As a relatively straightforward installation that can save you thousands of pounds a year, solar PV is a brilliant financial investment and one that you can be proud of as you making a contribution to reducing carbon emissions.
Sustain are one of the UK’s most respected domestic solar PV installers and we are on hand to deliver a fantastic solution for your home. We have helped numerous homeowners to reap the fantastic rewards of solar PV.
Solar Process
You will be thoroughly impressed with our comprehensive solar PV process, which places efficient and effective customer service at its core. You will receive accurate estimations of performance as well as detailed information on your solar PV system, so the decision making process is easy.
We want to make it comfortable and simple, so you fully understand and appreciate the benefits of solar PV for your property. Our accredited solar installers deliver a tailored design for your property to meet your particular needs.
FREE or Purchased Solar PV Installations
Sustain can install the solar panels for FREE or you can choose to have a purchased solar pv installation. The free solar panel option sounds too good to be true, doesn’t it, but in reality it is a fantastic option for those people or organisations who do not have the capital to outlay on a purchased solar PV installation.
So What’s The Catch?
With a free solar PV installation, the panels are installed on your roof and you can use them for your electricity requirements on a daily basis. You should see a significant reduction in your electricity bills, potentially as much as 40% and £200 per year (figures based on UK average home figures).
With a free solar panel installation provided by Sustain you will not receive the full benefits of the government backed feed in tariff, Sustain effectively lease your roof for this purpose and will receive any benefits from the feed in tariff.
On the other hand, if you purchased a solar PV installation from Sustain, not only will you benefit from a reduction in your electricity bills, but you will also benefit from the feed in tariff, which is guaranteed by the government for 20 years. While there is an initial outlay involved, the financial investment is potentially more lucrative, however it is dependent on whether capital is available for your project.
See our full comparison on the differences between a purchased and FREE solar PV Installation.
Solar PV In Operation
A solar PV system consists of an array of panels that are typically mounted on a domestic property roof. Some of our domestic customers have ground solar PV systems but the vast majority are installed on roofs.
Solar panels are constructed of photovoltaic cells that are wafer-thin layers of silicon and they look very similar to blue or black tiles. During the daytime light will hit the cells and this consequently creates an electric field. If more of this plentiful sunlight hits the panels, more electricity will be produced to power the electrical items within the home. See more on how solar panels work.
Light hits the solar panels to generate direct-current (DC) electricity and this subsequently flows to the inverter, which is installed inside the property. The inverter converts the (DC) electricity into alternating-current (AC) electricity, so that it can be used to power the property.
When you have a solar PV system installed in a domestic property, the electricity generated will automatically be fed to the appliances and other electrical items. A lot of the power that you generate during the day will therefore essentially be free.
During the evening, however it is likely that you will switch back to the grid to power your property given that the solar panels do not operate during night time hours. Don’t worry about the solar PV installation, you will see very little disruption or change – just lower electricity bills. See more on how solar panels work.
It is essential that you make use of your investment and all that free electricity, so it is a good idea to use appliances like washing machines and dishwashers during the day. This may be logistically a problem but it will make a difference to your electricity bills.
Remember that even if you don’t use the electricity, it will be distributed back to the grid and you will receive payments through the feed in tariff scheme (if you have a paid solar installation from Sustain). As such, it is not just about using electricity during the day to maximise your system, you still receive fantastic benefits and financial gains by having a solar PV system installed.
It is not possible currently to store electricity that is generated from the solar PV system, so any excess electricity that is not used will be fed into the national grid for others to use.
Sustain have plenty of experience with installing solar PV on various domestic properties. Even the most complicated roofs with very little space for solar panels are still relevant for an installation of solar PV.
Our solar surveyors, expert design team and installers work closely together to specify a system, that is suitable for your circumstances. If there is less space on the roof, we tend to install more efficient panels to ensure you maximise the space available. So if you have a semi-detached property, large detached house or a property portfolio, Sustain have a solution for your needs. Is your property suitable for solar PV?
Many of the installations that Sustain complete are retrofit installations on current properties. This involves the installation of solar panels on the roof, which means that the rails and mounting system are attached on top of the roof tiles.
For new construction we may install the panels in a similar fashion on the roof or an in roof installation maybe applicable. In this instance, the panels are installed as a replacement for roof tiles and are expertly fitted and sealed to ensure their effective operation.
Why Solar PV?
So, why should you choose solar PV here are a few key benefits:
Reduce Your Carbon Footprint
A Sound Investment
Unlimited Free Electricity
Save & Earn Money
Solar Growth
The latest figures released by the Department of Energy and Climate Change (DECC) for solar PV installations shows that the 1.3GW mark has been surpassed.
Furthermore, these statistics highlight that approximately half a million UK homes have solar PV installed. This growth is predominantly as a result of installations within the 0-4kW segment, which is for domestic properties. An average of 7.77MW has been installed every week since September 2013.
Such growth is fantastic for UK consumers who are now as a consequence less exposed to large and unpredictable energy bill increases.
The solar trade association has an ambition of seeing one million solar roofs installed in the UK by 2015. While this may sound very ambitious, it does reflect the continuing growth of solar PV within UK and consumers desire to reduce their electricity bills.
To see how you can benefit from solar PV check out the solar trade associations website YourRoof.Info and utilise their calculator tool to estimate you’re likely returns from investing in solar.
