Too much information? - How to choose solar panels for your home.
Now you've decided to take the plunge and spend your hard earned cash on solar energy for your home, you are faced with another potentially complex decision - which solar panels do I choose?
There are dozens of makes, shapes and sizes in the market with just as many or more solar panel installation companies vying for your custom, it can sometimes be just like when you enter an empty restaurant, with so many tables to choose from, you may find it difficult to decide where to sit!
One of the more common dilemmas is about the choice of manufacturer or 'brand'. Clearly there will be names which are familiar to you and some that are not, in my experience the Japanese manufacturers seem to be the most recognised, due mainly to their presence in the home entertainment & personal electronics market (Samsung/Sanyo/sharp etc.) with the German & Chinese brands coming somewhat behind in the recognition stakes.
Not all so called 'brands' carry a premium, but some do, so how to judge if it's worth paying extra for the solar panels of your choice? To try to simplify the task of choosing the most suitable solar panels for your home, you can make yourself a kind of 'decision tree'. Write down or list the things that are important to you in terms of what you want from the solar power system.
Here's an example of things you may wish to decide upon in advance of approaching a PV installer:
Make sure you get written quotations that cover the details of the job which include a calculation of how much power the proposed system will produce and the potential income from the feed in tariff. Where possible ask for a drawing or diagram of the proposed solar PV panel layout (orientation of the solar panels can sometimes make a big difference to how many you can get on your roof), then sit back and take the time to judge the information that you have at hand.
To answer my original question: PRICE OR QUALITY - DOES THE PRICE TAG OR BRAND MATTER? If your goal is value for money, then the brand is less important as long as you are satisfied that the solar panels you install meet your basic requirements (long life span, good power output) but if you feel that installing solar power from a big well-known brand gives you more peace of mind, then the extra cost is well worth paying.
Now you've decided to take the plunge and spend your hard earned cash on solar energy for your home, you are faced with another potentially complex decision - which solar panels do I choose?
There are dozens of makes, shapes and sizes in the market with just as many or more solar panel installation companies vying for your custom, it can sometimes be just like when you enter an empty restaurant, with so many tables to choose from, you may find it difficult to decide where to sit!
One of the more common dilemmas is about the choice of manufacturer or 'brand'. Clearly there will be names which are familiar to you and some that are not, in my experience the Japanese manufacturers seem to be the most recognised, due mainly to their presence in the home entertainment & personal electronics market (Samsung/Sanyo/sharp etc.) with the German & Chinese brands coming somewhat behind in the recognition stakes.
Not all so called 'brands' carry a premium, but some do, so how to judge if it's worth paying extra for the solar panels of your choice? To try to simplify the task of choosing the most suitable solar panels for your home, you can make yourself a kind of 'decision tree'. Write down or list the things that are important to you in terms of what you want from the solar power system.
Here's an example of things you may wish to decide upon in advance of approaching a PV installer:
- SOLAR PANELS INSTALLER: local?/ National?/ Certification - MCS, REA
- SOLE DISTRIBUTOR OF 1 MANUFACTURER?/ can supply & fit any type of solar panel/ direct employees/ sub contract labour
- PV PANEL MANUFACTURER: brand/ non brand/ European/ Japanese/ Chinese/ other
- WARRANTIES / GUARANTEES workmanship (1, 2 years or more) Equipment (5, 10 years or extendable warranties) -how likely are you to have to use the warranty
- DEPOSIT GUARANTEES important/ not important
- OBJECTIVES maximum power output & lowest cost/ budget constraints/ timescales for installation
Make sure you get written quotations that cover the details of the job which include a calculation of how much power the proposed system will produce and the potential income from the feed in tariff. Where possible ask for a drawing or diagram of the proposed solar PV panel layout (orientation of the solar panels can sometimes make a big difference to how many you can get on your roof), then sit back and take the time to judge the information that you have at hand.
To answer my original question: PRICE OR QUALITY - DOES THE PRICE TAG OR BRAND MATTER? If your goal is value for money, then the brand is less important as long as you are satisfied that the solar panels you install meet your basic requirements (long life span, good power output) but if you feel that installing solar power from a big well-known brand gives you more peace of mind, then the extra cost is well worth paying.
John Chris Francis
http://www.solarpanelquotesonline.co.uk
http://www.solarpanelquotesonline.co.uk
Không có nhận xét nào:
Đăng nhận xét