Immediately after installing solar, you will notice the significant savings produced by the system:
Solar power is one of the cleanest and most sustainable sources of energy available. It produces zero greenhouse gasses, such as carbon dioxide and methane – both huge contributors towards global warming.
Traditional electricity relies on energy sources powered by fossil fuels and can use thousands of litres of our limited water sources annually for cooling and processing. In contrast, power from solar panels uses no water.
Solar power will also not be responsible for large oils spills that kills our beautiful sea life and will not pollute our waters like fracking and other oil extraction methods.
Solar energy just needs the sun, which is always readily available, inexhaustible and free!
You can find this information on your power bill, which will be sent to you by your electrical company.
You may receive your bill monthly or quarterly, but if you want one in between the usual billing period, you can call them and ask.
Your bill will usually also include your average cost for energy per day and daily use of kWh.
Gross metering is when all the power your system generates is exported back to the grid automatically, Net metering is when electricity is used in the house and only the excess electricity that is unused is exported to the grid and sold back which can earn credit towards your electricity bill.
Typically, the average solar system (6-8kw) adds approximately 3% to the property. The value it can add is capped at $20K, which is much less than the average cost to have the system installed.
Solar panels work by absorbing sunlight through the PV cells (panels) and generating direct current (DC) energy which is converted to usable domestic (AC) energy with the help of an inverter. AC energy then flows through the home’s fuse board and is distributed accordingly.
They do, but not as efficiently as when the suns out. They are around 60-70% less efficient, depending on cloud density. The same thing is true of foggy weather. Don’t worry too much about cloudy days because when you’re looking at return on investment, you’ll be working this out based on the entire year, not any particular day.
If the snowfall sticks, it will act as a blanket on top of the panels and they won’t work. To remove this type of snow, you can hose the panels down, but it is essential to make sure the water is not too warm or the panels can crack due to an extreme and immediate temperature change, just like glass.
Yes! Any home or business can do this.
To go off grid, you must produce enough renewable energy, and have capacity to store it so that you can use the energy at a time that suits your lifestyle. This is when you can disconnect from the power grid and this is what is known as being ‘off grid’.
This is where a battery becomes essential because the battery stores the unused energy that is generated by your solar system during daylight hours and instead of sending this unused energy back to the grid, you can then use it at night when the sun has gone down, and your panels cannot produce energy.
Yes, you will still receive a bill through the mail each quarter/month from your energy retailer. It is realistic to expect 70-80% reduction in bill size post solar installation, although some will be eliminated completely.
Based on your usage either you will owe them money, or they will credit you. There are several factors that will determine this such as:
Off-grid is when your home is completely powered by your solar system, even in the night.
A solar AC battery is installed to the side of your house and the excess power that you don’t use is stored in the battery and is consumed in the evening. It’s that simple.
So not only will you be saving lots of lovely money you will also be doing your bit to save the environment.
Solar feed-in tariff is the term given to the payment made to solar owners for the energy generated and bought and sold back into the grid.
A good solar feed-in tariff is important if you want to see the best ROI on your system and the smallest possible power bill – this applies to every solar installation.
To find the best deal you need to shop around, possibly even negotiate with your current supplier, and you also need to consider usage rates and supply charges.
The solar feed-in tariff differs per state and per supplier. It is worked out based on the cents per kWh exported.
In short, what you should be looking for:
This handy tool helps you to compare the tariffs: https://wattever.com.au/retailer-solar-feed-in-tariffs-by-state-and-territory/
If you are going to change your energy retailer, we advise that you do this after you have had solar installed so as not to delay the process.
Nothing! This is basically free because our systems should not require any maintenance.
We install panels at a tilted level that ensures debris will not collect, even if you have a flat roof.
The occasional rain fall will act as a shower for your panels, keeping them free and clear to perform optimally. In very excessive dry periods we recommend giving them a quick spray with a hose to clear any leaves that may have collected if there are trees nearby.
Yes! The short answer is if you can afford your power bill, you can afford solar!
The price of a solar system has reduced in recent years, this coupled with the government rebates that we discount from your system and the community initiatives we offer, it is more affordable than ever. When you consider that once the system is paid off all you will be doing is accruing savings year on year…it becomes more than just ‘affordable’, it’s a no brainer!
The recent catastrophic bushfires and long, record-breaking droughts evidence how badly the country is suffering from global warming. By 2050 the number of extreme fire days is likely to increase by 15-70%. We need to do something now.
So how can solar power help? Solar power is a completely clean source of energy. Unlike burning coals and fossil fuels, it releases ZERO greenhouse gasses and doesn’t damage our planet. The sun is an unlimited and reliable source of energy, it will shine anyway, so take advantage of this and make it work for you!
We all need to become more sustainable for the safety of our planet. Invest in your future AND save on your bills by switching to solar.
To decide this our specialists will need to review your roof, current power bill and energy consumption habits to create a custom solution for your property. It is not always possible to do this accurately over the phone or online which is why we offer personalised, free, no obligation appointments where you can ask us all your solar-related questions.
Every household uses energy differently and so will have different requirements for solar power.
At a basic level some of the things we recommend bearing in mind are:
Panel efficiency – This is the rate solar panels transfer sunlight into electricity. The higher the efficiency the more solar power it will produce.
Panel productivity: Temperature efficiency is how effective the panels are at higher temperatures
Warranty: This guarantees the endurance of your system over time, each panel manufacturer is different, so think about how long you want them to last and take this into consideration
Your budget: This will dictate the quality of the panels you end up with. As with anything that needs to be durable, you want to avoid cheap and/or unsafe products.
To decide how many solar panels are right for you, our experts will review several things, including:
• Average power bill size
• Typical energy consumption habits
• Your roof size/direction/space/suitability
Based on the information gathered your specialist will create a custom-size solution including the recommended number of panels, and wattage of panels (which in turn will dictate the number) you will need. All of this is done during your appointment and forms part of the personalised, bespoke service we offer to all customers, no matter how many panels you need!
We use the latest solar technology to determine what percentage of your roof is affected by shade and at which parts of the day. This will determine what size, type and placement of system we recommend for you.
If panel placement cannot totally avoid the shade due to the roof space, we can make recommendations such as cutting back certain trees (if that’s an option), or adding optimisers to your system. In many cases, optimisers allow the system to perform optimally in spite of the shade.
We will always work with you to find the best possible solution that also delivers you the best value out of your solar system.
No it doesn’t, we can install solar panels on all the following roof types: tin, tile, terracotta tile, kliplok and insulation board.
We purchase the correct install kits and brackets according to the roof type. When our specialist visits you at your appointment they will assess various aspects of your roof, including the materials, and take photographs so our technicians can verify all the details via an audit before your order is fully processed.
This is to maximise the output of the system and combat any reduction in efficiency from your panels. It is recommended to overload your inverter so you always produce the maximum amount, eg. 5kW is the maximum that can be produced on a single-phase inverter.
You can install x1.33W of panels over the size of your inverter, so if you are recommended a 5kW for your energy needs you would pair this with up to 6.6kW of panels to get the maximum amount of efficiency.
The price of solar is affected by many variables.
Every roof is different and will have different requirements (tilts/faces), each customer has different priorities (length of warranty/budget) and from one property to the next, different amounts of electricity are consumed at different times. Eg. example someone working from home would have very different power habits to someone who works night shifts.
The size of the system and the panel and inverter manufacturers you choose will affect the price – this comes down to personal preference although we can make recommendations based on what you want to prioritise.
The good news though – is that there is a solar solution for every budget!
From time to time fuse boards can be unregulated (especially for older properties) so to meet regulations we can organise someone to upgrade this for you to comply with your brand new system, if required.
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