All things Solar (merged threads)

[davenl5l]

i'm lucky 16 x 250w panels all facing true north and my roof pitch is within a couple of deg. of optimum

[poppa smurf]

Originally Posted by sgt_doofey

System
Another question you should probably ask is orientation of people's systems as that has a big impact on what they generate. Ours is a north facing one, but probably tending towards NNE a little.

roof pitch, or more to the point, is declination of solar array,

too much (upright) = winter production

too little (flat) = summer production

22.5 = about right!.......North by North west is perfect (afternoon sun stronger than morning) however as heat rises production will drop off.

a light cloud, spring or autumnal day, of around 25 - 30 will produce optimum output given all parameters are met.

[rancidpunx]

All 20x250 panels face north-ish. Zero shade all day.

[BENT_8]

Installation is an interesting point, you should see the system on the house next door to my nephew.
Solar power and solar hot water panels both on the eastern side of the roof.

When I first noticed it I was like WTF, had a look at the northern slope, plenty of room for what they have.

Now, I don't know much about solar energy, but the basics would suggest that maximum exposure to the brightest part of the day ie, north/west would be a minimum requirement.

I will get a pic when I can.

[prydey]

the homeowner does get the final say, although most people leave it up to the experts opinion. it would have to be a pretty good reason to not have it on available north facing roof though.

i know many people that are put off by the 'look' and if there north face is toward the road, then they are loath to put the 'eyesore' up there. to me though, its not really an 'eyesore' is it, esp when these days every 2nd house has them up there.

[poppa smurf]

Originally Posted by BENT_8

Installation is an interesting point, you should see the system on the house next door to my nephew.
Solar power and solar hot water panels both on the eastern side of the roof.

When I first noticed it I was like WTF, had a look at the northern slope, plenty of room for what they have.

Now, I don't know much about solar energy, but the basics would suggest that maximum exposure to the brightest part of the day ie, north/west would be a minimum requirement.

I will get a pic when I can.

perhaps the north face is the front of the building, I know a lot of folks who don't want it on the house at all and if really necessary then it is to be hidden.

I put mine on the shed, i am one that hate panels on the house roof, our roof is iron and it has to be painted every ten to fifteen years out here, hard to do when it is covered in panels.

[BENT_8]

Nope, North/west face are rear/side respectively.
This is in a brand new estate at Blakeview, no tree's, elevated above the home behind via fall of the land.

I believe the solar power array was setup there to save on costs as the solar hot water would have been installed there during the build, close to the wet area's.

If anything, my nephews roof, which is higher up the hill, less than a meter between gutters, would shadow the array until mid morning.

[poppa smurf]

bit of a strange one, I would have thought panels to the rear would be ideal.

[davenl5l]

me I think that if they are installed neatly they look good . most do but I have seen some dodgy install's

[zeuss000]

Howdy Folks, Great thread!! I have a 3Kw system recently added to my roof and am yet to receive a bill so not sure yet as to what benefits i will get..
I was just wondering whether it is feasible to have my hot water (standard old system) changed to run during the daylight hours when the solar is running rather than whatever off peak rate it is on during the night? we do not use a great deal of power during the day and at the current FIT we are getting would it be better to heat the water during the day when we are generating the power rather than buying the power back during the night time hours?
Cheers
Ed

[poppa smurf]

the solar wont generate enough power to run your hot water system so you will still be drawing from the grid, as to whether the change to "full tariff" as compared to "J" tariff would equate to savings from the solar array i am not sure

personally I would be looking at getting rid of the electric hot water system and go gas.

[SPArKy_Dave]

Originally Posted by BENT_8

Installation is an interesting point, you should see the system on the house next door to my nephew.
Solar power and solar hot water panels both on the eastern side of the roof.

When I first noticed it I was like WTF, had a look at the northern slope, plenty of room for what they have.

Now, I don't know much about solar energy, but the basics would suggest that maximum exposure to the brightest part of the day ie, north/west would be a minimum requirement.

I will get a pic when I can.

Because of the pathetic feed in tariff rates these days, it can often be better value for the homeowner, to have the panels installed on the east and or west roofs, depending on when they're likely to use the most power.
Much better to use it now, than to sell it for 8c/kwh, only to buy it back later for 30c/kwh.

[BENT_8]

Hmm, good point, hadn't considered that.

Though I fail to see how capturing 3-4 hrs of sunshine after 9am would benefit people who leave home before 9am.

[SPArKy_Dave]

Originally Posted by BENT_8

Hmm, good point, hadn't considered that.

Though I fail to see how capturing 3-4 hrs of sunshine after 9am would benefit people who leave home before 9am.

I guess it'd only work if the missus has young kids at home maybe.
They might do the dishes, or washing, in the mornings or something maybe?

[sgt_doofey]

Only problem I can see with that theory is during winter when your solar array generates a lot less power. That means if your solar isn't generating enough power to cover your hot water needs, then you'll be paying the higher daytime tariffs instead of the much cheaper offpeak ones.

Sent from my GT-P5110 using Tapatalk 4

[Blue Ice]

Some interesting reading here, I'm currently debating going solar myself, mainly for feed in but also to help offset some of my usage.

At this stage I'm more leaning to a 5kw system, any recommended systems I should be looking for or installers? I live in regional Vic (Latrobe Valley) if that helps.

I've been looking at potentially using a Fronius IG TL 5.0 inverter as we use a lot of their welding equipment at work and Fronius is held in high regards with quality and performance.

My current electricity provider is Energy Australia and currently they have 4.2kw package installs using Trina panels and Fronius inverters from $7k but I'm concerned as to who they would use to do the installs as I'm sure they just use local contractors

[LG17]

I am now looking a solar too. I'm leaning towards a 5kw system as I get the feeling that a 3kw might just be a bit small.
It is a bit of a minefield trying to work out who, which and what but I'm just trying to take my time to hopefully make the right decision.
The house already has solar hot water so it's just the rest to deal with.
My major aim, I guess like most other folks, is just to get my bills as close to zero as possible.

[buggerlugs]

Originally Posted by LG17

Well it's obviously working well for you Buggerlugs!
What size is your system?

5 kw ( sorry bout the late reply ).........

[supershifty]

Originally Posted by Blue Ice

Some interesting reading here, I'm currently debating going solar myself, mainly for feed in but also to help offset some of my usage.

At this stage I'm more leaning to a 5kw system, any recommended systems I should be looking for or installers? I live in regional Vic (Latrobe Valley) if that helps.

I've been looking at potentially using a Fronius IG TL 5.0 inverter as we use a lot of their welding equipment at work and Fronius is held in high regards with quality and performance.

My current electricity provider is Energy Australia and currently they have 4.2kw package installs using Trina panels and Fronius inverters from $7k but I'm concerned as to who they would use to do the installs as I'm sure they just use local contractors

Blue and LG17, can't recommend any installers or system brands to you, however a 5kW system would give you roughly 22.5kW average daily generation over a year based on Brisbane figures. I'd say Victoria/Cairns wouldn't be much different. (1kW worth of panels = 4.5kW average daily production)

The real benefit nowadays because of the low feed in tariffs is to get the system that will best cover your daytime usage while the system is generating. My point is that maybe you don't have to fork out for a 5kW system - maybe a 3.5kW system would suffice, or even better an "upgradeable" system that gives you a 5kW inverter with say 2 to 3kW worth of panels that you can add the extra 3 to 2kW worth of panels at a later date if desired. I only suggest the above not knowing your financial situation or power usage - if you've got the coin, then splatter your roof with panels!

Others will chime in and give you the advice you're after. Hope I've helped.

Cheers!

[poppa smurf]

have a look around your neighbourhood to see who has panels and do a bit of a door knock.

see who did their install and if they are happy with it......cant beat word of mouth.

your FIT will determine how many panels to put up, too many and you are just supporting the power companies.

do online comparisons for pricing and dont take the cheapest quote, study up on what you are buying and seek advice BEFORE purchase, either here or somewhere else.

[davenl5l]

I used eurosolar great to deal with 4kw system used the heater all winter as the wife is crook was $338.01 in credit at last bill . just got the new bill still $210.29 in credit I worked on our average use being 16-18 kw per day I cover this easily i'm on yorke peninsular sa 1st bill after install was reduced by $45 next bill was only $50 been in credit ever since . I receive a tarrif of .258c & a 5% discount from agl (I think on new account's it's 10%) I also receive a pensioner concession of $41.59 but as you can see would still be in credit and I have to say it is a huge relief not having to worrie abiut the power bill anymore . oh yeah i'm all electric and on rain water so everytime I use a tap or flush im using power for the pump .

[buggerlugs]

Only IKEA !!!!!
http://www.news.com.au/lifestyle/hom...-1226730344366

[LG17]

I've been to a few different suppliers but don't want to do too many as it can get a bit confusing - well for me anyhow
The system will be put up in Blackbutt Qld on fairly cleared acreage, the house faces very close to north and at this stage there's no shed/garages to put the panels on.
I am building a 4 bay garage on the same orientation as the house but I'm not sure whether it will be up in time to put the panels on there - it's a case of long distance organisation.
We have horrific power bills in Cairns (about $800 a quarter) but do have a very big swimming pool to run. Our new house won't have a pool so I'm hoping that the 5kw system goes close to negating the bills.

[davenl5l]

in sa to get the f.i.t. the panels must be on the same building as the meter box

[RJx307]

Originally Posted by davenl5l

in sa to get the f.i.t. the panels must be on the same building as the meter box

I've seen many systems setup on garages, etc with it wired to a sub board or lengthy wiring to the meter up to 10m away from the main house

[davenl5l]

me too but govco say's it's a no no

[RJx307]

Originally Posted by davenl5l

me too but govco say's it's a no no

Ah ok that's strange maybe brought in recently, when I worked in the industry 18 months ago the CEC didn't seem to mind from a compliance stand point nor did sa power networks for seg's.

[poppa smurf]

Originally Posted by davenl5l

in sa to get the f.i.t. the panels must be on the same building as the meter box

not right I'm afraid, the inverter must be on the same structure and the panels must be connected to the same meter box but can be placed elsewhere.

mine are on the shed about 30 feet from the house, inverter is in the shed along with its own fuse box.

BIL is around 60 feet away with the same setup as mine only his is 5 times the size.

just completed a standalone system which would have to be 100 feet from the house. (backup generator is an old diesel)

for a quick comparison quote go to EM solar (just do a snoogle search) there is a quoting system in there, comparison site only, not necessarily a reference although I did find them very good to deal with.

[davenl5l]

ahhh thank's for clearing that up. how did the stand alone turn out?

[poppa smurf]

Originally Posted by davenl5l

ahhh thank's for clearing that up. how did the stand alone turn out?

3 separate installs now......No 1 has problems (over consumption)......No 2 had a couple of breakdowns but is working well now.......No 3 is brilliant, more money spent initially and it shows.

looking at another now, trouble is the travel and freight on this stuff.