Plug in Solar Panels.....how do they work?

[CXRAndy]

Sadly those deals are long past and newer ones don’t seem to come close.

Unless you buy the products sold by the electric supply companies you won't get the 15p/kW generally offered.
Prices are coming down 12p and as low as 6p are being touted for non compliant systems

 

[CXRAndy]

Im setting up my system not to export anything to grid. I will then decide whether I can get a decent FiT

 

[Regular.Cyclist]

Unless you buy the products sold by the electric supply companies you won't get the 15p/kW generally offered.
Prices are coming down 12p and as low as 6p are being touted for non compliant systems

Been in the property for 5 days now and FIT payment we are on would exceed unit costs set by our energy provider by 8p. Only the standing charge to worry about.

 

[ebikeerwidnes]

Unless you buy the products sold by the electric supply companies you won't get the 15p/kW generally offered.
Prices are coming down 12p and as low as 6p are being touted for non compliant systems

That would sound like a "lock in clause" which is probably illegal

although I do remember when I was ringing round looking to swap supplier it became clear that I could swap gas and electric import but leave the export with the old company

which would be weird - but as it all goes down the same bit of electron stream to the same intermediate company anyway - I suppose it doesn;t matter

 

[Alex321]

That would sound like a "lock in clause" which is probably illegal

No, it is perfectly legal to offer better prices if you take multiple products from them.

Insurers do it regularly, with multi-car policies being cheaper than the individual policies would be.

 

[BoldonLad]

Electricity flows like water - down the pressure gradient. The inverter (connected between solar panel and the grid) converts the DC solar generation to AC and raises the ‘pressure’ (voltage) slighty above the mains voltage to push the electric back down the wire.

I am an electrical ignoramus, but, isn't there also something called "phase" involved in the grid, and, possibly domestic power supplies? I have not idea what "phase" even means, in electrical terms, so, be gentle with me, if you choose to answer 😊

 

[ebikeerwidnes]

I am an electrical ignoramus, but, isn't there also something called "phase" involved in the grid, and, possibly domestic power supplies? I have not idea what "phase" even means, in electrical terms, so, be gentle with me, if you choose to answer 😊

I seem to remember a power cut when I was in Bangor - they were quite common
but in this case it turned out to be every third house

apparently it was just red phase - blue and white were OK

and no - I don't understand it either beyond the basics

 

[presta]

I am an electrical ignoramus, but, isn't there also something called "phase" involved in the grid, and, possibly domestic power supplies? I have not idea what "phase" even means, in electrical terms, so, be gentle with me, if you choose to answer 😊

Yes. Mains is AC (with a sinusoidal waveform) and there are three parameters that define it:

Amplitude, how 'high' the wave is, measured in volts (or amps).
Frequency, how many cycles of the wave there are in one second: the rate at which it oscillates, measured in hertz or radians per second.
Phase, the relative timing of the wave: when the cycle starts, measured in degrees or radians.

If you have two sine waves, the voltage difference between them at any given instant in time is dependent on all of these.