Mary was a pensioner who lived in their own detached house alongside her husband. She was referred to our Climate Friendly Homes project by Home Energy Scotland for advice on getting the most out of their new solar panels that were recently installed through the Warmer Homes Scotland scheme.
We called Mary to offer advice about their new solar panels. We quickly realised she had little knowledge about how they worked and was worried the system had not been connected or registered properly. Mary mentioned that she had heard about the Smart Export Guarantee (SEG) and that it would allow her to get some money back for any energy they export to the grid. She did not know how to go about this and found this quite confusing. We decided to book a home visit so we could take a look at the system and help with these issues.
At the visit, we identified that there was no smart meter installed, so we offered advice on how this would help and explained the need for one if she wished to apply for the SEG and manage her energy use so we helped to contact her energy supplier and arrange to have one installed.
We checked that the solar panels were producing electricity, that some of this was being used in the property and any excess was being exported to the grid. To help get the most out of the system we discussed the best way to use energy in her home to make the most of the energy being generated.
After Mary had a smart meter installed and we were able to visit again and help install the supplier’s mobile app, which she can use to view her bills and real-time usage in the meantime to help make the most of her new solar panels.
We were then able to support Mary with an application for the SEG.
As a result of our support Mary and her husband are more confident on how to use energy in their home during the day to maximise the benefit from their new solar panels. She can now also track her bills and usage via her online app, thanks to her new smart meter.
Mary was relieved to know her solar panels were working and generating energy for her home. She said she would not have been able to do all of this without our guidance and was very thankful for our ongoing support.
Get advice
Cosy Kingdom provides free & impartial energy advice to anyone living within Fife. If you’d like to part and find out how you can save energy at home get in touch to arrange an appointment.
Our energy advisors can be contacted by:
- Calling 01592 807930
- Texting COSY then YOUR NAME to 88440
- Emailing info@cosykingdom.org.uk
- Request advice online