In a country that is blessed with the sun, converting to solar makes a lot of sense. Using solar not only saves your household and business money, it’s also good for the environment.
Talk to one of our experts today to learn more about solar and how you can start saving today.
With Australia rolling out renewable energy 10 times faster than the global average, solar has taken the stage as the upcoming energy solution for commercial and residential development. Solar power has helped millions of Australians limit costs, reduce pollution and add value to their homes. The benefits include:
Solar panels are pieces of technology that are fitted to a roof of a building, converting sunlight into electricity or heat. These are made up of tiny solar cells that absorb electricity and can power your business. After installing solar panels, your monetary concerns are over, as the energy gained from solar can offset your energy expenses.
Solar has saved companies millions of dollars in maintenance fees and is an extremely versatile technology.
For the home, Solar allows you to make the most of “Feed-in tariffs” – this allows you to be paid by your energy retailer for the electricity that you export to the grid. Other things to think about include which inverter you should choose, what the warranty of the panel is and what sort of energy you need to power your household.
Australian homes support solar, with more than 21% of homes making use of the Australian sun. This process emits zero carbon emissions and has a payback period of 3 to 5 years. In order to make the most of your appliances, be sure to replace gas appliances with electrical alternatives.
Keep your solar panels running quickly with WCG Electrical’s maintenance program. Doing so can achieve greater efficiency from your panels and can increase the lifespan of your solar panel system. A system clean is very important for your solar system as dirt can block the light from coming in, and as we know, the more light you have coming into your panels, the more energy you have. Dirt, dust, pollution, grime, animal droppings and lichen can all prevent sunlight from hitting your panels.
Our health checks ensure your solar panels are performing at their best possible levels. We check everything from your hardware (ensuring that the isolator, MSB and circuit break are all up to standard) to possible roof leaks and everything in between.
Solar powered energy is not only cheaper than traditional means but is significantly better for the environment. This can allow you to not only save money on your power bill, but can help your company achieve your corporate social responsibility goals.
‘Feed in tariffs’ can also boost your company’s bottom line on operating costs, as the energy companies pay you for your excess energy. Solar works well for business as most workplaces are using their appliances whilst the sun is out (9am-5pm).
When choosing solar for your business be aware that there is three size ranges for solar, including: less than 30kW, 30-100kW and over 100 kW. Today’s solar systems can come with solar generation and consumption monitoring systems that will tell your operations manager how much energy solar is providing your building and how much it is saving you.
If you’re looking for a solar power system, two major parts of the system that you should concern yourself with are the Solar Panels and Solar Inverters.
Solar Panels are the key element in any solar power installation. Choosing the best panel for your circumstances is crucial, along with choosing the right installer for the job. These panels are the part of the system that convert sunlight into electricity via the photovoltaic effect.
When choosing a solar panel, you should consider:
There are a few different types but only two are available in Australia: monocrystalline and polycrystalline.
Monocrystalline is an older solar technology, and is more expensive to make, but has the highest efficiency, achieving about 15-20% conversion efficiency. They are made from single crystals of ultra-pure silicon.
Polycrystalline solar panels are made from a less pure silicon. They are cast into blocks (rather than cut from a single crystal), cut into square blocks and then converted into solar cells.
Monocrystalline solar cells are technically higher performance but because there is wasted space in the grid, they end up giving the same efficiency and power as polycrystalline.
A solar inverter is the device that transforms DC electricity into AC, the main type of power used in residences. It is one of the most important elements of the system as it determines how much energy to send to the property.
There are many types of solar inverters your system can use, we’ll help you understand them:
Four main types of solar inverters are:
In this system, strings are connected from the solar panels to the inverters and they transform DC electricity to AC current. These are cheaper than other inverters and your roof-situated solar system would only need one (or a maximum of two). This is the main inverter you’ll see advertised locally – however it has it’s downsides, mainly that if any panels are obstructed then the remaining panels will be obstructed too and the overall efficiency of the system will be heavily impacted.
In this system, microinverters are installed for each panel and optimise each panel’s power at a module-level. The DC to AC conversion happens in each inverter and so an obstruction over one panel will not affect the rest of the system. These are a great choice for commercial and residential applications. This has traditionally been an expensive option but the price has become far more reasonable in recent times.
This system includes a battery installation along with the set-up of the inverters. The inverter supplies DC power to the battery and provides AC current to your home and the grid. When the battery is fully charged, this system will send back excess power to the grid, which most energy providers will give you credit for.
This is similar to a string inverter but in this system, the strings from all the panels are joined together and inserted into a combiner box. This then feeds into an inverter which converts the DC supply into AC. This usually costs less to install than other systems and is often used in large-scale properties.
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Copyright ©2021 WCG Electrical. All rights reserved.
