place in the larger tariff bands there is a call for the DECC to fix the feed-in tariff scheme for non-domestic solar as in light of the recent negations between the EU and China, there is concern that the UK policy framework “will be increasingly out of kilter with real world costs" with the automatic degression mechanism meaning that, even at current low levels of deployment, the >50kW tariff bands will all be reduced by 3.5% across the board on 1 January 2014. Watch this...

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