Solar panels advice

[Joiningthegossip]

Hi,

We rent our house, it's a new build but have lived here for nearly 2 years.
The house has solar panels & we have all the paperwork from the landlord to set up accounts to try and save money from our electricity provider.

BUT, only the owners of the house are able to benefit from the solar panels, so the smart export guarantee scheme and the feed in tariffs.
This makes no sense, surely there is a way for the tenant to benefit from reduced electricity bills as the landlord doesn't live here.

Is there a way of selling the energy to companies that allow tenants to benefit?

It's seems crazy that they got them fitted but they have no use...

Hopefully someone else has been in the same position and found a way round it?

Thanks

You do benefit from the free electricity though. Only if you're not using it does it get sent back to the grid. You could take over the account a bit like taking over the electricity account for any property. The owners call and give a final meter reading, the electricity company send send a letter and you give your details. Quarterly they email and ask for a meter reading and deposit money. About 500 quid year based on ours.

I'd expect the owners to say no though.

As the previous poster says, you will be benefiting from the free electricity, it's just the surplus that gets fed back into the grid.

The way to maximise the benefit to yourselves is by getting into a routine of running appliances or charging devices in the middle of the day (when the panels are chucking out maximum power) rather than overnight, and running appliances sequentially rather than at the same time - so don't have the dishwasher, the washing machine and the oven all going at the same time, try and use them at separate times.

You can also ask for a solar diverter to be fitted - this is a piece of kit that diverts surplus solar power into your hot water tank, and should reduce your gas usage (or whatever means you use to heat water).

Thank you.

I think I need to call British Gas again, I've called twice and both times they've said I can not benefit from them, only the owners.

The landlord said they are happy to set it up, so would you suggest they set it up for themselves then get it transferred to me? (Some how)

The landlord will be getting the feed in tariffs, you will be getting free electric from the panels whilst they are generating.

Feed in tariff runs separate to your normal gas electric bill. As previous posters say FIT payments are only made to person who owns solar panels the landlord. They are for any excess which is not used. As tenants although you won’t have a payment physically in your pocket a house with solar panels is much more efficient your electric bills should be a lot cheaper than without as you use free generated electric and pay for standing charge any electric which isn’t generated.

Also Legally the landlord can’t transfer the FIT to you as you could quit the tenancy and still be entitled to FIT. If he’s happy to pay them to you all needs doing is you submit figures to landlord with proof they get monies then reimburse you with that money.

Thanks everyone,

Does anyone know if British Gas let you use the free electric towards the bills?
When I spoke to them they made it sound as if the export & FiT are the only options.
I simply wanted to reduce our monthly bill but this is all they can offer meaning me as the tenant can't benefit.
I'm not worried about export & the FiT just to reduce the monthly bill.
I will give them another call tomorrow

You're using the free electric. It's reducing your bill without you knowing t.

So it would've all been set up automatically without me providing them any information?

Yes the electric generated during the day is just 'used' by your appliances - you don't need to do anything. Your landlord will be getting the feed in tariff but your usage of the free electric doesn't make a difference to them.

As others have said, you are already using the free electricity. It's produced during daylight hours by the panels. When you put a kettle on a night, you pay for every penny of the electricity used. Your meter will show the increased useage in your electricity consumption before and after your cuppa.

If you make the same cuppa at noon, and go to check your meter reading then, it won't have changed by the same amount. It may not even have registered any consumption at all. This is because you've managed to use what the solar panels were generating at that particular moment, instead of pulling energy from the National grid for your kettle.
If you consume all your energy at night, you're buying it 100% from the National grid, and paying for it like anyone else.

But if you consume as much of your energy needs as possible during daylight, you'll pull maximum energy from the solar panels - and this will show on your meter reading which only goes up when you are buying from the grid, not from the panels.
You may be able to consume 50% of your energy needs during the day. Your electricity bill will be 50% less. Or, if you're clever, you try to run your dishwasher, washing machine, iron etc during daylight. Sequentially, not at the same time, otherwise you consume more than the panels can produce in any given moment and you pull the rest from the grid and still pay.

Solar energy is constantly being produced in daylight by the panels. Every kWh you consume there and then in the moment, is a kWh you won't see on your meter and won't pay for on your bill.

That's how it works. Solar energy is 'use it or lose it'. So make tea while the sun shines and enjoy your free electricity.

Thank you, looks like I just need to be more clever in the way I use electricity as our electric is £60pcm + gas so was hoping I could make more a saving but just need to be more savvy.

Thanks for the advice

My utilities company also advise tips such as:

Only using one major appliance at a time. So washer on-when it finishes you put the dishwasher on. Not both at the same time. To make sure its the free stuff you use.

Also-try not to use lots of appliances on a dull day

Do energy intensive things in the day and on bright days.

Also-have you lived there long? The benefits are significant in the sprint and summer and much less in the winter. So you need to be there at least a full year to feel the benefit.

@cookiedoughsweetiepie

My utilities company also advise tips such as:

Only using one major appliance at a time. So washer on-when it finishes you put the dishwasher on. Not both at the same time. To make sure its the free stuff you use.

Also-try not to use lots of appliances on a dull day

Do energy intensive things in the day and on bright days.

Also-have you lived there long? The benefits are significant in the sprint and summer and much less in the winter. So you need to be there at least a full year to feel the benefit.

Thanks for the tips, I shall give them a try.

Yes, we've been here two years and we have no difference in bills between seasons.

Do you have anything on your bill statements that show when you've used energy from the solar panels?

No there's no way of knowing, we have an owl that shows how much we are generating (so I know to put things on ! )

It sounds like your energy company are charging you fixed DD payment based on standard use. Due to solar panels my electric is quite low but at first I had to wait til energy company annual review a full year to get them to lower the monthly payment I had built up massive overpayment which got refunded and then they agreed to lower the DD amount. I would check if your in large credit on bills..

Do you have anything on your bill statements that show when you've used energy from the solar panels?

No. Your bill will only show the energy you buy from the grid.

I recommend you take regular meter readings if you want reassurance that you are taking advantage of the free solar energy at your disposal during daylight hours. You can even see in the middle of the day that your meter reading will not be increasing at all despite running your fridge etc, and then if you switch some lights on, the same, and then a dishwasher etc, until you finally switch a kettle on and ask for more energy than the panels can provide in the moment, at which point the meter reading starts to register that you are now buying energy from the grid.
The same can be seen if you're watching the meter when the sun comes out from behind a cloud - you see the meter suddenly stop flashing as the energy supply shifts to the panels and you stop buying it from the grid.

Bear in mind that the energy the panels produce in March is much less than the energy produced in July.

The two are totally separate things and often dealt with by different energy companies.

I get feed in credit quarterly. For energy generated.

I get electric bills monthly. The bills only show what we use. Which is less than it would be if we didn't have solar. But no we can't prove that as the two are unconnected. The energy company doesn't even need to know you have solar.

Our neighbour has solar panels and all of it goes to the grid, so he pays for all usage, then he gets money separately for what he has sold.
If you are on this system then you won't be getting any benefit.