With the Feed-in-tarrifs alone that should come down to somewhere in the region of a 15 year payback. But with FITs and the current grants you're looking at 10 years, possibly less.
That would still require several thousand pounds up front to get a worthwhile installation, maybe £5,000-6,000, but if that's paid for via an interest free loan the PV's just about pay for themselves. A reasonably sized PV array, once FITS come in, could generate more than £500 a year in savings/income.
As to details they can sit flush or proud of the roof and there are advantages/disadvantages to both. Outside of a Conservation Area they're permitted development so as long as you meet certain criteria you don't need approval from the planners.
In a Conservation Area, or if your building is listed, you need permission but since it's permitted development elsewhere you shouldn't need to pay a fee for an application. And conservation/listing, whilst it can present difficulties, isn't necessarily a problem. The planning dept and bodies like Historic Scotland have become more amenable to such proposals if done sensitively.Statistics: Posted by seanie — 14 Oct 2009, 22:52
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