One of the main reasons why many people use solar panels (also known as photovoltaic tiles) in the first place is because they can save you a lot of money on your energy bills. But that’s not the only financial benefit that solar panels can bring you. Let’s take a look at some of them in more detail.

Lower electric bills

Electricity is expensive and even if you get a great deal from your supplier the bad news is that the deal will often have a time limit. Cutting electricity usage is also much harder than it sounds, especially if you have a busy family home. With solar power however, you can drastically cut your electricity bills and make real, significant savings.

Get paid for your power

Another great benefit of having solar panels is that you actually get paid for the power your solar panels produce. And you will even get paid if you use the energy yourself! So, it really does pay to be green.

Get paid for exporting power

More good news for households with solar panels is that if you produce power and send it back to your supplier then you’ll get paid again. So, you won’t just get paid for the power you generate for yourself but also get further payments for the power you export to the grid.

The FIT scheme

The FIT or Feed-In Tariffs Scheme was set-up by the British government in April 2010 to encourage and promote greener power generating methods. These include solar panels, in order to make an application for the FIT scheme, you need to make sure you’re working with a FIT licensed energy supplier.

So, if you want to get paid for exporting or generating power it’s a little more complex than simply getting solar panels installed. But as long as your application to join the FIT scheme is successful and you follow the guidelines set out by it, you could easily make extra income while also cutting down on your bills.

Renewable Heat Incentive

The RHI or Renewable Heat Incentive was set-up by the government to help cut carbon emissions and if you successfully join it you will be paid each yearly quarter for a maximum of seven years. Solar thermal panels are covered by the RHI but only if they are used to heat your water.

In order to join your heating system must meet specific requirements and it must have an energy performance certificate that is less than two years old. The heating system will also need to be officially certified under the Microgeneration Certification Scheme.

Any payments you receive under the RHI will be based on the heating system’s usage and the heat it produces. Under the RHI you will still be responsible for maintaining any heating systems covered by the RHI.

Mono and Poly Photovoltaic tiles

So, as you’ve seen so far there’s a lot of financial benefits to using solar power, it doesn’t just stop with saving you money on your electric bill. But the question remains, what type of solar panels are the best value for money?

When it comes to buying your solar panels or to give them their official name photovoltaic tiles you’ll have two options. These are monocrystalline modules or polycrystalline modules (often abbreviated to mono and poly respectively) these work in a similar manner but are constructed in very different ways.

Mono tiles are formed using a single crystal seed, which is often thinly sliced in order to create individual cells. Poly tiles, on the other hand, are made by pouring molten silicon into ready-made moulds. Mono tiles have a smoother sleeker appearance when compared to the more metallic look of poly cells.

But apart from a cosmetic standpoint which of the two photovoltaic tiles is the best value for money? There’s no easy answer to that, mono tiles have a higher efficiency of around 20% on average but they are much more expensive.

Poly tiles are cheaper but do have a slightly lower efficiently of around 16-18% on average, so it’s easy to see why both types of tiles have their champions. Higher efficiency does mean better value for money but when you consider other costs you have to wonder whether a potential 2% difference is really worth the extra costs.

Poly tiles have also been rapidly improving in recent years which means that it’s highly likely they could match or even surpass mono tiles in the future. Whichever kind of photovoltaic tiles you opt for you’ll have plenty of ways to reap the rewards they can bring you.

From cutting your energy bills and the potential to join the government’s schemes, you’ll also be promoting cleaner energy as well. Photovoltaic tiles are a great long-term investment but also one that could pay handsomely in the short term as well.

If you’re looking to take advantage of the benefits photovoltaic tiles offer then great news because at Metrotile we have an amazing photovoltaic tiles service. We use Poly photovoltaic roof tiles as we believe these provide the best returns for customers and as you’ve read there’s certainly a lot of potential benefits for using solar panels.

For more information about how our solar panels, or photovoltaic roof tiles, can be the right fit for your roof. Give our experienced team a call on 01249 658 514 or fill out our contact form.