All things Solar (merged threads)

[GASWAGON]

Have decided to go for LED light bulbs for now until I can afford a solar system.....Whats the go with the battery packs....why are they so expensive?

[poppa smurf]

solar batteries, or I should say, batteries that are suitable for solar are always deep cycle, usually AGM (glass mat) or gel. hence the expense, normal batt's cannot take the constant deep discharge and recharge cycles

battery "banks" can be purchased but these are put together by the company on an individual basis

suitable batteries are sold as 2v, 4v, 6v or 12v.........the systems can be setup as 12v, 24v or 48volt.

[GASWAGON]

Originally Posted by poppa smurf

solar batteries, or I should say, batteries that are suitable for solar are always deep cycle, usually AGM (glass mat) or gel. hence the expense, normal batt's cannot take the constant deep discharge and recharge cycles

battery "banks" can be purchased but these are put together by the company on an individual basis

suitable batteries are sold as 2v, 4v, 6v or 12v.........the systems can be setup as 12v, 24v or 48volt.

O.k All sounds a lot similar to the electric forklifts I used to work on.

[poppa smurf]

electric forklift batteries would make excellent solar batteries as they are the same technology.

if you can get a heap of them you'd be laughing.

[davenl5l]

just got my letter from agl with all the price increases!!!!.......hmmm still waiting for a letter to tell me they will increase what they pay me for the power I sell them (says with tongue firmly planted in cheek)

[poppa smurf]

I dont reckon you'd want to be holding your breath waiting for that one.

I've still got to go through my latest figures.....too busy lately.

very poor production this time of year with high power use.

[GASWAGON]

True Value Solar just had an add on t.v.... They got 12 panels plus a 5kw 'expandable' invertor for $4990.......Would this system be worth looking at?

[prydey]

Originally Posted by EF_6

True Value Solar just had an add on t.v.... They got 12 panels plus a 5kw 'expandable' invertor for $4990.......Would this system be worth looking at?

i have a true value solar system but i have 20 panels with a 5kw inverter. there really isn't any point getting an inverter much larger than the size of the system though, as its that expensive to upsize in the future, that no one ever does.

chances are they just have excess of the 5kw ones they need to move.

like i said earlier, i'm more than happy with my system, but i'll let others make up their own mind on the company. there is a lot of negative feedback on the web (a google search brings up plenty) but much of it is from a couple of years ago. they have really cleaned up their act in recent years.

[sgt_doofey]

I also have a cheaper Chinese system, Stream panels and JSY inverter. I did compare warranties on the inverter and the panels and it was the same as the more expensive brands, so I went ahead and saved myself a few $$$ on the install.
The company I went through was a father/son outfit. Father is the salesman (does blinds and so forth too) and the son was the electrician who does the install. He said at the time that with the inverter we had installed (A JSI-1500TL) that he's installed hundreds around Adelaide and he's only had a couple fail. And they were all DOA.
As above, there are some quality Chinese brands around, but there are probably a lot more dodgy ones than quality ones, so do your research. And watch out as some of the so called "German" brands are actually manufactured in China too.

Be careful with these so called "expandable" systems. A lot of the time, if you modify your system so that it isn't what you originally had installed, then you can lose your feed-in tariff. (At least, that's what happens here in SA. Not sure on other states)

[supershifty]

Originally Posted by sgt_doofey

Be careful with these so called "expandable" systems. A lot of the time, if you modify your system so that it isn't what you originally had installed, then you can lose your feed-in tariff. (At least, that's what happens here in SA. Not sure on other states)

Good advice right there. Especially if you're already getting a healthy FIT - although with some of the FIT's I see on offer lately it wouldn't be worth fretting over.

At the moment in QLD they base your system on the inverters capacity, not the output of the panels. So if your struggling with coin for a full 5kW system, you can fit say 1.5kW worth of panels to your 5kW inverter and add panels up to 5kW at a later date when your finances permit without losing your FIT. However if your 5kW inverter craps itself and you opt to fit a larger inverter to replace it, you then lose your FIT and drop down to whatever is the going rate on the day.

The above applies to QLD, check your states regulations!

Cheers!

[prydey]

if you state the generative capacity of your system as that of the inverter size, then you should be able to increase the number of panels up to that point, without losing your FIT. i think thats how it works here.

for me, my system is 3.8kw but my inverter is 5kw. my system is stated with sa power networks (etsa) as a 5kw system. so technically i can add up to 6 panels (depending on wattage) to my system. the cost of doing so however isn't viable.

[poppa smurf]

your initial PVSEG value will be the one that is important with "expandable systems".

always nominate a higher value (in your case 5 kilowatt) BEFORE installing.

once its done all future FIT'S will be null and void because you broke the contract.

there a lot of true value systems installed around here take a good look at your installers and look for references and previous jobs

they state 12 panels......what is the wattage capacity.

[prydey]

Originally Posted by EF_6

True Value Solar just had an add on t.v.... They got 12 panels plus a 5kw 'expandable' invertor for $4990.......Would this system be worth looking at?

Originally Posted by poppa smurf

they state 12 panels......what is the wattage capacity.

http://www.truevaluesolar.com.au/

they state 250w panels, so its a 3kw system.

one thing with TVS though that i admit i was aware of but didn't fully think about the overall cost, is their requirement that the system have an inspection every 2 years. these are apparently around $2-250. over the 25year warranty term of the panels, that equates to an extra $2500 give or take. as far as i know, no other provider/installer has that mandate, so whilst the initial cost is lower, over 25 years, it may not actually be a lot cheaper than a more reputable branded system. like i said, i was aware of the cost but didn't really think about the long term extra cost.

this isn't necessarily a negative. just putting it out there so that its in the open.

for the record my 3.8kw system was averaging between 20-25kwh/day during summer. i haven't been brave enough to look during winter. somewhere around 10kwh i think, give or take.

[prydey]

didn't realise frosty was a TVS ambassador

[poppa smurf]

Originally Posted by prydey

http://www.truevaluesolar.com.au/

they state 250w panels, so its a 3kw system.

one thing with TVS though that i admit i was aware of but didn't fully think about the overall cost, is their requirement that the system have an inspection every 2 years. these are apparently around $2-250. over the 25year warranty term of the panels, that equates to an extra $2500 give or take. as far as i know, no other provider/installer has that mandate, so whilst the initial cost is lower, over 25 years, it may not actually be a lot cheaper than a more reputable branded system. like i said, i was aware of the cost but didn't really think about the long term extra cost.

this isn't necessarily a negative. just putting it out there so that its in the open.

for the record my 3.8kw system was averaging between 20-25kwh/day during summer. i haven't been brave enough to look during winter. somewhere around 10kwh i think, give or take.

hmm! a bit expensive for an "inspection".

we don't talk about solar output during winter!!!!.......

[prydey]

actually just looking back through my warranty book, it appears the service requirement every 2 years is only for the installation warranty period, which is 10 years.

[GASWAGON]

So that would be an extra $1250 on top of the install price right? Surely a solar system would be a 'set and forget' type of thing wouldn't it.... $250 a service is pretty rich...Sort of offsets any savings made doesn't it?

[prydey]

according to the book

'the service typically covers the following
- cleaning of the glass area of the modules to remove excessive dirt.
- after the modules have been cleaned, a visual inspection of the modules is done to check for defects in the modules such as cracks, chips and discolouration.
- Inspection of all cables, connectors and outside switches for any signs of product wear due to UV radiation or exposure to the elements (ie weather)
- when inspecting the solar modules, the condition of the array mounting frame will also be inspected in particular.

The array mounting bolts are checked to ensure that the frame and modules are firmly secured.'


is it a cost i didn't really think about when i signed up? yes.

would i have signed up had i realised the long term cost was over $1000 extra? possibly not, but its all hypothetical now.

is it a necessary service? probably not, given i don't know of any other installers that have this proviso, but its not like its every month. its every 2 years, so hardly an inconvenience, and if they happen to pick up a fault with a panel in that time, then its probably worth it, provided the fault is covered by warranty.

[xisled]

In Victoria it is based on the total output of the panels your system will be. Also in Vic if you upgrade panels or inverter or both, you will lose the high Fit and be put onto the current Fit.

[XD 351 Ute]

6077.4 kW for the first year, Used about 1800 I think, so when the family comes along I should be right..

Ed

[poppa smurf]

finally producing 12 plus kilowatts per day after months of less than 5

suns getting a bit higher so production should start to climb and help pay to run that reverse cycle heater.

[prydey]

twas a nice day today

[poppa smurf]

Originally Posted by prydey

twas a nice day today

sure was.....19 deg's and no cloud...s'posed to be a change coming again though

[comagutsa]

Originally Posted by poppa smurf

finally producing 12 plus kilowatts per day after months of less than 5

suns getting a bit higher so production should start to climb and help pay to run that reverse cycle heater.

my 3kw system hit 14kilowatts per day for a few days the other week

[poppa smurf]

Originally Posted by comagutsa

my 3kw system hit 14kilowatts per day for a few days the other week

mines been below 10 for the last couple of months......to be expected.

[comagutsa]

Originally Posted by poppa smurf

mines been below 10 for the last couple of months......to be expected.

yeah since they hooked up the panel that wasnt my system has been better than ever
last winter when they installed it, on a good sunny day i only ever got 9 out of it but this winter on a good sunny day its doing 13s, amazing how much 1 panel not hooked in can affect it

[poppa smurf]

big difference, thats good to hear.....nothing more frustrating and irritating to spend big money on something then have it not perform as touted, only to find it is an installation error would make me very angry.

[supershifty]

Just a heads up folks. My solar installer sent me an email regarding a product recall on some Hager switchgear that they were using asking me to check if it was installed, and if so to arrange a time for them to come and replace it free of charge. All good, mine didn't have those models fitted.

Link here from Hager: http://www.hagerelectro.com.au/downl...ecall/6862.htm

Link here from Govco Recalls: http://www.recalls.gov.au/content/in...itemId/1044265

Have a look folks - might save you from some grief.

Cheers!

[buggerlugs]

They just said on the Idiot Box that power prices jumped another 22% in Qld from the 1st of this month. I'm going to invest in a candle manufacturing company.........

[prydey]

got my first winter bill since going solar. not really a lot to write home about. summer was not quite breaking even so i knew winter wouldn't be fantastic. long story short, this time last year i was averaging 17kw/h a day, and now its averaging 12kw/h a day, so its reduced it some at least. wiped about $200 off. still had a $300 bill. better than nothing i guess.