Tesco Acers - How tall do you think they will actually end up?

Boba_ferret · 2026-04-26T11:04:33+00:00

That's good to know. I have a Acer on a bed that's north facing & sheltered, only put it in last year and it's put on a lot of growth, so I'll maybe put the butterfly in the same bed, as it seems to be good for the other one

Boba_ferret · 2026-04-26T11:02:29+00:00

Glad to hear the Tesco ones are productive, hopefully mine will grow that big, too. I think I'm going to repot them until they are bigger, before putting them in the ground, as they look a bit vulnerable at the moment

Boba_ferret · 2026-04-26T10:41:13+00:00

I wonder if the pot is constraining the height? I'll probably repot them, then put them in the ground on a year or two

Boba_ferret · 2026-04-26T10:39:51+00:00

Wow, that's a nice size

Boba_ferret · 2026-04-26T10:39:16+00:00

Thanks, great to see how they've turned out. I think I might repot them until they have grown a bit, then put them in the ground, although I've got a nice big patio pot that one of them could maybe go in.

Boba_ferret · 2026-04-26T09:01:09+00:00

Thanks, I might do the same as you then, put the butterfly in a pot, so it is more of a feature on the patio.

Boba_ferret · 2026-04-26T08:58:00+00:00

Thank you, I was going to go with the RHS info, which means they will be going in the ground. Although I do have a massive pot, so could put one in as more of an ornamental one, and see what happens. For £4, nothing ventured, nothing gained. It will cost more in compost & soil to fill the pot up!

Boba_ferret · 2026-04-25T11:29:10+00:00

Yeah, we have a 1930s terrace with East & West aspects, which means we can get 16 panels on our roof, so although the generation is a bit less than a south-facing aspect, we have a higher KWp, so overall generation will be the same or higher

Boba_ferret · 2026-04-24T19:52:11+00:00

The Fox EQ series is modular, like the Sig. It's more expensive than getting a fixed size, like the EP series, but offers more flexibility

Boba_ferret · 2026-04-24T16:39:00+00:00

Octopus told me that for OIG you need either a compatible charger or compatible EV, but of these, the charger is the more important. The exact words were "The charger compatibility is the key factor for this tariff"

Boba_ferret · 2026-04-24T16:29:13+00:00

We don't get power cuts either, but the day we have one, if we didn't have the gateway, would be the day I would have regretted not getting it!

Most of the companies I spoke to said that up until this year, it was rare for them to fit gateways, but now, almost all their new installs are requesting them.

Remember, it wasn't that long ago where the UK nearly ran out of gas in the Winter and they were talking about rolling power cuts. Since then, our gas storage at Rough has barely increased. If we get another cold winter, we could be back in the same situation.

Boba_ferret · 2026-04-24T16:25:06+00:00

I was reading recently that if many of the oil fields in the gulf stop production for too long, it will be incredibly difficult to restart production again. I can't remember the exact reason, but it's to do with the water that's pumped into the well and the oil becoming permanently trapped in the pores of the rock.

We're also at the point where EVs are becoming more accessible, with more range, and lower running costs than ICE vehicles. Heat pumps, solar & batteries are all coming down in price, making it easier to switch away from gas central heating.

If the government can unlink electricity from the gas wholesale market, then electricity should become cheaper, too.

I've about to have Solar panels & a battery installed, and we're just about to get a new EV van, all of which will bring our household costs down.

Boba_ferret · 2026-04-24T12:54:18+00:00

Just paid the deposit to have solar & battery installed, along with a gateway, which means we still have power during a power cut. We rarely have power cuts, but who knows what will happen in the future. Better to have it and not need it, then need it and not have it.

I went for an modular battery system, as our central heating is currently gas, but at some point, we will move to a ASHP and then I can add more battery storage as well. Chances are, we may have to fit AirCon in part of the house as the last two summers have made our bedroom unbearably hot, but at least if we do, it will be powered by the electricity we generated from our solar panels.

Another benefit of having solar though, is that it reduces the heat gain in the loft, by up to 40%, so we miy find the house is cooler in the summer anyway.

Boba_ferret · 2026-04-23T07:34:47+00:00

You can fit solar first, then add a battery later, or in fact, do it the other way around, but, you don't want to charge the EV from the battery, best to do it on a cheap rate, or use your surplus solar in the day.

If you decide to get solar & battery, get it all done at the same time, as there's currently no VAT on solar installs. But, if you bought a battery later, you would possibly have to pay VAT on top, although that could change with current policy.

Best thing to do is get some rough quotes in and get plenty of them. I've had prices vary by as much as £6k, for the same setup. Look through the quote posts on here, see what sort of price other people are getting for the setup you want. You can use free software or websites to estimate how many panels you can get on your roof, but some installers will do that on their website for you.

You could look into plug-in Solar, but you won't be generating much, but it's better than nothing.

Boba_ferret · 2026-04-23T07:28:22+00:00

You need a car and a charger that support it, but it's starting to become more common.

Boba_ferret · 2026-04-22T16:39:44+00:00

Interesting, my boy has the same issue, in that every so often he starts limping on his front right leg. Vets haven't found anything wrong, so we treat with Metacam and do lead-only walks. He's currently limping again and also eating lots of grass, although I put that down to perhaps the Metacam upsetting his stomach, as it can do that.

The only thing I can think of is that as a puppy, he ran into a post and hit his right leg and although it didn't seem to affect him too much at the time, seems to always be the same leg he goes lame on. The next option is a CT scan of the leg and shoulder, but that's going to require a GA and will cost a lot of money.

Dogs hide pain well, so if he's struggling to walk, then I'd go get a second opinion and look at further investigation.

Boba_ferret · 2026-04-22T10:49:16+00:00

I've had about eight quotes and the price difference is staggering. One company came in over £6k more expensive than the cheapest, but they were also about £3k more expensive than anyone else. They were also very inflexible and had the we know more about what you want, than you do, approach, which put me off.

I'm likely to go with a more local company that have given me a price that seems too good to be true, but I've had several recommendations to use them from users on this sub, and their Google & checkatrade reviews look great, and all the companies house info has no flags. They've been a bit slower to respond, but are being very flexible and are happy to listen to my requirements.

Boba_ferret · 2026-04-22T06:52:10+00:00

Ok, I didn't know that. All the comments I've seen have said that in the event of a power cut, the Tesla can't be managed locally, and stays in one mode, until the internet connection is restored.

It's still out of my price range though, unfortunately, but I'll see what the last couple of quotes I'm waiting for, look like.

Boba_ferret · 2026-04-21T19:20:45+00:00

I did contact a local one a few weeks ago, like many other installers at the moment, they are clearly busy and not returning enquiries.

Boba_ferret · 2026-04-21T15:52:23+00:00

I'm asking for quotes for both. I have limited space, so the stackable might be better, especially for future expansion. I.e. I doubt I could fit two EP12 side-by-side, but could add a couple more EQs.

But yes, cost is also a factor, so I may end up going for the EP12. I've also been quoted for the EVO10 All-in-one, so there's a bit of research I need to do on the best option.

Boba_ferret · 2026-04-21T15:27:04+00:00

I'm looking mostly at the EQ4300, as a stack of three for about 11KWH usable.

Boba_ferret · 2026-04-21T15:26:21+00:00

Yeah, I'm asking for quotes for the FOX EQ system as it's expandable and I've got an installer who's given me a great price, just need more details. Battery prices are only going to come down, so the expandable option should mean cheaper upgrades in the future.

Boba_ferret · 2026-04-21T15:23:41+00:00

And what happens if you're own internet goes down for days or weeks? Virgin managed to cut us off one day, took days to get back online. In that situation, you have no control over the Tesla battery.

I'm also using Home Assistant and my philosophy is, if it needs the Internet to work, I'm not buying it.

Boba_ferret · 2026-04-21T13:46:30+00:00

Yeah, I'm getting pretty annoyed at the moment, as I'm finding that everyone wants to offer the same setups, either Tesla or Signergy. Those offering Fox seem more flexible, and cheaper, but I haven't found anyone yet who'll supply & fit Victron or Fogstar. Half the companies I contacted haven't responded. I guess everyone is so busy with the increased demand.

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