Tuesday 30 April 2013

Micro Confusion


I'm a bit confused about this electricity micro generation.

The standard wisdom is that if you have a solar PV array, it's best to do your washing, cooking, etc, during peak generation hours. However, if you're being paid £0.43 per unit and consuming at £0.136, then why would you want to consume something for which would receive £0.43 had it gone into the grid. Surely it is better to feed in the maximum (rather than consume some of it during daylight hours) and consume only when dark at the much lower £0.136?

To add to the confusion, if I understand my system correctly, my feed-in meter only measures electricity generated - it does not subtract energy consumed during the day; that's taken care of by the normal consumer unit meter. That's borne out by the fact the feed in tariff payment does not come from my electricity company, but from a government department.

The logic thus surely is to leave the washing and cooking till non-generation periods?

If anyone can explain, then please do.


1 comment:

Roger said...

Surely is doesn't matter. Whatever you generate goes into the grid via the meter at the selling rate and whatever you use from the grid comes through the meter at the purchase rate.