Archive for the ‘Solar Energy’ Category
Take Advantage of the Feed-in Tariff with Solar PV Panels
In the UK, the popular Feed-in Tariffs scheme is intended to help homeowners generate their own electricity from renewable sources. A homeowner can elect to generate green electricity from photovoltaicsolar panels, wind turbines or hydroelectricity sources. Electricity is generated from these panels and the homeowners electricity supplier is the party responsible for paying the homeowner for each unit of electricity produced.
The advantages to the homeowner who has photovoltaic solar panels installed are twofold. First, households which generate their own electricity use it so they use less from their electricity supplier resulting in lower electric bills. A person could expect to use approximately 40% less electricity from their supplier. The second advantage is that a person’s energy supplier will pay them a set rate for each kWh of electricity generate.
With advantages come disadvantages. Not everyone can make use of photovoltaic solar panels for generating their own electricity, an unshaded, south-facing roof is needed. The Feed-in Tariffs payments can make installing photovoltaic solar panels a reasonable investment, but only for people who planning on staying in their current home long enough to recoup their investment. A typical domestic system to generate electricity will cost around £13,000, which may not be feasible for some homeowners. The costs do vary. For many, the investment is worth it, it certainly is worth investigating further. Solar pv panels which heat water are the most practical option for a homeowner although they do not generate an income, only hot water.