Domestic Solar PV Quotes 2022 - No PM requests - See Mod note post #1

You're better off doing more frequent shorter EV charges if it won't all fit in the cheap night rate. If it's a Zappi there is an option to add X kWh's per day.

Hi All,

Please help. I have spent way too long mulling over all of this so I pray someone can help me. My motivation is to try and become as self sufficient as possible - i want to make the world a small bit better if possible for my kids and save a few bob would be nice too.

I currently have 4 solar panels which were installed on my new build house in 2018. My PV meter in my fuseboard has recorded approx 900kw/h in a calendar year. No fancy app to get a good understanding of what exactly I am getting from these solar panels. I have imported about 3300kw/h since September 2022 via display on my actual smart meter itself.

I have analysed my data via esb account and can see my average daily usage since June 2023 on this dashboard to now is around 7.5kw. I am exporting back a fair bit and since june 22nd to 31st october generated approx 160kwh which I will be credited for via FIT. Basically I find my setup pretty good but as mentioned above its difficult to determine an accurate reflection of my average daily consumption as the esb app just shows what I import and export, there is no way to really know how much energy I obtain via my panels before the grid kicks in. This has really fired my brain for ages trying to understand this

I am putting my annual usage around 3700kwh mark

I have considered adding new efficient panels and have been quoted for 14 including battery 9k after grant. I read that its a good idea to fill the roof. I am east west so splitting it might be a good option. I have no EV and wife not onboard about switching to one anytime soon. I work from home 3 days and always someone home (grandparents minding 2 kids).

Based on the above is 5.6kwp a good choice or too much? What is meant by the expected annual yield? Should I defer battery for now/add more less panels? Should I stay as I am (0.33 import rate now, €450 Gov credits due, 0.21 FIT)? Finally EDDI sounds appealing but in summer would the water be hot at 7am?

I guess my usage will go up as kids get bigger and im hopeful EVs will become the norm. I like the idea of a nice app to manage all of this. I may be a little over specced on 14 panels and id probably rule out the battery at least for the first while. East West config would possibly work well giving me juice in the morning and evening to coincide with my peaks.

However, my hunch is that its probably best option for me to stay as I am for now and obtain more data but looking forward to some feedback. These grant changes and salesmen have me under pressure 😂

Hi Folks

just got this quote, main thing im wondering about is the invertor if i want to add a battery in the future, is this a good one?

4.35 kw system

10 x 435w Jinko N type black panels

Sofar inverter (3K...6KTLM-G3)

Fire shunt isolator

Van Der Valk roofing system

AC And DC cabling

Associated MCB board works

System app monitor for phone

Ber certificate

Not true. You can have as many panels as you want by planning law and the only thing ESB care about is the export capacity of your inverter.

As a fellow procrastinator, get quotes. You have enough data. And I say that kindly :)

East / West is a common setup and works well. What I have. Produces maybe 80% of a South setup.

Ignore Eddi. Export rate is 20C plus for unused units. Heat immersion on cheap night rate instead and export what Eddi would of used.

Max out what the roof and budget can take as others have said

Wondering what others think of this quote. Ive been trying to hit the 1,200 per kwp benchmark but after almost 10 quotes over the last 6 months have not been able to find a company at this rate. It is probably because my system is limited by a small roof which has a velux window thus reducing the size of the solar array.

Anyway quote includes a hybrid inverter & an Eddi. It is either 7 Jolywood panels of 415k watts for e4,700 (net of grant) or if possible 8 panels for 5,000 euro. So its going to be either a 2.9kwp or a 3.3kwp system. So 7 panels would work out at 1,620 per kwp and 8 panels at 1,515 per kwp.

Im under a bit of pressure as the grant is reducing by 300 in January and the company can get the paperwork in before Xmas to avoid the decrease. So need to make a decision in by next week.

Couple of questions- when people talk of the benchmark of 1,200 per 1kwp is that calculation not including the Eddi? And any feedback on these Jolywood panels and 3kw Suzhou Hypontech string inverter, have never heard of them as most companies seem to use Jinko panlels and unsure of if a 3kw inverter is big enough or what limitations it has. And would also welcome comments on paying about 1,600 per kwp. Should I just truck on and suck up the 300 euro decrease in the grant to try to find a company at 1,200 per 1kwp. Or is my small roof and system forever going to mean I cant hit that benchmark? Because thats what it kind of feels like after lots of quotes way above it.

I paid €1600/kWh 18 months ago. Mine is a small house so they put panels on 4 different sections of roof. So took way more labour. I’m still delighted to have solar.

You’re paying more than the rule of thumb as it’s a small system and labour costs are largely the same if they mount 20 panels our 8. Plus as you’ve gotten 10 quotes, the costs are what the market can charge at the moment.

A 3kWp system is very small. I’d suggest get the largest the roof and budget can take. EVs, electric heating….mean our houses will consume more electricity in the future.

A 3kW inverter is plenty for 8x415w panels. Most inverters can be oversized by close to 50% of panels. The installer can check the max limit.

Drop the Eddi as others have said. FIT is paying 20c plus for an unused kWh sent back to the grid. Then just pull the trigger and book it in. 

At the end of a frustrating year I'm desperate for a bit of advice please. Paid a hefty €5k deposit back in August on an 11 panels array with a Livoltek hybrid Inverter (incl 5.12K battery) producing 4143kwh/a (€13,300 before SEAI grant, €10,900 net) based on the solar company's assurance that in addition to the 5 panels on my roof (which they installed in August and are sitting there doing nothing) the further 6 panels could be installed using a cherry picker on the gable end of the house (east-facing, the roof faces South). The company then decided it wasn't safe to use a cherry picker due to power lines overhead and told me to get my ground level Lean-to roof reinforced so they could climb up on it and install on the gable from there. In the midst of lots of other work what was causing lots of other trouble we couldn't get anyone to do the lean-to roof job.

The solar company says at last that their roofers will do this reinforcement ("only 2 hrs work" they keep saying) and I am trying to agree that they pay the labour and I'll pay the materials as I have no need of a reinforced roof only for them to finish the job they started. I have also asked them to give me a discount for the electricity I should have generated.

They have now come back with a revised proposal with a change in hardware and I am concerned that they might be cutting corners to recoup their costs at my expense. They are offering €320 off the invoice towards electricity not generated, and €250 off for a hot water diverter that I didn't need, which seems fair and any reduction is welcome. But the spec has changed from a Livoltek inverter (not apparently on the SEAI EEE list so maybe that was a lucky escape) to a Solis 1p5k-4g.

This is the proposal:

11 x RSM130-8-440M 440 Watt Panels (Risen Energy Co., Ltd.)

1 x Solis-1P5K-4G (SOLIS - Ningbo Ginlong Technologies)

1 x BX51100 (Dyness)

Standard System Price

€13,300.00

Any thoughts would be well appreciated. I really liked the company and probably could have shopped around more but they were local and really helpful - there has been a lot of personnel change while I've been dealing with them, though, and I have lost quite a bit of faith in them. But with my deposit paid I feel a bit backed into a corner.

Thanks...

Hi everyone,

Any opinions on this quote?

• 10 x Jinko Tiger 435 N-Type (JKM435N-54HL4R-B) 435 Watt Panels (Jinko Solar)
• 1 x Solis H1 Energy Storage 3.6kW Hybrid 5G Inverter with DC switch (Solis)
• 1 x Dyness 5.1 kWh Battery (DL5.0C)
• 1 x FSS
• 1 x Eddi with Hub
• 1 x BER
  • €11,321.00

Many thanks for any views...all very new to this!

Woah! That's 14.6kWp of panels but the ESB limit is a little over 5kW of an inverter in total. That means the system can't produce more than 5kW. You can oversize to around 8kWp on a 5kW inverter depending on the design and roof orientation. But nothing like 14.6kWp.

Unless you already have 3 phase you can't go that large. What was their rationale for such a large system?

Or to get above the 5kW limit, you need to pay the ESB 1k for an 'NC7' so you've a large connection from the house. But that's not non refundable AFAIK and can be more costs on top of that to EBS.

Looks like they are providing 2 x 5kW inverters. Once the 5kWh battery is filled (which will really really early in the morning based on your system size), then 2nd inverter won't be doing anything.

Btw, it you're using 11000kWh a year, it's 30kWh a day average without an EV. You've a heatpump I guess, yeah? So in winter it's more likely 50+kWh a day and much lower in summer. A 5kWh battery won't touch the sides of such a heavy winter usage - mentioning in case you're not aware.

got a top level quote for huawei system - 22 panels, 10kw battery, (no eddi needed have solar tubes for hotwater apr to sept and oil-fired when needed))

circa 14k (not incl grant) - does that sound ok?

Thanks, you're right I am thinking and overthinking and stressed beyond sense. You did misunderstand me though for the record - the roof supporting the panels isnt the issue (house roof is already full owith 5 panels) , the other 6 panels are going on a wall and that roof in question is a plastic roof over my washing line that is now required to support workers to work from while installing onto the wall. I'm worried about damage to the plastic roof, risk to the workers, you name it, I've lain awake freaking out about it. And of course the colossal cost that I fear is an unwise investment. You're right, I'm lucky they put up with me, thanks for the perspective, i needed to hear it.

Interesting, because even at €15500.00 it says the below

http://davidhunt.ie/solar/