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Maximise Your Energy Savings
Choose Solar PV For Some Great Benefits

• Reduce Energy Bills

• Generate free electric and combat rising energy costs

• Secure a tax-free income guaranteed by the government for the next 20 years

• Earn an additional income by exporting your unused electricity to the national grid

• Reduce your CO2 emissions

• Add value to your property

• Receive up to 4-6% return on your investment

Click here to see how much you could save.

Stop Your Energy Bills Going Through The Roof

“Everything Energy Gain UK does is part of a dedicated process, starting and finishing with the customer”

How Much Could I Earn?

Generate A Guaranteed Index-linked Income For The Next 20 Years When You Install Energy Gain UK’s Solar PV Panels

Get Paid For Every Unit Of Electricity You Generate Whether You Use It Or Not.

In 2010 the UK government introduced the Feed-in Tariff scheme (FIT) which means you receive a payment from your electricity supplier for every unit of electricity you generate from your solar panels whether you use it or not.

The scheme is guaranteed for 20 years, and ensures that payments will rise in line with inflation, as well as being totally tax-free.

Earn Extra for Electricity You Don’t Use

The Export Tariff provides you with an additional payment from your electricity provider for any additional units of electricity generated and not used within your home. As most solar PV installations produce additional unused energy this generates a good additional source of income for homeowners using solar PV technology.

Click here to see how much you could save.

Maximise Your Energy Savings And Reduce Energy Bills

Here are your options:

Assumptions

South facing roof in Manchester, 16 x 250 monocrystalline modules, energy costs 15p per kwh, inflation 4%, energy price inflation 7%

With installations usually taking around just 1-2 days you too could soon be making huge savings on your energy bills and receiving a tax-free income.

Click here to see how much you could save.

We also ensure all products selected come with warranties and offer our own workmanship guarantees.

Solar iBoost
To really maximise your Solar PV benefits you can enhance your system by using the Solar iBoost load management concept. This uses the surplus photovoltaic energy generated at your home to heat the water in your household water tank and save you money.

You will benefit from:

• Maximising the use of the free solar energy generated at your property.

• Cutting the cost of heating your water

• Reduced use of your boiler

Solar iBoost load management devices ONLY use energy that would be exported, unlike some similar products.

Here’s how a typical household will see the benefit of Solar iBoost:

In a household with a solar PV array generating a 2kw surplus, just 2.5 hours is needed to raise a 100 litre tank temperature from 20° C to 60° C giving a saving of approximately £0.50 per day, based on average energy prices (Feb 2013), which equates to a saving of up to £182 per annum.

Solar iBoost load management doesn’t affect your FIT generation payments. For householders with a deemed usage contract from their FIT provider using Solar iBoost load management means you get greater or full usage of the free energy and still receive the 50% export payment. Where an export meter is fitted the benefits of Solar iBoost load management can still easily outweigh the rising energy costs of water heating.

Is My Home Suitable?

Most homes are suitable for the installation of solar photovoltaic (PV) systems. As our systems cover a wide range of roof types and property types, we are very likely to find a solution that is right for you.

If you answer yes to the following questions your home could be suitable for a solar photovoltaic installation.

“Most roofs have more than ample capability
to support solar PV panels”

Does Your Roof Face The Sun?

It is best if your roof is South facing, but East and West facing properties can also benefit from our split systems which makes the most of the sun from either direction.

Is The Chosen Area Shaded?

If other buildings, trees or chimney stacks cast shadows on your roof, it may not be appropriate to install solar panels on your roof. However, solar PV panels may be installed directly on property walls, so your home may still be suitable for a solar thermal installation.

Does Your Roof Have The Right Pitch?

Most homes in the UK tend to have a roof pitch of around 30 – 50 degrees. If your roof falls above or below this figure, you may still be able to install a solar PV panel to your wall or a flat roof.

Is The Roof Structurally Sound?

During our site survey, we will inspect your roof to ensure it is structurally capable of holding the load of the solar panels safely and securely. Most roofs have more than ample capability.

Are There Any Obstructions?

If you have roof windows, vents, or chimneys in the area that your solar panels need fitting, these may need relocating if possible, otherwise they may prevent the install from going ahead.

How Does Solar PV Work

Maximise Your Energy Savings and Reduce Energy Bills
Quite simply, a solar photovoltaic installation takes sunlight and converts it into free, green electricity.

How It Works

Solar panels are made up of photovoltaic (PV) cells, which are made from layers of semi-conducting material, usually silicon. When light shines on the cell it creates an electric field across the layers. The stronger the sunshine, the more electricity is produced. The power of a PV cell is measured in kilowatts peak (kWp). That’s the rate at which it generates energy at peak performance in full direct sunlight during the summer.

“Most roofs have more than ample capability
to support solar PV panels”

Solar panels – solar PV options

There are a number of options when selecting a solar panel to suit your home or business and its requirements. The most common types installed globally are monocrystalline PV and polycrystalline PV, which are commonly used thanks to their availability, cost effectiveness and efficiency.

Solar panels are made up of photovoltaic (PV) cells, which are made from layers of semi-conducting material, usually silicon. When light shines on the cell it creates an electric field across the layers. The stronger the sunshine, the more electricity is produced. The power of a PV cell is measured in kilowatts peak (kWp). That’s the rate at which it generates energy at peak performance in full direct sunlight during the summer.

“Selecting the right solar PV panel can be daunting, but we’re here to help.”

Here’s a brief outline of each type, all of which are available from Energy Gain UK.

Monocrystalline Silicon PV is the most efficient type of silicon PV, providing efficiencies of between 13-17%. It uses hexagonal-shaped slices to enable more of them to be fitted within a single unit. As the unit requires more involved manufacturing processes to generate its level of efficiency, these tend to be slightly more expensive than alternatives. But their efficiency means they can often provide a reasonable payback in a relatively short space of time.

Polycrystalline Silicon PV panels offer efficiencies of around 11-15%, and are made up of square blocks of silicon that have a typically blue appearance. The reason for the colouring of these panels is to ensure the panel reflects as little light as possible, absorbing higher quantities than many equivalent PV panels.

Amorphous Silicon PV panels provide a much lower efficiency rate of around 6 – 8%, and use cells that are commonly found in pocket calculators. This type of solar panel is not always suitable for residential and commercial properties, but there are certain applications for which it performs well. Its multi-layered format allows the panel to react to different frequencies of light, and it uses less silicon that many other products on the market, making its manufacturing cost slightly cheaper overall.

Hybrid PVs use a clever combination of solar PV technology to generate a more efficient panel than more common products on the market. These efficiencies are usually above 18%, but they do tend to cost more than conventional panels.

Selecting the right PV panel for your requirements

Choosing the right panel can be daunting. Of course we’re here to help and advise, but we like our customers to be informed. Below is a quick guide to choosing panels to suit your needs. If you’d like more help and advice on which is best suited to your home and lifestyle, please call us or send an email enquiry, and one of our technicians will be happy to help.

Considerations when selecting your solar panel:

Q. How much energy would you like to produce?
A. It’s often a good idea to check back over previous bills to establish what your energy consumption is on a yearly basis. This will help give you a good indication of how much energy you’ll need to produce.

Q. How much roof space do you have available?
A. Once you’ve discovered how much energy you’ll need to produce, Energy Gain UK can provide you with detailed information about how large the panels would need to be to generate the desired amount of electricity.

Q. How much will the system cost?
A. There are a variety of systems available to suit a wide range of budgets. The less efficient systems do tend to be slightly cheaper, but are often more than adequate for the average UK home. The more efficient units come with a higher price tag, but generate more electricity over their lifetime.

Q. How efficient does your system need to be?
A. As described above, there are multiple systems available. Energy Gain UK can advise you on which system best suits your needs and budget.

For home users, here are your options:

Option 1 – Do nothing

You will then pay approximately £35,000 over 20 years for your electricity

Option 2 – Purchase a 16 panel solar photovoltaic system

 You will receive a significant return on investment over 20 years.

Option 3 – Fully-financed solar photovoltaic system

With no initial outlay cost you get a system that can cover the majority of the finance costs and provides a significant return on investment over 20 years.

With installations usually taking around just 1-2 days you too could soon be making huge savings on your energy bills and receiving a tax-free income.

We also ensure all products selected come with warranties and offer our own workmanship guarantees.

Solar PV installation

Energy Gain has many years experience in the installation and maintenance of solar PV units. Our teams are carefully selected professionals ranging from project managers, installers and electricians, all of which have now fitted hundreds of solar panels to both domestic and commercial premises throughout the UK. Installations can usually be complete in just 1-2 days.

“Our team has fitted hundreds of solar panels to domestic premises across the UK”

Below is a step-by-step guide of how our installations tend to operate.

Step 1 – Scaffolding

We will arrange for a local approved scaffolading supplier to come to your home and install a scaffold suitable for the installation.

Step 2 – Roof Anchor Installation

Roof anchors are stainless steel hooks that form the base for mounting the solar panels to your roof. These are securely fixed to your roof rafters

Step 3 – Mounting Frame Installation

This is an important stage in the process as these will be positioned square, straight and parallel to the roof, ensuring the finished look of the installation is neat and visually appealing.

Step 4 – Solar Panel Installation

When installing the panels, our team is conscious of making sure that the panels look their best not only from the roof, but also from the floor.

Step 5 – Solar Panel Wiring

Next the solar panels are wired to one-another, ensuring cables run along the mounting frames to make sure they are kept well off the roof’s surface and away from falling water. The wiring is then routed through your home to the inverter, to produce the electricity to power your home. Everything is then connected to a fuse box and meter, which sits next to your existing consumer unit.

Step 6 – System Commissioned

Finally, your dedicated project manager will instruct the team to activate and test the system. Readings will be taken and sent to head office to ensure it is performing to the usual high standards. Once this is confirmed, and you are happy with the installation, our team signs the job off, and sends off an application on your behalf for the MCS certificate.

Quality And Testing

In 2010 Energy Gain UK developed a state-of-the-art Solar Test and Research Facility (The EG STAR), where we monitor, test and report on our solar photovoltaic systems. Our focus is on understanding system performance and reliability in order to offer the market actual data rather than rely on simulated software programs. This means that we can provide our customers with the very best advice and products, backed up by extensive test data.

Once you have installed an Energy Gain UK solar PV system we will continuously monitor is performance and provide you with the ability to monitor the electricity production too.

FAQs

Solar PV Panels – Your Questions Answered

Is there enough sun in the UK for solar panels to work?

Believe it or not there is. The UK actually receives the same amount of sunlight as parts of France and Spain. Solar panels are powered by light – not heat or direct sunlight. So even when it is raining solar PV panels are still absorbing more than enough energy.

“Domestic solar panel installation in the UK does not require planning permission”

Are there different types of solar panels?

To generate electricity you require photovoltaic panels (PV) panels. These fall into three types; monocrystalline, polycrystalline and amorphous.

• Monocrystalline are the most efficient as they are cut from a single piece of silicon. These are the type supplied by Energy Gain UK.
• Polycrystalline are made up of a number of pieces of silicon, whilst a cheaper alternative they are less efficient.
• Amorphous are the newest type. They are made from thinner silicon, making them less rigid so more suitable for curved rooftops.

Do you need planning permission for solar panels?

Planning permission regulations were altered in 2008 to make the installation of renewable technologies a more straightforward process. This has meant that most domestic solar panel installations in the UK do not require planning permission. We will of course advise on your particular circumstances as part of our initial site survey.

How long does installation take?

The average solar panel installation only takes 1 – 2 days.

How do I claim the Feed-In Tariff?

Once you have installed your Solar PV system Energy Gain UK will provide you with a certificate to confirm your installation meets with the Microgeneration Certification Scheme (MCS) standards. You can then either contact your existing electricity supplier or to change and apply through another one. They will then arrange the payment process with you.

Can I get a Solar Loan?

Our Solar Loans gives 95% of homeowners the opportunity to own their own renewable system.   The Energy Savings and Feed In Tariff payments cover 90% of the annual solar loan payments, meaning there is a very small outlay by the homeowner. Flexible solar loan terms allow you to determine the period and cost, while the income stream continues for 20 years.