Priced me £1200 for ruining a cable down my waste stack and wiring it up to a new consumer unit. Did it myself and got a local spark to connect it to the mains. £300 including parts.
It's more of a minefield than even that. I responded to a facebook ad after checking the company was a proper solar install firm. They sent a salesman out who had a look around, flew a drone about, all seemed good. Salesman was pushing a particular brand of investor and battery and telling me they had an offer on a specific model that would suit. Even though I'd said I thought a powerwall would suit us better as the only sensible place for a battery is on the side of the house along an alleyway as such. But then the quote came and it was for a cheapo brand of battery ( Only discovered after doing some research ) rather than a powerwall, and the quote was to put the lot in the loft when I had already said I was aware of the new guidance and wouldn't want anything in the loft. The price wasn't cheap either. So while I 100% agree with your assessment on not getting sucked into the contact grabbing companies, I'd say it's much harder than it sounds to find someone that will listen to what you actually want and work to that.
Great videos. Here too in Mexico we have the same problem with botchy or half finished jobs, due to "companies" going bust, or just not knowing how to do it in the first place. Im an electrician by trade but had never installed a solar system. Did a bit of investigating on the subject after I had spent around 6 months getting quotes for a solar system here in Mexico, the lowest quote was USD$49,000, so I went DIY. I spent USD$ $19,000 on a 30 660W Solar Panels, 3 10K Inverters and a 92KW battery backup off-grid system for the air conditioners, (Why off-grid?, because the CFE, Mexicos government owned electrical supplier is the biggest thief on the block here). Took me two months to install it all, but well worth it. The panels generate 113KWh per day on average, (we have an average of 28 cloudy days/year where I live and an average of 5.97 sun hours/day), more than enough to run the system directly off the panels and charge the batteries for night use. Have had very minor issues, but have managed to remedy them myself. Totally satisfied and it was totally doable.
I live in Northern Ireland & about 10-12 years ago I worked part time for a renewables company who began branching into solar PV as there were decent subsidies available. The company I worked with are a bit like yours. It was established by an engineer & prided themselves in doing a good job rather than volume sales. We often lost sales to the guys offering all kinds of promises. Interestingly few if any of those competitors are still there, while the business I worked with is still around & going strong.
Good vid. I'm a plumber and when it comes to credit I don't. I insist on 60% upfront, this pays for materials and enables me to be without debt, also if you are a successful tradesman you should have managed to build up an amount of money to keep you fluid. These are the values I have always worked to and it makes my life easier.
Okay. You’re reputable and can be trusted. Heat pumps have the same issue. In terms of quality and installation. Why not start something like “Heatgeeks” but for solar. Put your name to people you trust. A kind of guarantee. If you trust, we trust.
@@artisanelectricsHi Jordan, maybe check out the Solar Quotes website run by Fin Peacock in Australia. Maybe you could set up something similar in the UK. He is also on RUclips.
When looking for good installers to quote back in 2020, I was told a good place to start was businesses that were approved by respected suppliers like Solaredge, Tesla, Sunpower etc. To gain their accreditation the installer has to meet stringent standards and requirements. Worked for us - 36 MWh so far!
Informative and Great Video. I have been installing solar photovoltaics since 2005. I was number 9 on the original MCS installer list in 2008. Now it seems I am one in over 4000 installers! I sit on the standards and certification working group for Solar Energy UK and have contributed to the IET code of practice for grid connected solar second edition 2022. It seems that the same is happening now that happened during the early feed in tariff during 2010-2012. Richard Ellis Elltec Energy Services
I have to laugh, we have almost the exact same add word for word over here in Australia. Must be some solar selling course getting sold to people. We have found that people over here are starting to lean towards quality local installers due to being stung by dodgy installers.
The same can be said for EV charging ports. Our installer seemed really good but they left us with a 2.5KW output charger (should have been 7KW) and even wired it into the wrong side of the 100A breaker in the meter box (They had to pull the 100A fuse to do so which only the electricty supplier should do). They eventually got abusive and stopped communications with me.
Some very useful point mentioned during the video covering those doing a piece by piece install (e.g. get solar panels while fixing roof; upgrade fuse box independently; joined up wiring later..; but need the MCS cert later, and ensure warranties etc). Definitely a lot of subsidy farmers out there milking the system, and the bottom end of the pseudo-"trade" market low quality wastrels!
This was extremely helpful, especially with the ever increasing costs. We currently have 16 panels, albeit, the batteries are in the loft along with a smoke alarm The system was installed before the changes took effect Can I ask the company to relocate the batteries.
Frankly I don’t expect to get a return on the investment. I’m viewing it as no longer having to rely on the grid and perhaps if there are more costly events such as Russia etc then I may see some accelerated return but it’s certainly not a given .
Jorden, I'm no eletrition. But IV done loads on temporary supply by generators. Ok not perfect....but I'm powering my house off a 7kw battery and 3kw HF inverter. Yes winter months am mostly on grid. These huge instruments feeding into grid is just another scam by the government. IV had visits off my supplier thinking I'm fiddling the meter......
Can you have you ever installed solar on A house roof and then more panels on a double garage roof in back garden 5 metres from house both face south Thanks in advance
When you hire a company to install solar do they ask for payments upfront or deposits to start work? If not, I'm unsure how they get away with poor install or not doing supplying the certificates...
What a great informative video Jordan It's a shame these cowboys have come into the Renewable Energy Industry by way of Soalr PV as Heat Pumps as it now the most talked about thing and people want to save money and care for the planet I'm going to show your video to all my friends and clients as you highlight all the issues especially about find a good installer and if the price is cheap you'll end up out of pocket and have a lot of headache It's all about good workmanship at a reasonable price
That's so weird, I've never seen that Bosh guy before, but I watched a totally unrelated video of his about a local takeaway just an hour ago. There is also a scam letter doing the rounds relating to a grant to replace old FITS panels with new panels and then get paid 10p more per kWh more. Just the other week my neighbours were quoted £16k for a 4kWp install and 3.6kW inverter and 3kWh battery, when they said they can't afford it they magically dropped the price to £10k, still well overpriced for a crap system. This is the problem I found when I wanted to extend my solar, all solar companies I approached quoted for what they wanted to install, not what I asked for. In the end I DIYed with a local electrician doing the AC stuff and connecting the panels up.
bit of a random question. I rent my home and am lucky that there's a solar panel system installed. There was no mention of solar in the tenancy agreement or the rental listing. Where do I stand when it comes to having an export tariff? Is that possible when you dont own the property? As there is no battery system installed as part of it, a lot of solar energy is being wasted so it would be good if it could take money off my bill.
I would check with your landlord and your energy supplier who you are with or who you want to move to for this information. I would also ask the question of your landlord, are they going to pay to fix if it goes wrong?
Great video and one that I hope plenty of prospective customers will watch. I don't have any sympathy with people who go on price alone as that is often the biggest red flag of them all. There is a reason why we say "caveat emptor" and more buyers should practice it as then far fewer would get caught out.
I have heard of homeowners who have ordered a complete package of solar installation, inverter and battery. They paid for all services in advance. The execution of the installation was delayed for over six months or more. At some point even solar panels arrived. But no one came to install it or local roofers were installed and then didn't get paid. Suddenly the company was bankrupt and no longer responsive. The installation had only just begun and parts had often not yet been delivered. Above all, the inverter or the expensive batteries were missing. But the money was gone and the company that took it was dissolved. It is suspicious that the same people founded a company again the next year and attracted customers who were willing to pay. Good luck getting the work done this time.
We install heat pumps and our customer for some reason booked his solar battery install on the same few days we were doing the heat pump. The solar crew lashed the whole system panels, battery, inverter and whatever else you guys do BEFORE LUNCH. I couldn’t believe it.
What a surprise. I have been using & pv solar for 30 years originally second hand panels & my home made pwm controllers . I am installing a new off grid system at home with everything new. But I tried to get information from numerous companies(manufacturer's)& installer alleged training company's this was futile as the question's would either prove the product's wouldn't work as advertised or the training company's had know idea & were only capable of selling pre packaged systems of dubious quality.
The race to the bottom is one of the reasons I only put forward yourselves, Cory and Oval to my clients depending where they are in the country. Reason being if I put the 3 of you forward they can look at the quality of the work on your social media and then compare to local companies portfolios or lack there of. Also with the spate of EICR's I've been doing on properties which have had national installers put solar on without bidirectional RCD's which have failed within 2 years of install is now around 85%. Each time they're blaming the customers for not pushing the test button - which as we know is one of the ways to introduce failure to unidirectional RCDs.
These scammers also make lots of typos in the numbers in their official quotes, to confuse you and make the made-up numbers look good. A friend was quoted £16k for 4kW and 4kWh. I showed him that the system will produce 4000kWh per year, which would save him 4000*0.17= £680/year. Minus £100/year for maintenance. 28 years of payback. If he puts 16k in passive investment, his electricity becomes free forever. He cancelled, and they immediately changed the quote to £9k. It's not worth it either. Bigger systems like the one you installed on the tennis-court are really worth it.
Where there's Government grants, there's cowboys - Solar, Heating, insulation etc They don't care if they go under, as they'll just respawn under different name(s) and target other grant backed schemes. As a bare minimum, check out a prospective electrical / solar installer on Companies House - see how long they've been in business, and check the Directors and how many other companies they are / were Directors of. It can be an eye opener.
Great video Jordan. Not specifically a solar question but can you issue an installation certificate on eicr paperwork? My nephew has had a board change but the installer printer up an eicr which I thought was odd.
How about you head to Munich, Germany and visit the Intersolar 2024… There you could learn what kind of technology’s on the market and you’d might notice that technology has evolved beyond what you think/present as “modern”.
Is it a scam…. Well lets be honest here it depends on how much one over charges for the install. Thats the reality of how long it takes the customer to get any value out of it. Currently with the UK outsourcing all its manufacturing industry to meet targets. Then this industry is being run dirtier than our regulations its means our installs are not making a dent. But I will say personally installed solar myself so the payback is only 2 years. No longer need MCS for feed on too.
Solar without a battery system is not a very good idea. I went with a Tesla Powerwall 2 with my solar system and after only a couple of months, can highly recommend. Almost been off-line since the system was comissioned, though I have to say that my solar panels are ideally situated which certainly helps.
That's debatable. Depends if the house is empty during the day. Mine isn't so we can utilise it with dishwasher/washing machine and AC. If you work 9-5 then yeh batteries make sense but if you do night work or work from home or even shift work then you could make a saving.
@@HA05GER No, the house is not empty during the day, and we do try to use appliances during the high sun period. However we do not use our dishwasher until the evening, and we do not have AC, as we are in the UK - never gets hot enough!
@@farmerpete6274see I am in the UK aswell and my house does get quite hot. 60s council house south facing and the whole front of my house is uPVC. If you have a hot water tank I found this solar diverter I think it's a few hundred quid unlike the eddi. Any excess solar will get diverted to your immersion heater and heat your hot water for free. I plan to get one once finances allow. If I was you leave the dishwasher until midday the next day and then put it on so you gain there. Shift as much of your usage to during the day as possible. My electric bill for 6 of us is about £2 a day. That includes running acs dishwasher. 2 freezers and fridge. Multiple TVs when the kids are home. I'm far from efficient don't unplug stuff.
The running joke in Australia is "Dont buy solar if it was advertised by a cricketer". It seems that all the retired cricketers get sucked in for paid ads run by the bottom of the barrel solar companies. They all install low end gear for a rock bottom price with ads like "You may be eligible for solar, $0 upfront".
I've been seeing a lot of those ads too as I'm on the long road of research to try and understand all about renewables. It's why I subscribed to your channel back in lockdown and I've learned a lot from Artisan,, Cory and others about what a good job looks like. Another thing I keep seeing equally fishy looking ads for is this ECO4 thing which I don't understand too much about. The ads make it look like it's some government scheme for those like me who are disabled and on a low income but why are these companies so eager for me to have it? I feel like they're probably just fly-by-night chancers because they're making out they're the ones giving you something for cheap or for nothing. We all know nobody gets anything for nothing so ...any clues as to what that's all about Jordan? I'd be grateful for any advice or info you have on if it's a genuine thing but maybe these guys are exploiting it in some way, or maybe all my instincts and suspicions are wrong and it's kosher? Thanks for putting this out there, I'm ex-sales so I'm reasonably good at spotting when something's not right, but it's good to have it laid out so clearly. Cheers👍
MCS gatekeeping access to SEG is part of the problem. Electricians shouldn't need to become professional form fillers to install PV. The equipment is so cheap and simple it should be bread and butter stuff for sparks. Volume installs are the market where it is going to make the most impact on the bills of regular punters. We are talking 3 bed family homes, not the multi million £ houses with tennis courts and swimming pools in your B roll. Open up the market to SEG allowing your local spark (who you trust!) to install PV, bin MCS. Trades have always had a issue with bad installers or workmanship, MCS hasn't solved this an won't.
Just the same as double glazing, had a quote from a national company and a local company local turned out more expensive only quote three solar panels and no optimiser. Bearing in mind the sight has a lot of shading which would see no generation at all until the sun is on all of them. But yet the calculations show exactly the same generation! Told the installer they have to be black panels he quoted silver told the installer I want to clip the inverter as much as possible so he decided 1.8kW was enough speaking at length with the manufacturer they allow upto 2.3kW on there 1.5kW inverter. And now the installer can match the national companies quote and also give an additional 5year warranty on the inverter. What a joke give me your best quote not oh we can do it for the same
Octopus energy cannot install solar panels on slate roofs. Their expertise is limited to clay tiled roofs. Cheap or large company is not always the best.
Why can’t the government do something like they do with gas. Safe electrics, Safe solar. You have to be registered and take exams before you can install like you do with gas insulation. What do you think of this sort of idea? It helps protect you the installer and us the customer. I know it’s not 100% perfect idea, but it’s better than nothing.
Lots of things fall into this scam category. Getting a new roof or having a room addition added. ALL and I do mean ALL contractors these days impose HUGE profits for a few days work. New roof? Yup it will take 3 days and cost 30k. Materials are under 10k labor is under 5k and the rest? just HUGE PROFIT into your ripoff artist contractors pocket. Why? because the contractors know 90% of people these days are just stupid. The other 10% know how hard they are getting screwed but cant find a contractor who is not a thief. Solar? I just watched a video about the Tesla solar wall system with solar panels and it was 120K. I about fell of my chair because the cost of the solar system was 80% profit. I am going to do a DIY solar install and I can get the same level system for less then 30k ALL IN. Yup it is true all the parts, solar controller panels batteries all of it and that is with a electrician signing off on the install and getting local permits.
I wish I can get you for my installation. I my area is no proper good installers. I do not look at the price the most but the installers and if they provide newest technology equipment or they just want to clear the old stock. I still wait and I will be trying to get you for my installation. Your work as you show it is the best proof that you do everything in perfect way. Also, you are right about those shady companies, I had calls for few months from one of those companies and I reported to the police as they used my data for cold calls even I never requested a quotation from them.
You do unfortunately.... I've tried for a year now trying to get them to give me a feed in tariff without an MCS cert... Silence... Deaf ears... Don't want to know.... Pass me around various departments....
@@philware1546 Some have managed to get on, but the general feeling is that MSC kicked up stink. MCS is one of the biggest cons going. All they are after is their fee, when customers needs backup they are useless. You don't need MCS certificate to export, DNO don't require, so why do you need one to get paid for export - because its a con.
It took you 5 minutes to get to the point and provide anything useful. Edit yourself next time as I like the info but the repetitive lead ups are not necessary
The problem is MCS. It's a p*ss poor organisation and isn't concerned about the customer. Its only concern about generating membership fees. As for yourself, you jumped on the solar PV and battery bandwagon without being suitably knowledgeable. You're also lying about the cost of solar PV equipment. Panels have never been cheaper and battery costs per kWh are falling. Any domestic solar PV installer that requires credit from a wholesale supplier isn't fit to operate as a business.
Companies installing solar, going bust? This is a money printing business, they can't go bust because lack of profits. In my opinion all solar is a scam, you'll never get the money back. I've been working in Park Royal recently, on a relatively tall building, so I could se most of the industrial park. Miles and miles of roofing, yet no solar panel in site. If solar made any financial sense, one would think that all these companies owning these comercial units, would jump to the opportunity.
Not being funny but you sparks wont do shit till thousands are payed for doing mininal work i could easily do as for mcs screw mcs all that does is allow you to sell tons of kwhs back for peanuts and yes i have a g98 cert with elecy nw so they know i generate but dont export as my panels are sized to never fill these new bats up full even on a full cloudless day on 21st of june. atm ive 2 405w panels up and im cancelling out 60-70% of my elecy a day when the suns out with a tiny lifepo4 battery bank which is about 2.6kwh safely and ive 8.2kwh coming and an extra panel going up as i do have 4 leaving a spare 1 and 2kw wind turbine is going up soon to add to the extra storage power im adding. I just look up the regs of how it needs to be wired and followed it. Aka the correct rated rcbo bidirectional and mcbs, dc disconnects for batterys and panels and lightening protection which dont need it as its low down but its got it and the panels are not on the roof there on my porch facing 173 degrees. As for gov incentives they are literally screwing you bigtime esp the FIT tariff when it first came out hahahaha what a massive joke. Ps solar is cheap the batterys can be expensive but ive spent less than 600 on 200ah 48v 16s pack with bms thats compatible with most inverters. But i bought an ac coupled 3kw instead that way any elecy generated goes instantly into the bats via that. Simples mate and my landlord is happy and eicr passed with flying colours 0 issues.
Then show us how to do it without being scammed. Cost up your labour at £100+ per hour per person. You will have to include admin time for the paper work. Cost up the panels, roof bracketing, cabling, inverter and electrical fittings. Then add markup as if you are a business trying to make a profit and also allow for unforseen issues.
Get a quote from us: app.openquote.net/company/artisanelectrics
no thanks
Priced me £1200 for ruining a cable down my waste stack and wiring it up to a new consumer unit. Did it myself and got a local spark to connect it to the mains. £300 including parts.
@@philware1546 Superb attention to detail is worth a premium, but not 300% markup
It's more of a minefield than even that. I responded to a facebook ad after checking the company was a proper solar install firm. They sent a salesman out who had a look around, flew a drone about, all seemed good. Salesman was pushing a particular brand of investor and battery and telling me they had an offer on a specific model that would suit. Even though I'd said I thought a powerwall would suit us better as the only sensible place for a battery is on the side of the house along an alleyway as such. But then the quote came and it was for a cheapo brand of battery ( Only discovered after doing some research ) rather than a powerwall, and the quote was to put the lot in the loft when I had already said I was aware of the new guidance and wouldn't want anything in the loft. The price wasn't cheap either. So while I 100% agree with your assessment on not getting sucked into the contact grabbing companies, I'd say it's much harder than it sounds to find someone that will listen to what you actually want and work to that.
Great videos. Here too in Mexico we have the same problem with botchy or half finished jobs, due to "companies" going bust, or just not knowing how to do it in the first place. Im an electrician by trade but had never installed a solar system. Did a bit of investigating on the subject after I had spent around 6 months getting quotes for a solar system here in Mexico, the lowest quote was USD$49,000, so I went DIY. I spent USD$ $19,000 on a 30 660W Solar Panels, 3 10K Inverters and a 92KW battery backup off-grid system for the air conditioners, (Why off-grid?, because the CFE, Mexicos government owned electrical supplier is the biggest thief on the block here). Took me two months to install it all, but well worth it. The panels generate 113KWh per day on average, (we have an average of 28 cloudy days/year where I live and an average of 5.97 sun hours/day), more than enough to run the system directly off the panels and charge the batteries for night use. Have had very minor issues, but have managed to remedy them myself. Totally satisfied and it was totally doable.
I live in Northern Ireland & about 10-12 years ago I worked part time for a renewables company who began branching into solar PV as there were decent subsidies available.
The company I worked with are a bit like yours. It was established by an engineer & prided themselves in doing a good job rather than volume sales.
We often lost sales to the guys offering all kinds of promises.
Interestingly few if any of those competitors are still there, while the business I worked with is still around & going strong.
Phew, I didn’t like the idea of Fat John climbing on my roof, then taking 2hrs at lunchtime to eat a £100 Chinese takeaway
😂
Good vid. I'm a plumber and when it comes to credit I don't. I insist on 60% upfront, this pays for materials and enables me to be without debt, also if you are a successful tradesman you should have managed to build up an amount of money to keep you fluid.
These are the values I have always worked to and it makes my life easier.
Okay. You’re reputable and can be trusted.
Heat pumps have the same issue. In terms of quality and installation.
Why not start something like “Heatgeeks” but for solar.
Put your name to people you trust.
A kind of guarantee. If you trust, we trust.
I would love to do this
@@artisanelectricsHi Jordan, maybe check out the Solar Quotes website run by Fin Peacock in Australia. Maybe you could set up something similar in the UK. He is also on RUclips.
When looking for good installers to quote back in 2020, I was told a good place to start was businesses that were approved by respected suppliers like Solaredge, Tesla, Sunpower etc. To gain their accreditation the installer has to meet stringent standards and requirements. Worked for us - 36 MWh so far!
love hearing the truth keep at this mate, context in any situation is so important love it man 👍
Informative and Great Video. I have been installing solar photovoltaics since 2005. I was number 9 on the original MCS installer list in 2008. Now it seems I am one in over 4000 installers! I sit on the standards and certification working group for Solar Energy UK and have contributed to the IET code of practice for grid connected solar second edition 2022. It seems that the same is happening now that happened during the early feed in tariff during 2010-2012. Richard Ellis Elltec Energy Services
Given govts enthusiam for solar and heat pumps maybe they should be offering solar/heat pump credit guarantee rather like the export guarantee. Scheme
I would rather they supported by grants, solar installations with battery banks rather than billions on wind farms etc.
Cheap, quick, quality, I've heard that as the project management triangle, you can only ever have two of the three
I have to laugh, we have almost the exact same add word for word over here in Australia. Must be some solar selling course getting sold to people. We have found that people over here are starting to lean towards quality local installers due to being stung by dodgy installers.
The same can be said for EV charging ports. Our installer seemed really good but they left us with a 2.5KW output charger (should have been 7KW) and even wired it into the wrong side of the 100A breaker in the meter box (They had to pull the 100A fuse to do so which only the electricty supplier should do). They eventually got abusive and stopped communications with me.
Some very useful point mentioned during the video covering those doing a piece by piece install (e.g. get solar panels while fixing roof; upgrade fuse box independently; joined up wiring later..; but need the MCS cert later, and ensure warranties etc).
Definitely a lot of subsidy farmers out there milking the system, and the bottom end of the pseudo-"trade" market low quality wastrels!
This was extremely helpful, especially with the ever increasing costs.
We currently have 16 panels, albeit, the batteries are in the loft along with a smoke alarm
The system was installed before the changes took effect
Can I ask the company to relocate the batteries.
Frankly I don’t expect to get a return on the investment. I’m viewing it as no longer having to rely on the grid and perhaps if there are more costly events such as Russia etc then I may see some accelerated return but it’s certainly not a given .
That’s the best way to do it!
Jorden, I'm no eletrition.
But IV done loads on temporary supply by generators.
Ok not perfect....but I'm powering my house off a 7kw battery and 3kw HF inverter.
Yes winter months am mostly on grid.
These huge instruments feeding into grid is just another scam by the government.
IV had visits off my supplier thinking I'm fiddling the meter......
Can you have you ever installed solar on
A house roof and then more panels on a double garage roof in back garden 5 metres from house both face south
Thanks in advance
When you hire a company to install solar do they ask for payments upfront or deposits to start work? If not, I'm unsure how they get away with poor install or not doing supplying the certificates...
Same happens in my industry it is mad, no still, no knowledge and no care! In our case it is driving the price down which is not good for business.
It is getting worse and worse in all industries!
I'd love to install solar for my house in France. But I find it very difficult to know which companies are good.
What a great informative video Jordan
It's a shame these cowboys have come into the Renewable Energy Industry by way of Soalr PV as Heat Pumps as it now the most talked about thing and people want to save money and care for the planet
I'm going to show your video to all my friends and clients as you highlight all the issues especially about find a good installer and if the price is cheap you'll end up out of pocket and have a lot of headache
It's all about good workmanship at a reasonable price
That's so weird, I've never seen that Bosh guy before, but I watched a totally unrelated video of his about a local takeaway just an hour ago. There is also a scam letter doing the rounds relating to a grant to replace old FITS panels with new panels and then get paid 10p more per kWh more. Just the other week my neighbours were quoted £16k for a 4kWp install and 3.6kW inverter and 3kWh battery, when they said they can't afford it they magically dropped the price to £10k, still well overpriced for a crap system. This is the problem I found when I wanted to extend my solar, all solar companies I approached quoted for what they wanted to install, not what I asked for. In the end I DIYed with a local electrician doing the AC stuff and connecting the panels up.
bit of a random question. I rent my home and am lucky that there's a solar panel system installed. There was no mention of solar in the tenancy agreement or the rental listing. Where do I stand when it comes to having an export tariff? Is that possible when you dont own the property? As there is no battery system installed as part of it, a lot of solar energy is being wasted so it would be good if it could take money off my bill.
I would check with your landlord and your energy supplier who you are with or who you want to move to for this information. I would also ask the question of your landlord, are they going to pay to fix if it goes wrong?
Great video and one that I hope plenty of prospective customers will watch. I don't have any sympathy with people who go on price alone as that is often the biggest red flag of them all. There is a reason why we say "caveat emptor" and more buyers should practice it as then far fewer would get caught out.
What’s your thoughts on Heatable? You’ve worked with them in the past. I’m thinking of using them for my install
I have heard of homeowners who have ordered a complete package of solar installation, inverter and battery. They paid for all services in advance. The execution of the installation was delayed for over six months or more. At some point even solar panels arrived. But no one came to install it or local roofers were installed and then didn't get paid. Suddenly the company was bankrupt and no longer responsive. The installation had only just begun and parts had often not yet been delivered. Above all, the inverter or the expensive batteries were missing. But the money was gone and the company that took it was dissolved.
It is suspicious that the same people founded a company again the next year and attracted customers who were willing to pay. Good luck getting the work done this time.
thanks for the tour of your house 😄
Haha you’re welcome
We install heat pumps and our customer for some reason booked his solar battery install on the same few days we were doing the heat pump. The solar crew lashed the whole system panels, battery, inverter and whatever else you guys do BEFORE LUNCH. I couldn’t believe it.
What a surprise. I have been using & pv solar for 30 years originally second hand panels & my home made pwm controllers . I am installing a new off grid system at home with everything new. But I tried to get information from numerous companies(manufacturer's)& installer alleged training company's this was futile as the question's would either prove the product's wouldn't work as advertised or the training company's had know idea & were only capable of selling pre packaged systems of dubious quality.
Thanks for sharing
The race to the bottom is one of the reasons I only put forward yourselves, Cory and Oval to my clients depending where they are in the country. Reason being if I put the 3 of you forward they can look at the quality of the work on your social media and then compare to local companies portfolios or lack there of.
Also with the spate of EICR's I've been doing on properties which have had national installers put solar on without bidirectional RCD's which have failed within 2 years of install is now around 85%. Each time they're blaming the customers for not pushing the test button - which as we know is one of the ways to introduce failure to unidirectional RCDs.
Given the cost of parts currently. The old labour 80/20 is alive and well in the electrical industry at present.
Good video but that’s happening everyday as you said a lot of people are suffering. Good on you for making this video Jordan 😊
You’re welcome! Thanks for watching
These scammers also make lots of typos in the numbers in their official quotes, to confuse you and make the made-up numbers look good. A friend was quoted £16k for 4kW and 4kWh. I showed him that the system will produce 4000kWh per year, which would save him 4000*0.17= £680/year. Minus £100/year for maintenance. 28 years of payback. If he puts 16k in passive investment, his electricity becomes free forever. He cancelled, and they immediately changed the quote to £9k. It's not worth it either. Bigger systems like the one you installed on the tennis-court are really worth it.
That’s awful
Where there's Government grants, there's cowboys - Solar, Heating, insulation etc They don't care if they go under, as they'll just respawn under different name(s) and target other grant backed schemes.
As a bare minimum, check out a prospective electrical / solar installer on Companies House - see how long they've been in business, and check the Directors and how many other companies they are / were Directors of. It can be an eye opener.
In Australia it's a scam . They offered a rebate, yay. Now, they are going to charge you a tax to send back power to the grid.
I don't have .
Is it easy to install integral solar panels so the panes are flush with the tiles?
Great video Jordan. Not specifically a solar question but can you issue an installation certificate on eicr paperwork? My nephew has had a board change but the installer printer up an eicr which I thought was odd.
Yeah that’s not right - they should issue an EIC and a Building regs certificate for a board change
Summary: Social media ads are just resellers of leads to installers.
Most of the video is waste time reputing that cheap is not always good.
5 minutes in to this video, one of those adverts appears 😮
That ground mount kit at 1:39 is the one i've looked for in the past. I just can't ever find it
Van der valk I think
How about you head to Munich, Germany and visit the Intersolar 2024… There you could learn what kind of technology’s on the market and you’d might notice that technology has evolved beyond what you think/present as “modern”.
Sad but so very true words.... keep up the great work guys
Thank you! Will do!
Excellent advice. Caveat emptor
Only protection is to pay by credit card. MCS, HIES and NAPIT offer mo protection should an installer go bust.
Is it a scam…. Well lets be honest here it depends on how much one over charges for the install. Thats the reality of how long it takes the customer to get any value out of it. Currently with the UK outsourcing all its manufacturing industry to meet targets. Then this industry is being run dirtier than our regulations its means our installs are not making a dent. But I will say personally installed solar myself so the payback is only 2 years. No longer need MCS for feed on too.
Let’s see more from your team members.
Solar without a battery system is not a very good idea. I went with a Tesla Powerwall 2 with my solar system and after only a couple of months, can highly recommend. Almost been off-line since the system was comissioned, though I have to say that my solar panels are ideally situated which certainly helps.
That's debatable. Depends if the house is empty during the day. Mine isn't so we can utilise it with dishwasher/washing machine and AC. If you work 9-5 then yeh batteries make sense but if you do night work or work from home or even shift work then you could make a saving.
@@HA05GER No, the house is not empty during the day, and we do try to use appliances during the high sun period. However we do not use our dishwasher until the evening, and we do not have AC, as we are in the UK - never gets hot enough!
@@farmerpete6274see I am in the UK aswell and my house does get quite hot. 60s council house south facing and the whole front of my house is uPVC. If you have a hot water tank I found this solar diverter I think it's a few hundred quid unlike the eddi. Any excess solar will get diverted to your immersion heater and heat your hot water for free. I plan to get one once finances allow. If I was you leave the dishwasher until midday the next day and then put it on so you gain there. Shift as much of your usage to during the day as possible. My electric bill for 6 of us is about £2 a day. That includes running acs dishwasher. 2 freezers and fridge. Multiple TVs when the kids are home. I'm far from efficient don't unplug stuff.
The running joke in Australia is "Dont buy solar if it was advertised by a cricketer". It seems that all the retired cricketers get sucked in for paid ads run by the bottom of the barrel solar companies. They all install low end gear for a rock bottom price with ads like "You may be eligible for solar, $0 upfront".
I’ve had enough of these ads. I reply to one of them the reason why we don’t get so is because of the idiots who install them.
I've been seeing a lot of those ads too as I'm on the long road of research to try and understand all about renewables.
It's why I subscribed to your channel back in lockdown and I've learned a lot from Artisan,, Cory and others about what a good job looks like.
Another thing I keep seeing equally fishy looking ads for is this ECO4 thing which I don't understand too much about.
The ads make it look like it's some government scheme for those like me who are disabled and on a low income but why are these companies so eager for me to have it?
I feel like they're probably just fly-by-night chancers because they're making out they're the ones giving you something for cheap or for nothing. We all know nobody gets anything for nothing so ...any clues as to what that's all about Jordan? I'd be grateful for any advice or info you have on if it's a genuine thing but maybe these guys are exploiting it in some way, or maybe all my instincts and suspicions are wrong and it's kosher?
Thanks for putting this out there, I'm ex-sales so I'm reasonably good at spotting when something's not right, but it's good to have it laid out so clearly. Cheers👍
MCS gatekeeping access to SEG is part of the problem. Electricians shouldn't need to become professional form fillers to install PV. The equipment is so cheap and simple it should be bread and butter stuff for sparks.
Volume installs are the market where it is going to make the most impact on the bills of regular punters. We are talking 3 bed family homes, not the multi million £ houses with tennis courts and swimming pools in your B roll.
Open up the market to SEG allowing your local spark (who you trust!) to install PV, bin MCS. Trades have always had a issue with bad installers or workmanship, MCS hasn't solved this an won't.
Just the same as double glazing, had a quote from a national company and a local company local turned out more expensive only quote three solar panels and no optimiser. Bearing in mind the sight has a lot of shading which would see no generation at all until the sun is on all of them. But yet the calculations show exactly the same generation! Told the installer they have to be black panels he quoted silver told the installer I want to clip the inverter as much as possible so he decided 1.8kW was enough speaking at length with the manufacturer they allow upto 2.3kW on there 1.5kW inverter. And now the installer can match the national companies quote and also give an additional 5year warranty on the inverter. What a joke give me your best quote not oh we can do it for the same
Octopus energy cannot install solar panels on slate roofs. Their expertise is limited to clay tiled roofs. Cheap or large company is not always the best.
The chances are that a slate roof will be damaged by a solar install, whoever does it.
Why can’t the government do something like they do with gas.
Safe electrics,
Safe solar. You have to be registered and take exams before you can install like you do with gas insulation. What do you think of this sort of idea? It helps protect you the installer and us the customer. I know it’s not 100% perfect idea, but it’s better than nothing.
Lots of things fall into this scam category. Getting a new roof or having a room addition added. ALL and I do mean ALL contractors these days impose HUGE profits for a few days work.
New roof? Yup it will take 3 days and cost 30k. Materials are under 10k labor is under 5k and the rest? just HUGE PROFIT into your ripoff artist contractors pocket.
Why? because the contractors know 90% of people these days are just stupid. The other 10% know how hard they are getting screwed but cant find a contractor who is not a thief.
Solar? I just watched a video about the Tesla solar wall system with solar panels and it was 120K. I about fell of my chair because the cost of the solar system was 80% profit. I am going to do a DIY solar install and I can get the same level system for less then 30k ALL IN.
Yup it is true all the parts, solar controller panels batteries all of it and that is with a electrician signing off on the install and getting local permits.
I wish I can get you for my installation. I my area is no proper good installers. I do not look at the price the most but the installers and if they provide newest technology equipment or they just want to clear the old stock. I still wait and I will be trying to get you for my installation. Your work as you show it is the best proof that you do everything in perfect way. Also, you are right about those shady companies, I had calls for few months from one of those companies and I reported to the police as they used my data for cold calls even I never requested a quotation from them.
Your mic is clipping... gain needs to be dialled down a bit. 😊
Hey Jordan, great vid but mic sound levels are off, causing distortion.
Those videos are all over insta/tiktok by multiple influencers.
Yeah sad but true
You don't need a mcs for octopus anymore
You do unfortunately....
I've tried for a year now trying to get them to give me a feed in tariff without an MCS cert... Silence... Deaf ears... Don't want to know.... Pass me around various departments....
@@philware1546 Some have managed to get on, but the general feeling is that MSC kicked up stink. MCS is one of the biggest cons going. All they are after is their fee, when customers needs backup they are useless. You don't need MCS certificate to export, DNO don't require, so why do you need one to get paid for export - because its a con.
@@philware1546 That's because you're going down the wrong route.
@@VinoVeritas_ what's the correct route?
@@VinoVeritas_ explain please!
It took you 5 minutes to get to the point and provide anything useful. Edit yourself next time as I like the info but the repetitive lead ups are not necessary
It’s called putting together a preview…
The problem is MCS. It's a p*ss poor organisation and isn't concerned about the customer. Its only concern about generating membership fees. As for yourself, you jumped on the solar PV and battery bandwagon without being suitably knowledgeable. You're also lying about the cost of solar PV equipment. Panels have never been cheaper and battery costs per kWh are falling. Any domestic solar PV installer that requires credit from a wholesale supplier isn't fit to operate as a business.
Parabéns pelo video
What about all the small windmills that you can fit on your house? They look like a more better idea then solar panels
You are becoming just like the other scammers and using headlines as click bait ~ shame on you.
so many comments, just a downvote
I avoid MCS installers, they are cowboys.
Companies installing solar, going bust? This is a money printing business, they can't go bust because lack of profits.
In my opinion all solar is a scam, you'll never get the money back. I've been working in Park Royal recently, on a relatively tall building, so I could se most of the industrial park. Miles and miles of roofing, yet no solar panel in site. If solar made any financial sense, one would think that all these companies owning these comercial units, would jump to the opportunity.
Agreed!
You may shorten the title to, Don't get solar installed fullstop!
❤
Not being funny but you sparks wont do shit till thousands are payed for doing mininal work i could easily do as for mcs screw mcs all that does is allow you to sell tons of kwhs back for peanuts and yes i have a g98 cert with elecy nw so they know i generate but dont export as my panels are sized to never fill these new bats up full even on a full cloudless day on 21st of june. atm ive 2 405w panels up and im cancelling out 60-70% of my elecy a day when the suns out with a tiny lifepo4 battery bank which is about 2.6kwh safely and ive 8.2kwh coming and an extra panel going up as i do have 4 leaving a spare 1 and 2kw wind turbine is going up soon to add to the extra storage power im adding. I just look up the regs of how it needs to be wired and followed it. Aka the correct rated rcbo bidirectional and mcbs, dc disconnects for batterys and panels and lightening protection which dont need it as its low down but its got it and the panels are not on the roof there on my porch facing 173 degrees. As for gov incentives they are literally screwing you bigtime esp the FIT tariff when it first came out hahahaha what a massive joke. Ps solar is cheap the batterys can be expensive but ive spent less than 600 on 200ah 48v 16s pack with bms thats compatible with most inverters. But i bought an ac coupled 3kw instead that way any elecy generated goes instantly into the bats via that. Simples mate and my landlord is happy and eicr passed with flying colours 0 issues.
When 400W solar panels cost just £70 each, scaffolding £600, spending £6000 on a system is a scam....
You are part of this scam.
Then show us how to do it without being scammed. Cost up your labour at £100+ per hour per person. You will have to include admin time for the paper work. Cost up the panels, roof bracketing, cabling, inverter and electrical fittings. Then add markup as if you are a business trying to make a profit and also allow for unforseen issues.
6kw system = solar panels £1050 ,frame £300 ,cables etc £50 ,inverter £700 scaffloding,£600 labour labour £800 = profit £2500
@@nickbea3443 how much mark-up do you want? Blimey...
@@ianmoss20102010 exactly. £2500 per job profit a day for one guy. 👍
Fucking "paperwork"
I did my own paperwork and it was all online. 🤣
@@philware1546 you tell me how much mark up you think it may be for running a viable business?
A cowboy talking about cowboys 😂