Devon ground mount solar PV

Devon ground mount solar PV, a photo by ChrisRudge on Flickr.

Just testing the flickr interface with a repeat image.. New stuff coming soon.

Ground Mount solar

So, you've not got enough space on the roof, or your house/ outbuilding roof faces the wrong way (ie not South'ish), then why not look at this option of getting a ground mount.

We installed t

his system for a customer who liked the idea of keeping the system below the level of the stone wall that can be seen in the background enabling him to have an unobstructed view from the house.

The system could have

been installed 2 modules high, but this method keeps everything nicely low profile.

Feed in Tariff April update

Great news for people getting the Feed in Tariff from their Renewable Power Systems, Ofgem have announced the annual inflation based review of the Feed in Tariff rates. See HERE for the full table.

For standard under 4kWp systems, the 41.3p a unit rate will be increasing on the 1st April to 43.3p for every generated unit.

See the chart for other rates.

Training at SMA Germany

I'm not long back from doing a few days training at the SMA, Sunny Boy, HQ in Neistetal, Germany. The image to the left is inside the 4 storey glass mounted PV array on the Academy.
I now have certification for communications programming for products such as the Webbox, to enable your system to upload the system history and performance to your own customisable website. This webpage can be private for just the family, or seen by anyone.. Click here to take you to a demo webpage and look for the link to example plants.

The other product training was covering Island systems to enable installers to provide off grid systems to anything from a single dwelling and able to expand up to a whole village if required. This system is so adaptable, and while it is very suited to 3rd world countries and remote locations, these systems will have many applications around the UK too.
There is an animated overview film here

Grant money has dried up!

Late this afternoon, we have had notification from the REA that DECC has ceased the Domestic Grant of £2500 for PV systems.
Checking the Low Carbon website here it seems the money has dried up, probably due to a the massive amount of applications over the last few weeks.

A shame its all ended early, but we have a great looking Feed In Tariff scheme to look forward to.

For the full statement from DECC, go to www.chrisrudge.co.uk

Better than expected Feed In Tariff rate !

Monday 1st February gave us the final announcement of April's Feed In Tariff.

Great news that the rate was raised from an expected 36.5p to 41.3p per generated kWh (unit) on systems up 4kWp in size.

This will mean an average 2.16kWp domestic system will earn you £826 tax free each year!. Plus of course the free electricity that will be available for use, instantly cutting rught back on your electricity bill.

For more information see the Chris Rudge Renewable page here

Or the DECC website here

Feed In Tariff announcement delay :(

Short announcement last week from the REA:

These are now expected to be published at the end of January. Come what may, they must be published by 3^rd February in order to meet the legislative timetable for Feed In Tariffs.

Looks like the Government are hanging on right until the last minute to clarify their Feed In Tariff buy back rate. The proposed rate for a system up to 4kWp on an older house is 36.5p a unit... Lets see if they keep to it!