Helpful resources when considering microgen technologies.
Please help us keep this up to date - if you've got more resources / contacts / experiences, please email them to jo[at]climatex.org.

  Getting started:

Energy Saving Trust - Microgeneration

 The Energy Saving Trust is often a good starting point, with a section on Home Energy Generation on their website. You can also telephone to ask questions or for ongoing guidance and support on 0800 512012.

You could also contact their local Microgeneration Coordinator, Ruth Wharton on 01908 699994
or email: ruth.wharton@est-tvs.org.uk

  

The Low Carbon Buildings Programme has information on the various technologies; how they work, issues re suitability to different buildings and situations, cost and maintenance and planning considerations. PLEASE NOTE:  You can no longer get grant funding for electricity producing technologies from the LCBP.

 

The REAL Assurance Scheme site has some good consumer guidance, and the following reassuring words:

"Micro generation consumers are not necessarily technical experts, and nor  should they need to be. On the other hand, without being an expert, consumers should make some effort to understand what they are purchasing. They should have a clear understanding of their expectations, and appreciate the extent to which the system proposed can reasonably meet them. This guide is designed to help you to get what you want from a micro generation system".

 

TV Energy aims to provide education about renewable energy for communities, businesses, organisations and individuals within the Thames Valley and beyond. It has useful local case studies.

  

TZERO helps identify optimal low carbon solutions to your specific house type.

 Yougen  is a social enterprise and web resource to make it easy for you to improve the energy efficiency of your home, find a suitable renewable energy technology and buy with confidence. Check it out.

 

You should also check your local authority to see if you will need to contact the planning or building control departments. the Oxford City Council Building Control contact is: David Clayton, Building Control Surveyor, Oxford City COuncil: daclayton[at]oxford.gov.uk .

Feed in tariffs / clean energy cashback scheme

Feed in tariffs will start on 1st April 2010 - further details of the scheme are available from the Energy Saving Trust website

 
  

Choosing which microgen technology is right for you

 You can register your home details to get immediate advice about which technologies might suit you best on both the Energy Saving Trust and TZERO sites.

You may want to consider involving an energy advisor or auditor to assess your home and advise on the pros and cons of potential microgen technologies. Some basic initial advice may be free. Unless you are clear and confident about what you want and how to get it, you may want to buy in some expert advice at this point.

TV Energy will give initial free advice over the phone ( 01635 817 420) to people in Oxfordshire and the Thames Valley area. They will then advise on who might take on further assessment which could be charged for.

The United Sustainable Energy Agency offers free, impartial and expert energy saving advice.  http://www.usea.org.uk/holding_page.asp

Private energy advisers

Advisors will be able to give a more tailored assessment of your home, but will offer different things, so it's worth making a list of all the areas you'd like them to cover before phoning to enquire about their services.  For example: do you just want advice about microgeneration or do you want advise about your whole house? Will they be able to advise on different materials and approaches? Would they be able to give an overview of your options?

 See the Eco-renovation directory for some local advisors.

  

Choosing microgen suppliers/installers

  

• The Energy Saving Trust gives details of manufacturers and suppliers who are signed up to the Energy Saving Recommended scheme
• The Low Carbon Building Programme lists certified suppliers and materials
• TZERO has details of local suppliers and installers, and you can request a quote through the TZERO site
•  The REAL Assurance site has a list of suppliers who are members of the scheme

Questions to ask potential suppliers/installers

  

•  Check about certification. Ask if they are MCS accredited( a voluntary microgen certification scheme for all UK based products and installers) -  essential if you are claiming Government grants. The  Solar Keymark scheme covers solar thermal products and suppliers across Europe
• They may belong to the REAL assurance scheme
• They may belong to an association for their own technology e.g. The Solar Trade Association [More info about these associations]
• Can they give you information about local planning permissions needed?
• Can they give you information about grants and help you through the process?

 

There may be technical questions specific to each technology for you to consider with potential suppliers/installers. The TZERO site is useful here; for each technology they list questions, such as the ones following from their section on solar photovoltaics

www.tzero.org.uk/information.aspx?ID=26

      

•  Is your product certified under the Microgeneration Certification Scheme (MCS)? The MCS underpins the Low Carbon Buildings Programme, which provides grants for installing renewable energy technologies. MCS is designed to evaluate products and installers against robust criteria for microgeneration technologies. Visit this website to find an MCS approved product: www.greenbooklive.com/page.jsp?id=131

•            Does your product meet the requirements of the relevant BSI British Standard? Relevant BSI British Standards include (depending on the type of PV module): BS EN 61215:2005 Crystalline silicon terrestrial photovoltaic (PV) modules. Design qualification and type approval; BS EN 61646:1997, IEC 61646:1996 Thin-film terrestrial photovoltaic (PV) modules. Design qualification and type approval.

 

For solar Photovoltaic

•  What is the installed peak power of your PV system?  Most domestic systems usually between 1 and 3 kWp (kilo Watt peak). A 1kWp system is enough to run appliances and processes that are in constant use for a typical UK dwelling

•      Is your PV system grid-connected or stand-alone? Grid connected systems require very little maintenance and allow you to export excess electricity to the grid.  Stand-alone systems, i.e. those not connected to the grid, need maintenance on other system components, such as batteries and are usually are used in situations where grid power supplies are unavailable or difficult to connect to.     
  

•      What type of PV cells are used in your system? The following types of PV cells are listed in order from most to least efficient (and expensive): monocrystalline silicon cells, multicrystalline silicon cells, thin cell technologies (e.g.  cadmium telluride (CdTe) and copper indium diselenide (CIS)) and amorphous silicon. Most PV cells used for land-based applications are based on one of the silicon technologies.

 

Other questions to help you choose between installers

  

• Ask a few potential installers to assess your home and give you a clear picture of what they suggest they can do and a quote of what it would cost

• You could ask about any testimonials they might be able to offer from previous customers
•  You could ask what they see as straightforward parts of the job in your home, and any difficulties it might throw up.
•  You could ask about timescale and what might get in the way of the timescale
•  You could ask about potential payback after the work is done in terms of your energy bills
•   You should expect clear information presented in a way you can understand. The REAL Assurance Scheme site is very helpful; an example of their advice.

 

Performance predictions

This is a complex area, but obviously very important. If you are technically minded, and want to know the detail, see the section on presenting performance information. Otherwise, you should expect a REAL company to provide you with written estimates of the anticipated performance of your system in an accepted format, and indicate clearly if this is based on estimates or is referenced to your actual energy use.

If you have cause for concern over any aspect listed above, Don't sign the contract. Instead, you should seek a second opinion from in independent source. Remember also that you have a cooling off period once you have signed a contract.

 

Next steps: consents and quotes for the work

 

• You should be clear as to who is seeking planning approval (if required), or any other permissions or consents required. It should be made clear to you if you are required or obliged to carry out any duties, (such as providing information, or to operating or maintaining equipment.)
• Aspects such as cooling off period, payment methods, guarantees, and the timescale for the work should all be made clear to you by the company.You could ask for a clear breakdown of costs
• If relevant, check there will be a Low Carbon Buildings Programme completion certificate.
  

  

  

Dealing with problems?

  

The REAL Assurance site is helpful

www.realassurance.org.uk/consumer-guide

 

If you are unfortunate enough to experience problems, the REAL Assurance Consumer Code sets out precisely the consumer complaints procedure, the scheme's conciliation service and the independent arbitration procedure.

There is also information on how the scheme deals with companies that do not conform to the code and measures we have put in place to ensure that the code is effective.