Solar Panels

Solar panels are rapidly growing in popularity across the UK. Many businesses, commercial properties, industrial sites and fields have already been fitted with solar panels with many more expected in the next twelve months. Solar panels work as the light hits them they then convert that light energy into energy for electricity or to heat water. With a commercial or industrial site the power that is generated will either be used up on site or fed to nearby homes and businesses. More owners of property and land are now taking advantage of having solar energy. Recent cuts in the governments backed feed in tariff scheme for larger installations is a blow to many people who have been considering the idea but the payments from the scheme are still highly beneficial. There is also the option through the scheme to get free solar panels.

Feed In Tariffs

The feed in tariff works in two ways. Either you pay for the cost of installation of the panels upfront. When this happens the owner of the property can benefit from having reduced energy costs and 31.4p per kilowatt hour of energy they produce paid to them yearly. There is also an annual payment made for any electricity produced that was not needed and then sold back to the national grid. These payments offer a huge incentive for switching any building over to solar panels. If you cannot afford to have the panels fitted to a large commercial or industrial building then there is the option of getting them fitted for free. This also has its advantages. Either you can receive an annual payment for the rental of the roof space or you can choose to benefit from free electricity.

Free Solar Panels

Free solar panels are only available due to the feed in tariff scheme. The owner of the property could still benefit from free electricity but will not be eligible for the annual payments that the scheme has to offer. The payments would then go to the company that fitted the panels for you therefore paying them back the costs of fitting and maintenance. Some companies that fit the panels offer to rent the space that is taken up by the solar panels. Paying up to £7000 a year for the rental of the space. This is paid instead of the massive savings in electricity that in many cases will be much more than the £7000 offered. However another good point to having free panels is that the cheaper electricity or rental costs will apply for twenty five years. After the twenty five years the companies will usually hand over ownership of the panels to the person who owns the building or land. Potentially solar panels can last up to fifty years and you could still make electricity savings for this amount of time. There are not as many companies available to fit solar panels to commercial and industrial buildings as there are for homes. But they are out there and it is worth looking into what they have to offer.

Requirements

If you have the space available for the panels and think you could be suitable then you could be eligible for free solar panels. However there are things that need to be looked at before you approach a company. The intended site should be south to west facing and the light should not be obstructed by over having trees and other buildings. Asbestos roofs and lead roofing also make for unsuitable sites. You would have to make sure that the roof space was strong enough for the panels to stay for twenty five to fifty years and the site should allow for full access for fitting and maintenance purposes. Both sloping roofs and flat roofs are suitable as flat roofs can be fitted with A frames. All in all there has never been a better time to take advantage of the feed in tariff scheme which offers these free panels.