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Octopus Energy BAD or OVO Energy Good? Solar Panel Quote Comparison!
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- Опубліковано 15 січ 2024
- Sun's out, savings out? Not so fast! Join me as I pit two of the UK's biggest green giants, Octopus Energy and OVO Energy, in a head-to-head solar panel quote showdown!
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Get ready to bask in the truth:
Quote Clash! Octopus vs. OVO: Witness the epic clash of quotes side-by-side, dissecting the financial details, panel specs, and installation plans of each offer.
Surprise twists and turns: Not everything shines under the sun! Prepare for unexpected findings, both good and bad, as we expose the strengths and weaknesses of each company.
The big reveal: Who reigns supreme? After a thorough analysis, we'll crown the ultimate solar panel provider for your home, based on both value and experience.
Bonus: Your questions answered! Fire away in the comments with your solar-powered queries - no shade here, just sunshine and honest advice!
Whether you're a sun-seeking newbie or a seasoned solar saviour, this video empowers you to make an informed decision and claim your rightful share of renewable energy glory. Let's harness the power of the sun and choose the right company to light up your future!
(Can you tell that ChatGPT wrote this for me?)
I’ve had a solar installation for five years, I would go with the biggest battery you can afford, we unfortunately started with a 2.4 kWh battery then a year or two later upgraded to a 4.8 kWh moixa battery and I wish I’d gone for a 9 or 10 plus kWh but couldn’t afford it at the time.
I’m now looking to add another 9.5kwh battery to take me to around 14kwh total.
If I had an unlimited budget I’d go for 20-25 plus as in the summer you’d be covering your needs in total and getting a good income from exported power and in the winter you just charge the batteries on cheap overnight tariff rates and almost never need expensive daytime grid at high prices. Good luck
Thanks for the comment and sharing your personal experience.
Like you, if money were no object i'd happily site 30kWh in my garage!
Yes definitely buy the most batteries you can, but even with recent cost reductions they’re still expensive, circa 5-20 years payback.
Don’t get the 5.2 as they are only 80% depth of discharge, the 8.2 and 9.5 are 100%
@@geoffreycoan What do you think about the grid battery strategy?
Even now batteries really are not worth it.
@@rogerphelps9939 That's the conclusion I came to on this video here: ua-cam.com/video/hXCiZwlTuk0/v-deo.html
Make sure you are looking into the spec of the growat inverter. Look into micro inverters and optimisers due to your shading
Thank you for the heads up. Those things are on my radar but warrant more investigation!
A good price but depends on the inverter spec but personally I prefer a dc based hybrid inverter myself as it gives me more options or input and features hence I chose Sunsynk / Deye.
Check how optimisation is done on apanel level, many opt for different systems and may say the panel do3s it, yes panel tech has improved however with adc system optimisation will be required don't skimp on this I can testify to the bnifit of all my panels being optimised with Tiogo TS04 and controlers.
Most go wrong with only fitting them to some of the string pv panels.
Microinverters also can work for some and have cost savings but can limit battery types.
Microinverters also can although giving a one stop solution lose a large proportion of solar power when compared to a dc system.
It took me 2 years detaild research before I decided on a system.
@@scrapyardwars Thanks for the comment! Since this video I have decided on just that. Sunsynk inverter with Tigo optimisers!
I would switch the invertor to the same manufacturer as the battery one app. Also Octopus energy can give you a great tariff, and control your system with the GivEnergy setup.
Thanks for the comment.
Is that the intelligent go that you're referring to?
I need to investigate that more.
@@UpsideDownFork it’s Intelligent Octopus Flux.
Just got a quote myself from Ovo. Similar price but they specified the GivEnergy gen 3 inverter. Battery is a little limited on the peak output of 3.3Kw. I would prefer the GivEnergy All in One but they don’t yet quote for that (on the way). It’s also a lot more expensive. Thanks for the vid..
@@RussMBrooks Thank you. I'll take a closer look and do some calculations with my spreadsheet.
@@paulmannion7097 Thanks for commenting. I have noticed the charge and discharge rates of the givenergy inverters appears to be low compared to some others.
Thanks for doing the leg-work! Useful to know what technologies the energy companies favour!
You're welcome.
Thanks for commenting 👍
I would seriously look at doubling the size of that single 9.5kWh battery. I have the same size GE battery & in winter it's empty by midday after charging overnight - & we don't have a heat pump. Admittedly we are retired so we are at home most days so appliances are on during the day as well as overnight. I'm going to add another 9.5kWh battery to our system as soon at the 0% Vat comes in.
For a sanity check against an outstanding quote I have from my original installer I asked Octopus for a quote to add more panels & battery to our system & they have politely declined because they are too busy!
Thanks for commenting.
I'm doing my sums very carefully because the payback period on any battery is currently looking very very long compared to solar panels.
Even utilising smart tariffs and selling back to the grid during peak times as well as benefitting from saver sessions.
You are right, to make it work for me I do need at least 20-30kWh in the winter, but during the summer that's just going to be totally over the top so I'm not sure I can justify the capital investment.
Not sure you are aware (not checked the other comments) but Battery only systems will be vat free from mid/end of Feb this year apparently so may be worth asking for an updated quote on battery only systems in March as could be up to 20% cheaper.
Thanks for the comment. I'm not personally interested in a battery only system.
Take care!
Have a look at the Gary does Solar videos for lots of detailed explanation of things like inverters, shading, battery sizings.
The Octopus quote doesn’t look good I agree. Whilst you have the scaffolding up it’s best to maximise the panels you are installing as it’d cost another £500-1000 just for scaffolding to expand in the future. Having panels on different sides of the roof will give you a longer solar generation day.
I’m not sure why Ovo are quoting for an AC coupled system, a hybrid inverter is one less box to install thus cheaper and will have about 5% less energy losses when charging your battery from solar.
GivEnergy batteries and inverters are good, lots of people have them and there’s an active community forum
Thanks for the comment. I have been binge watching gary does solar recently to get fully up to speed.
Totally agree that it seems sensible to maximise the roof space whilst scaffolding is in place.
Hard to beat solis and pylontech combo price and quality is good. Very easy to add battery's to pylontech and won't brake the bank. I started with a 3.5 kw pylontech and now have 14kw and keeps my heat pump running most of the time.
Thanks for your comment. Pylontech do seem to be coming up again and again!
@@UpsideDownForkI have 18kWh of them, and aside from having to build a little insulated box for them (they're in an unheated garage) they've been faultless. When we install the heat pump, I'm going to add a nother stack.
@@SimonRGates Thanks for replying. Mine would have to go in the garage too. I do have a radiator out there but currently choose to have it turned off, but once I finish insulating the garage i'll probably have that radiator on a very low setting.
DO NOT BUY THAT SYSTEM!
With your shading issues you want to buy **SHINGLED PANELS** - its worth paying slightly more for them as the impact of shading on them is MASSIVELY reduced.
Instead of having Half Cut Panels - ie each panel consists of 2 separate producing segments - Shingled panels have 144 segments, so shading on 1 of them reduces output by 1/144th etc.
Don't let anyone persuade you to use optimizers, shingled panels are the better option in terms of cost and future failure/maintenance (optimizers have fairly well established failure rate of 10-15% over 10 years). That would then mean you would need to erect scaffolding to be able to replace them, panel failures are significantly less common.
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GivEnergy kit is good but DONT buy the 3kw AC Coupled with 9.5kw Battery. You are limited to 3kw peak AC output from the battery.
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Instead get the GivEnergy AIO - that's 6kw AC Coupled with 13.5kw Battery, Max peak draw is 7.2kw and continuous is 6kw.
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If you know your peak energy draw is going to be consistently more than that (6kw) then you might want to look at different options.
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Potentially you could look at Sunsynk 8kw Hybrid, or 15kw Hybrid (the only product currently on the market offering 15kw Single Phase connection) or it might work out cheaper installing 2 x 8kw Sunsynk Inverters in Parallel.
You could then split your panels into 4 separate strings which again would help with shading.
Whilst this is overkill for your PV Array the important factor here is ensuring that your house demand is met by your batteries and maximizes full use of the Solar & Batteries to load shift to cheap rate time of use tariffs.
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Growatt have been in the business for a while but are not generally considered Top Tier Inverters. There are for sure on the cheaper end of the scale too.
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With the potential for shading issues it might be worth considering Fronius Inverters. These have one of the best Shadow Tracking (aka algorithms) allowing them to cope with the impact of shading on panel output. They do tend to be bit pricier though in general as made in Austria.
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Also Sunsynk are manufacturer agnostic when it comes to batteries giving lots of options.
Thanks. I am leaning towards Sunsynk for that very reason.
Is there a particular shingled solar panel that you would recommend?
No vat on batteries now.
Thanks for commenting.
thank you for another really good video, as an ex IT Project Manager the thoroughness of your spreadsheets is much appreciated 🙂...If i'm honest I'm a bit shocked at the 'price gouging' by Octopus in the markup they are adding to third party supplied products. It has made me completely skeptical about going anywhere near their COSY Heat Pump solution when it rolls out 👎
Thanks for the comment.
The reason I went to Octopus first of all was the knowledge of how aggressive they've been with pricing in the heat pump market. It doesn't seem to have carried over to solar at all.
I am pretty sure u can only pull 3 KWh from the inverter so as you have a heat pump you may take electricity from the grid at some time.
Thanks for the comment. The biggest spike i've seen from the heat pump so far was 2kW, but i'm sure with other appliances going simultaneously it won't take a lot for us to trip over the 3kW on a very cold day.
I'll be drilling down into the inverter specs shortly. Thanks.
Have you thought about getting a quote from a builder to late out that front gable, then you could just have the panels at the front might save you some money.
Thanks for the comment. Another person mentioned that on a previous video and whilst I had not previously considered it, unfortunately my wife is dead set against that.
I think your savings calcs are for PV only. Installers generally don't include battery savings as there are too many variables depending on your charge/discharge patterns. Also need to factor in the capital of replacing the battery (10-15 years) within your 25 year span for the PV
Thanks. I did some rough calculations on whether a battery is worth it for my use case here:
ua-cam.com/video/hXCiZwlTuk0/v-deo.html
Just got my inverter replaced yesterday so back on line for the first time in 8 weeks. I have a 9.5 battery and it's a must have as it's better to save what you are importing then to export as a lower rate.
Thanks for the comment. Have you calculated the payback period for your battery strategy?
@@UpsideDownFork I think it will be 6 or 7 years.
@@andrewbellinger1135 Thanks for replying! Good luck.
FYI. I know that a small electrical company installing solar can purchase the givenergy 9.5 KWh battery at £2.5k and I’m sure the likes of octopus and OVO can get them a lot cheaper.
Thanks for the comment. That is interesting to know.
Bear in mind that the solar only price from OVO wouldn’t include the AC inverter? That’s another £1k
@@geoffreycoan Thanks for pointing that out.
No vat on battery's now I believe.
@@Dale-11 Batteries with solar installations are already vat free. From 1st February 2024 standalone batteries are now also vat free
Another great video thanks for sharing your journey with us!
Thanks for the comment and following along!
I'm impressed with the amount of power you get from the NW facing roof, the JRC prediction is 3800kWh/year for the 14 panels. However, that battery quote is huge. You could get 14kWh of off the shelf 48v lifepo4 batteries for that. I'm not impressed with the givenergy inverter stats either - they're expensive, and are relatively low power when it comes to charging / discharging the batteries.
Thanks for your comment.
I am leaning towards a SunSynk inverter for this reason. It seems to have higher charge/discharge rates and plays nicely with any type of battery.
The NW roof also surprised me. There seems to be a growing consensus that blanketing the whole roof space, no matter the orientation, should be done.
In your excel sheet, I see the battery only installation for 9.5kw is 3459. Does it include any inverter(AC or Hybrid) and installation!! this is the cheapest option if it includes everything!
I'm afraid that's just the cost of the battery as an add-on to the rest of the solar system.
Thanks for the comment.
A;ways take the payback periods with a pinch of salt as there are some big assumptions in them plus of course you battery and inverter are likely to need replacing in 10 to 15 years depending how hard they are worked, warranties and degradation. No installer ever factors in that you will have another capital investment or two to make over the 20-30 year lifespan of the panels.
I agree with many on here about sizing your battery properly and not going to small however it need to be appropriate for your needs now and in future noting that the inverter and battery are the more expensive parts of the system and will need replacing so if you go big it costs more now and in 10 to 15 years.
One of the big things people overlook is the Inverter size and capacity both the recieve but more importantly output AC. It looks like yours is showing 3kW from the battery which could be limiting as many electric ovens run at 2.4 to 3 kW so any other base load would take a demand from the grid as well.
My system has a 6kW Hybrid inverter which for our smaller energy needs has been sufficient when cooking Christmas Dinner (oven, hobs TV's everyone home).
Thanks for your comment! I've been proactively calculating my own payback based on different forecasts and assumptions, you can see them in the last 2 videos on my channel.
For my usage profile, a battery does not look viable at all, but that could certainly change quickly when we get an EV and can access intelligent go. We would be looking at 15-20kWh of battery storage in that case.
The SunSynk 8.8 inverter is my first choice to give us the future proofing we want.
Im leaning towards getting a battery from fogstar 15.5 kw £2500 and a hybrid inverter
Thanks for the comment. I highlighted that as a good option in my most recent video!
I wouldn't touch OVO with a bargepole. Their customer relations is shockingly bad. My FIT generation meter failed. It was replaced by a MCS registered installer. OVO was informed. It took the best part of a year before OVO updated my account details and that was after getting the ombudsman involved. We were originally with SSE who were very good; they made FIT payments within a couple of days of the reading. OVO take the maximum time that they are allowed, almost 3 months. Unfortunately we were moved to OVO not through choice but because of SSE withdrawing from the domestic market. Appalling
Thanks for the comment. Sorry to hear about your poor customer experience.
Did you have Solar panels installed by OVO or are you just talking about your perspective as an energy customer?
Is there any sort of guarantee for the generation figures, is it a case of sucks to be you if that north facing array doesn’t perform?
Thanks for the comment. The generation figures are 10-15% pessimistic from my research. I've not come across any other online or locally who have performed worse than their generation forecast. It appears that nearly all of the installers use either the opensolar or easypv system to generate their proposals.
I cant see that you are comparing like for like? it looks like you are trying to compare a 2.43 KWp system with a 7 KWp system? They are two separate beasts with two different economies of scale. A larger system will always be cheaper per kwh produced!
I'm comparing two different suppliers who both put forward their best proposals.
You are also comparing prices against two totally different setups. One is more than twice the size of the other.If you specified the same design to the two different companies then you could compare them against each other. @@UpsideDownFork
@@MarkAAshdown I guess you haven't seen the other video? Octopus refused to adjust their quote.
Does feel like theres a need for optimisers there?
Thanks for the comment.
I think the front panels will certainly benefit from optimisers, the rear panels less so.
Buy into a windfarm and wait until sodium battery's become available
Thanks for the comment. Both good ideas. I am on the waiting list for ripple.
Personally, I'm more interested in V2G than waiting for the next battery chemistry.
My batteries alone 4x4.8 kwh come to £ 5600. Pylontech us5000
Do you have that paired with Solar PV?
@UpsideDownFork yes I've got 5.8 kw with 4x pylontech us5000 through a Solis 6kw inverter. I still dip into grid if the wife switches everything on together. 😁
@@Thomasmann-iw4uf As the saying goes...every little helps!
Shading factor is incorrect
Thanks for the comment.
Can you elaborate?
@@UpsideDownFork if you can post a Gmail link to me, I will contact you to get your post code, YT does not allow me to post links
Try beatable prices a lot better than that and a good system
Thanks for the comment. Do you mean Heatable?
@@UpsideDownFork yes heatable, they have panels with micro inverters worth a look biggest thing being, not effected if one panel is shaded or goes down and because the micro inverter needs a lot less power to begin production they come on a lot earlier and turn off later compared to a string set up with a central inverter
@@shaunkerr4647 Thank you. I have been researching microinverters after watching Gary Does Solar.