Anyone got solar panels ..does it save you a fortune?

[ggirl]

how much to get installed?

We had 17 panels installed in December at a cost of around 14k (got a 10 year loan to cover this). Generated minimal amounts in Dec, Jan, Feb obviously due to weather and winter darkness but now that the better weather is finally here we are making enough to cover the loan payment and our electricity is virtually free! Actually our meter is running backwards but our provider may have to change this soon, we're still learning how it all works.
In short, we reckon the panels will have paid for themselves in around 10 years and after that we will have free electricity and a profit of roughly £170 per month. There are lots of variables obviously it depends on where you are in the country, weather, which provider you're with etc.....
Sorry if I've rambled but as I said its all a bit new to us, hope I've helped a little anyway.

Interesting to read this ... we were just discussing last night whether to look into this. DH reckoned it might be about 10k to get it installed, but the returns looked great. (And we have a perfect south facing roof.)

Not sure what happens when you move house.... do the payments for electricity generated definitely get passed on to the new owners (in which case, presumably reflected in the house price at the time), or is that a loophole in the government scheme? Investigating further.

We have solar hot water (rather than electricity generating) as only have a small unshaded south-facing area and were replacing the boiler anyway.

We're really chuffed, and in summer use so little gas we can barely measure it (household of 1.5 people, cook on electric). Limited benefit this last dark, miserable winter, but good value the previous brighter, clearer winter.

thanks for the replies
unclehairysgirlfriend-£14k !! bloody hell , I had no idea they were that £££. Think for us 10yrs is a long time for any payback tbh.

I'm looking at paying just over 5k for a 3 panel system. 3 of us in thr house mostly. other fuel is oil. payback period ( with the rural area feed in payment) expected to be about 7-8 years. It would be less time if we had an optimal site, we get no sun for 2 months of teh year.

there was a program about this on radio 4 you and yours this am. Very complicated and no real financial benefit for ages. TBh lost the will to live listening to all the small print stuff about it...have decided it's a no from me.

The Gov are going to be giving incentives for this shortly see Which Site.