Local Solar Scheme TK

Navvie

I've got one of this company's reps coming out this evening for a chat.

Anyone heard of them or used them?

Thanks.

Navvie

Seems the company behind this is Project Solar. Well reviewed on Trust Pilot.

Anyone used them?

Salesman pushed a Voltage Optimiser, the unit keeps mains voltage at 220v and apparently cuts down on electric usage and saves money. Any opinions?

Rodders53

Snake oil!  Use the search facility to see why.

If they push such kit,  I'd not use or trust this firm at all.

Navvie

Interesting. Sales guys, perhaps overly simple, explanation was that if a kettle is 3kW at 240volts, it'll only be 2.5kW at 220volts. Obviously taking longer to boil but, and this was his point, staying within the output of the solar panels - taking weather & time of day into account.

While that seems like sound maths to me, I see it'll obviously be cheaper in the long run to just buy a lower power kettle. I also see that kettles and toasters, things with resistive loads, benefit most from this - wikipedia suggest the compressor motor in the fridge and freezer will see a small beneift too. But anything with a switch-mode power supply won't benefit.

I'll tell him to poke his VO and see how it reduces the price.

Thanks for heads up.

degsod

Surely the power drain will be the same ie 3kw? on the amperage will change?

Chris Muriel

The kettle will use the same amount of energy to boil at either voltage; in other words the KWh (Killowatt hours) used remain the same.

Trollslayer

Anyone selling those things is to be avoided, particularly because they aren't 100% efficient so you will lose power in the optimiser. Possibly more than you could save in theory.

Navvie

Just to finish off.

Project Solar quoted my £9,500 for a 14 panel 4.0kw system.

Got a quote elsewhere (Ikea/Solar Century) of £6,000 for 15 panel generating 4.2kw. (I know these aren't "real" figures)

Different in price seems to be, 99 year guarantee from PS and a referral scheme that actually pays decent money back.... over £1,000 for the fifth referral.

Phone call from Project Solar today. How did the meeting go, did we think solar panels were "the right fit" for us. Great meeting, yes. Would we be getting the panels from them? No... price is not very competitive and salesman's first words were the price is non-negotiable.

Script change at this point and suddenly my quote was on this guys desk because he can do a special deal and make the panels more affordable for us (funny, the price was the best they could do until I said I had much better elsewhere). I stop him and say if he can bring his price down by over a third, what the [expletive] was he doing quoting me £9,500 in the first place. As far as I can see, the price is so high because it offsets the referral scheme and the guarantee. A guarantee so long I doubt the company will be around to honour it in 99 years and that I really didn't appreciate being taken for a mug. He says "I'm not on about reducing the price, just making it more affordable." I have no idea what that means. How is it more affordable if the price isn't reduced?I didn't explore it and asked them not to contact me again.

Be wary of Project Solar or "Local Solar Scheme" as they portray themselves on Facebook, doing the rounds with posts saying "good news, solar panel funding is now available in your area".