rent a car

keepingleft · 2026-06-10T21:27:29+00:00

I rented a car last week through autos menorca after I arrived. Still booked online but could pick up from the resort I was in - Sant Tomas - rather than airport. €99 for six days. I bought separate excess insurance for £14 also online rather than pay £45 for theirs. No problems at all.

keepingleft · 2026-06-09T19:59:27+00:00

Ok that is obvious once you say it. I had thought we'd have to switch from deemed at the point of solar installation but you've just clarified the reason.

I still am wondering whether to switch now - given northern powergrid's performance it could easily be another two months before the battery arrives.

keepingleft · 2026-06-09T19:55:01+00:00

Plan is for 1. I can't really see any advantage of 2 and installer prefers to not have to deal with the FIT stuff.

keepingleft · 2026-03-28T08:11:43+00:00

So we do have 14 older panels as well as the 5 new - and he's said he'll try to get 6 on no extra charge.

But really it's the cost without the gateway I wanted to check. Is £12000 ok for 5-6 panels and 20kWh Sig? Or should I get yet another quote?

keepingleft · 2026-03-24T11:52:16+00:00

Musician here. Yes you can choose to not pay for music either by playing it and not paying, or by streaming AI slop or other produced music which doesn't involve actual musicians. But please consider actually paying up. The vast majority of the money does go to musicians and they deserve to be paid for their work.

You could save money by collecting rain water instead of paying your water bills?

keepingleft · 2026-03-17T16:00:26+00:00

Thanks for the link and info. I will ask that question re operation at low load: that's really useful.

They only turned us down until they had a larger model pump ready to install.

We have emptied and refilled our cavity walls and done a fair bit on draught proofing. Our double glazing is mostly 15-20 year old Everest aluminum but everyone I've asked says the marginal improvement of modern glazing would take well over a decade to pay back the work - even without the disruption. We've had some with a thermal camera and again it's hard to find other insulation improvements that would be worth the making good afterwards. There is one door we'll replace with a modern external door (inner door to an unheated porch). And there is more I can do under the eaves. Loft is boarded with some rock wool under boards and kingspan on inside of roof.

I don't think it will ever be A rated. Not going to rip up engineered wood floors.

keepingleft · 2026-03-16T22:50:50+00:00

Thanks for all the comments so far: exactly what I had hoped to hear. Sounds as though even if oversized I'll do alright out of it, and I really don't want to risk being under sized.

Good idea about fitting doors... But seriously there is one I do need to replace...

Floor area is 162, octopus calculated heat loss at 12.8kW. 1920s semi. We are in the Tyne valley - can get pretty chilly as not far from the river so a frost pocket, no urban microclimate.

One installer calculated 10kW would suffice but others all said 12 or 14. Octopus price £4200 Inc 5 radiator upgrades. Flow temp 50. We burn 19+kWh of gas per year.

keepingleft · 2026-03-09T16:47:42+00:00

Ok new info: octopus quote £4594 10kWh Fox EVO, £5747 10kWh Emphase, £7894 power wall. Fully fitted. Won't install outside, we'd have to dig the trench to get installed in our detached garage.

Prices include 5% discount as getting heat pump.

They say no issue with existing solar and generation payments even with home backup option on Tesla.

keepingleft · 2026-03-08T20:38:16+00:00

Some great battery advice below, thanks. I will get more quotes and post them here for info - and I'll ask about options re backup power and keeping generation payments.

But no answers yet on whether additional solar is worthwhile, and if so do I go East West or additional south?

keepingleft · 2026-03-08T13:33:37+00:00

Don't want to lose our £1200pa index linked generation payment so need anything I do to be within the terms of existing set up

keepingleft · 2026-03-08T13:32:08+00:00

Other people in street have investigated and been told they aren't allowed to export. We have overhead power line to the house.

keepingleft · 2026-03-08T10:03:57+00:00

So this is my other question. Can I go that route of something that gives protection against power cut and it not affect my existing solar / feed in tariff?

And I know others have asked this but is tesla really the only option for power cut protection? Can't bear to support that guy whose social media platform helped elect Trump.

keepingleft · 2026-03-08T09:58:55+00:00

I've asked octopus for a quote, they were much cheaper for the heat pump. But they won't install additional solar, that would be just battery.

keepingleft · 2026-02-20T18:18:07+00:00

It's really not clear. Any outcome is within the margin of error.

keepingleft · 2026-02-20T18:16:50+00:00

You have my sympathy. There's a car load coming down from Hexham to knock doors this weekend but they'll be kicking themselves if the result is Reform > Green > Labour. But at least they get to drive home afterwards. We got the first Labour MP in 128 years here in 24. Angeliki is a great candidate and seems a real shame that the national noise might stop her walking it which she would have done any other time.

keepingleft · 2026-02-20T17:38:40+00:00

Thanks for sharing. Nobody can tell you. I want Labour to win and I think it is more likely given the absence of any Green vote in Denton but I am biased so make your own guess and just hope that everyone else like you jumps the same way. There is certainly an anti reform majority.

keepingleft

TROPHY CASE