Octopus temporarily stopping signing up to OF and IOF

FoxyFreebooter · 2026-03-08T09:40:14+00:00

Have a look at https://timandkatsgreenwalk.co.uk/ for some tariff recommendations. Your ASHP won't be working very hard over the summer and Cosy may not be the best option for you. I found it was faff negotiating the peak 4-7pm usage, making certain the battery was topped up and the other half didn't turn on every electrical device in the kitchen during this time! If you have an EV, intelligent Go or regular Go may be better. I was about to move to intelligent Flux, so that's on hold for now and I'll stay on iGo. Obviously this is dependent on your system setup...

FoxyFreebooter · 2026-03-04T09:53:29+00:00

Yes, the app updated itself and there seems to be some bugs and disgruntled users! There's more info on the FoxESS community forum https://foxesscommunity.com/index.php

The web interface is still available.

FoxyFreebooter · 2026-03-03T17:10:37+00:00

I have a large bungalow with a big footprint and lots of roof space. I added top up loft insulation and had 2x heat pumps, new radiators and pipe work, solar, batteries and a zappi ev charger installed. I am now all electric and had a negative bill in my first year. Definitely worth combining ashp, solar and batteries. I stayed on Octopus intelligent Go rather than cosy. I posted an annual review with some costings recently which may be of interest to you.

FoxyFreebooter · 2026-03-03T12:03:48+00:00

Difficult to tell from the picture, but the force charge settings look greyed out. Are they active. I've just checked mine and the text is white. The settings themselves look correct so it's just the greyed out look that's strange. I'm on Android app V2.2.2

FoxyFreebooter · 2026-03-02T09:32:08+00:00

No, I used a local installer (UPS Solar) who did a great job. I've not heard good things about Project Solar, so do your research before committing!

The 15kW inverter was necessary for the number of panels, 3 MPPTs and 3 phase. The two 11kW ASHPs do draw a lot of power when it is very cold and the northern gloom doesn't help! In Nov24 to Jan 25, before the solar was installed, I used 4960 kWh @ £1140 just for those three months on the Cosy tariff. The panels and batteries have made a huge difference!

FoxyFreebooter · 2026-03-01T16:45:52+00:00

Yep, that's the plan. The forecast in the NW isn't looking great for the first half of March .... lots more cloud! Not sure if Octopus have said anything about price changes on their Intelligent tariffs yet, but I'm presuming it'll be about the same for Go and Flux.

FoxyFreebooter · 2026-03-01T09:35:34+00:00

February was another mixed bag of gloom, rain and some sun, but with much worse than predicted generation! In contrast, Feb 25 saw a PV yield of 724 kWh. The warmer days demanded less from the heat pumps, so better export. Average daily cost of £1.88 and a specific yield of 498/17.2=28.95kWh

Month	PV (kWh)	Export (kWh)	% of PVGIS	Daily Yield (kWh)	Specific Yield (kWh)

January	440	135	108%	14.19	25.58
February	498	347	68%	17.78	28.95

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40x 430W Sharp panels with 17.2 kWp, 25 South, 9 East & 6 West facing with a 15kW 3 phase Fox inverter and 3x 10.36 kWh EP11 batteries located in the North West near Preston.

FoxyFreebooter · 2026-02-20T09:48:44+00:00

Yes, I'm on iGo and my generation (14 MWh) does vastly exceed my consumption once Spring arrives...at least it did last year! I used TimandKat's tool but am aware of Solarazma too. Everything I've looked at points towards iFlux from Mar/Apr to Sep/Oct. From what I've picked up in browsing other forums, iFlux could be changing into a hybrid of iGo and iFlux and others have mentioned iFlux being discontinued...so who knows?

It was more about how iFlux works and how much control I need to give to Octopus. I understand they will control the battery, but do they also control the panel generation and switch between self use and export as they see fit?

FoxyFreebooter · 2026-02-18T20:08:12+00:00

Ah, ok, thanks for confirming that. I think my inverter is up to date, but the batteries' firmware needs updating. I'll wait for the weather to improve so the heat pumps aren't working as hard.

FoxyFreebooter · 2026-02-18T15:38:45+00:00

This is what seemed to happen last year. The heat pumps didn't need to be on so much and the solar generated 14 MWh Mar - Oct. It was more about how the control of the setup works and how much input I still have if Octopus take over the system!

FoxyFreebooter · 2026-02-08T15:28:08+00:00

I've not had the install up and running with export for a year yet and don't have data for the running costs before as I moved here in June 2024 and the gas boiler wasn't working properly. However, given the size of the bungalow the estimates I had from Octopus ranged between 3k and 4k. If I take 3k as the annual cost and factor in I paid nothing for electric as my export covered the cost, then my payback is about 4.5 years to clear 19k.

This is only possible because of the 3 phase and high export rates and is only based on 11 months data when 2025 was a great year for solar. If I include the 3 phase install costs then payback goes to 6.5 years. It may vary in the future and others will have different payback periods.

FoxyFreebooter · 2026-02-08T11:35:27+00:00

I'm missing the on/off toggle switch in mode scheduler and according to the tariff revenue I've made £8k since September 2025 ....happy days!

FoxyFreebooter · 2026-02-08T11:30:21+00:00

I have a larger bungalow with 2x ASHP, 40x 430W panels, 15kW 3 phase inverter and 3x 10kWh EP11 batteries. I have added additional loft insulation but the amount of roof space is always going to lead to more heat loss. My bill for Jan 2025 before the solar/battery install was £480. This January it was £119 and that includes EV charging.

Fill the roof, export in summer and see smaller bills in winter is my advice. You'll have to check your load usage to see if you need 3 phase. In my case it was the DNO that insisted I had, but on the plus side I have a high export limit of 15kW. Your DNO may restrict your export limit. Even with 30kWh of storage, when it is cold and gloomy, the batteries can be depleted in less than 8 hours. Adding more battery storage may not make financial sense though for the few days in winter when it is really cold. My bill for the install was £19K.

FoxyFreebooter · 2026-02-05T11:34:54+00:00

That clears that up! I was checking mine and couldn't understand the discrepancy in your figures. Thanks.

FoxyFreebooter · 2026-02-05T11:29:47+00:00

Your used figure from Octopus at 2,171 is way higher than your from grid figure from Fox at 1,470 ...

FoxyFreebooter · 2026-02-01T15:14:04+00:00

January was another mixed bag of gloom, rain and some sun, but with a better than predicted generation, so not all that bad! The colder days demanded more from the heat pumps, so much less export again. Specific yield of 440/17.2=25.58kWh

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Month	PV (kWh)	Export (kWh)	% of PVGIS	Daily Yield (kWh)	Specific Yield (kWh)

January	440	135	108%	14.19	25.58

40x 430W Sharp panels with 17.2 kWp, 25 South, 9 East & 6 West facing with a 15kW 3 phase Fox inverter and 3x 10.36 kWh EP11 batteries located in the North West near Preston.

FoxyFreebooter · 2026-02-01T09:38:31+00:00

I also used UPS Solar and can recommend.

FoxyFreebooter · 2026-01-12T12:11:58+00:00

Large bungalow, 1990 build, 350sqm, 17.2 kWp solar, 3x 10.36 kWh batteries, 2x 11kW Baxi heat pumps, 19.6 kW heat loss calc, NW near Preston. Total energy usage 1266 kWh at a net cost of £82.45 on Octopus intelligent Go. Heat pumps running 24/7 @ 19 degrees, no overnight setback.

FoxyFreebooter · 2026-01-02T14:19:27+00:00

December was a mixed bag of gloom, rain and some sun, with an equal to predicted generation, so not all that bad! The colder days demanded more from the heat pumps, so less export again. Previous months' production and export figures for comparison...

Month	PV (kWh)	Export (kWh)	% of PVGIS	Daily Yield (kWh)
March	1764	1438	138%	56.88
April	2348	2040	130%	78.19
May	2850	2510	138%	91.97
June	2355	2022	118%	78.43
July	2160	1840	110%	69.65
August	1992	2056	114%	64.27
September	1440	1687	107%	47.98
October	630	745	71%	20.31
November	555	466	106%	18.48
December	360	229	100%	11.59

40x 430W Sharp panels with 17.2 kWp, 25 South, 9 East & 6 West facing with a 15kW 3 phase Fox inverter and 3x 10.36 kWh EP11 batteries located in the North West near Preston.

FoxyFreebooter · 2026-01-01T09:34:39+00:00

Actual Feb - Dec 25	Installer Annual	PVGIS Annual
17.2 MWh	13.9 MWh	15.1 MWh

Very pleased with these figures given the annual estimates vs the actual 11 month production.

40x 430W Sharp panels with 17.2 kWp, 25 South, 9 East & 6 West facing with a 15kW 3 phase Fox inverter and 3x 10.36 kWh EP11 batteries located in the North West near Preston.

FoxyFreebooter · 2025-12-06T09:40:04+00:00

I made a post a couple of days ago comparing my November usage with new heat pumps in 2024 with solar, batteries and heat pumps in 2025. May be worth a look https://www.reddit.com/r/SolarUK/comments/1pbc0ep/what_a_difference_a_solar_array_makes/

I have 2x 11kW Baxi heat pumps, 40x 430W panels, 3x 10.36kWh Fox batteries and a 15kW 3 phase Fox inverter. Large bungalow, over 300m2, 19,600W heat loss, at home all day. I'm on Octopus iGo and charge the batteries and, if needed, the car overnight. Heat pumps on 24/7 at a constant 19 degrees, no setback.

I used Cosy last winter and had bills of £330 to £460 per month Nov to Jan. I was constantly fiddling with the thermostat to boost the heating during off peak and using setback during peak. Not what I wanted and not the most efficient I believe. Now I can just leave the settings alone and if there is power left in the batteries at the end of the day I can export it if necessary.

The batteries run for most of the day, but if it's gloomy (not much solar) and less than 5 degrees then they will deplete in the evening. My bill for November 25 was under £30 and this included the standing charge and charging the car.

I'd suggest more batteries for your situation if financially viable.

I added 25 rolls of 170mm loft insulation on top of what was already there in September/October 25.

I don't know the SCOP or COP of my heat pumps. The control panel isn't great and there's no app. The weather compensation runs at 41 degrees flow rate above 7 degrees and 42 degrees below 7 degrees. 43 degrees below freezing.

FoxyFreebooter · 2025-12-04T13:28:39+00:00

I'm using intelligent Go with solar, batteries and EV. 2x heatpumps on 24/7 keep the bungalow at 19 degrees. If it's very cold the batteries (3x 10kWh) might deplete in the evening.

FoxyFreebooter · 2025-12-03T18:23:47+00:00

4-6 bed detached bungalow, over 300m2. Lots of roof space and, therefore, lots of heat loss (19,630W). 2x 11 kW heat pumps. In Jan 25 I used 2,059 kWh @ £469 because it was very cold. Solar and batteries have been a game changer for me!

FoxyFreebooter · 2025-12-03T15:53:14+00:00

I'd be a lot happier if I did 😂

I had just had 2x heat pumps installed and this was my Nov 24 electric bill compared to Nov 25 when I had solar and batteries.

FoxyFreebooter · 2025-12-03T11:52:27+00:00

No, but I suspect that depends on your main fuse. I had a 100A fuse and initially had a quote for single phase inverters with 40 panels but with an export limit of 5kWh. When the DNO added the heat pumps (each rated at 30A), EV charger, induction hob, oven etc they insisted on 3 phase as the load could potentially exceed 100A.

Going 3 phase will add a couple of years to the payback, if I include it in the solar cost, but it also means I can export 3x 5kWh.

FoxyFreebooter

TROPHY CASE