String Inverters

While using a string inverter, all the panels are connected in series and then the power runs into the inverter. The string inverter converts the DC power into AC power for our use. However, there are some limitations while using a string inverter. 

1. Since energy from all the panels accumulates and reaches the inverter, the nominal rating of this voltage is between 200 -600 Volts DC. This energy reaches the inverter and gets converted into 230 – 240 Volts AC. If the installation is not done correctly, this can pose a fire hazard.
2. Since the panels are connected in series; in the event that one panel doesn’t work, it affects the performance of all other panels in the series. Ex: Shading on a panel, panel mismatch, bird droppings, chimneys, passing clouds, etc. However, there are new technologies coming up which do not affect the output even with partial shading. 
3. System expansion requires a new inverter
4. Other minor challenges include the space required for installation near meter base, heat dissipation requirements.
5. String inverters make a slow humming noise when the power is low. 

Micro Inverters

Microinverters are small inverters rated to handle the output of a single panel. Arrays of panels are connected in parallel to each other, and then to the grid. Normal panels are rated between 270 and 370 W and microinverters are typically rated between 250 and 350 W. Since a microinverter is attached to a single panel, it is isolated and tune the output of that panel. Some of the advantages that micro inverters have over string inverters.

1. Additionally, when faults occur, they are identifiable to a single point, as opposed to an entire string. This not only makes fault isolation easier but unmasks minor problems that might not otherwise become visible.
2. They are more efficient as the start up and shutdown voltage is low when compared to string inverter.  
3. Individual panel level monitoring

Even with all the advantages that micro inverters present over string inverters, micro inverters has its own set of disadvantages. Let us discuss some of them.

1. Cost is one of the factors which goes against the use of micro inverters 
2. Similar to string inverters, micro inverters also are manufactured in a limited number of models, some of which can be oversized when matched with specific panels.

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PROJECT SUMMARY

Hi-Switch is one of the largest custom switchboard fabricators in New South Wales. Their in-house manufacturing services operate 5 days a week. Their maximum electricity consumption is as high as 400kWh per day. So they worked with us to use solar to reduce their electricity costs.

The system is anticipated to generate 295kWh daily and reduce their electricity bill by 60%. The estimated payback time is about 2.5 years.

SPECIFICATIONS

System size

75.52kW

Panel Brand

Trina Solar

Panel Model

320W

Panel Quantity

236

Inverter Brand

SolarEdge

Inverter Model

27.6kW

KEY FEATURES

• 75.52kWh solar PV system
• Annual solar generation: 108MW
• Net-metered project exports excess generation to the grid
• SolarEdge Commercial Power Optimizers minimise the effect of shading from the objects on the roof and maximise output from the panels. 

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In 2017, RK Solar installed a 4.95kW solar system with LG Panels, Goodwe inverter and LG battery in AGNES BANKS, on a residential property. The customer had an existing 8 panels system but he found it was not enough for his usage. With rising energy cost and uncertainty of grid supply, he was interested in battery storage and a bigger system to eliminate most of his bill.

RK Solar suggested the customer to install LG panels, LG battery storage with GoodWe hybrid inverter.  The hybrid inverter was connected to the internet and has been registered on the GoodWe portal. Both the customer and RK Solar can see the solar system and battery online.  

The system has helped the customer get almost Zero bills for most months and the system should be paid off in another 2 years. This will help take a major fixed cost out of the monthly house budget.

The detailed view shows data related to the solar system, like solar production, battery charge/discharge, house consumption, etc. The system also shows estimated revenue that helps to get rough amount of income they receive from their solar systems. The historical data and the battery status information also help the customers to get the best use of their solar energy.

The post Case Study: How a Sydney home owner is paying almost $0 for energy. appeared first on RK Solar.

While there are over 4100 accredited installers in Australia, there are currently only 100 Clean Energy Council accredited retailers all over the country. The reason why there are so few accredited retailers is because the standards are very high and fees are not low. To see the entire list of CEC accredited retailers, please visit the following link:

https://www.solaraccreditation.com.au/retailers/approved-solar-retailers.html

The code of conduct has strict requirements that a CEC accredited retailer must follow in pre- and post-sale activities, documentation and general business practices. To read the code of conduct, please click the following link:

https://www.solaraccreditation.com.au/dam/solar-accred/retailers/code-of-conduct/Solar-PV-Retailer-Code-of-Conduct/Solar-Retailer-Code-of-Conduct-Sept-2015.pdf

When you buy solar PV systems from RK Solar & Consulting Services, you can be assured that:

• you receive professional consultancy on your electricity bill and solar system
• we adhere to ethical sales and quoting practices during all steps of the process
• we assist you in applying for the finance, grid connection and meter upgrading
• cooling-off period and refund requirement will be adhered to before installation
• all the products are in good quality and in compliance with the relevant standards
• the system is installed by CEC accredited installers in the professional manner
• you receive instruction on how to measure the performance of the system and maintain the system on a regular basis
• you receive the warranty for all the system components and system performance
• all the complaints and enquiries will be responded in a timely manner

Contact us to get your consultancy and quote today!

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RK Solar & Consulting Services has won this tender in collaboration with a Perth based solar company. The project was split between 2 schools, 90kWs (Chatham High School) and 30kWs (Taree High School). RK Solar has been working in the solar industry since 2010 and has been successfully delivering solutions in the residential and commercial sector.

Figure 1 (Left): Roof Map of Chatham High School, Figure 2 (Right): Roof Map of Taree High School

The co-ordination of project was done by RK Solar’s project management team with the support of NSW Asset Management coordinator and school Principal. The installation work was carried out on weekends and school holidays to avoiding any disturbance and keeping in mind, safety of school children, staff and neighbors. Chatham High School presented installation challenges as the roof was three stories, a sloping ground level and no proper arrangement to park and work with scissor lift. RK Solar & Consulting Services Operations & Installation team managed to find solutions to complete the installation in a timely fashion.

Work for a further 2 schools (Carringbah – 93kWs & South Sydney – 80kWs) in under way and installation should start in October18

The systems are setup with monitoring so the production and consumption can be recorded & monitored by both Installers and user (RK Solar & Consulting Services & NSW Education Department). This would also be used for educational purposes in demonstrating the benefits of renewable energy.  The system will save the school several thousands of dollars in years to come by producing 35,587.50kWh (30kWs – Taree) and 107,762.50kWh (90kW – Chatham). For both jobs RK Solar & Consulting Services used high wattage Canadian solar 340W panels with split cell technology (half-cell) and SMA (Core 1 – 50kW & TRIPOWER – 25kW) inverters.

Figure 3 (Above): Energy Balance of the System in Chatham High School (90kW_P)

Over 97% electricity generated by the solar system is consumed and it covers over 60% total daily electricity usage.

by Kunal Kapoor, CEC Designer & Electrical Engineer of RK Solar & Consulting Services.

The post RK Solar delivers 120kWs of projects for the education sector in NSW appeared first on RK Solar.

Dotted throughout the Pacific Ocean, more and more islands are lighting up, powered entirely by solar energy. They range from the individual islands of Ta’u in American Samoa and Kauai in Hawaii –  to the entire island nation of Tokelau being powered day (and night) by 100 per cent renewable energy.

If entire islands can go solar, so can you.

The key to unlocking solar energy for these islands lies in what happens when the sun goes down. Producing solar energy in these sunny paradises is easy, but during the night residents need power too. Solar batteries help draw out the full potential of a solar energy system, and is a great way for both islands and residents to lower their dependency on the grid.

With a battery system, islands can rely solely on solar power.

The drive for renewable energy in island nations

What makes renewable energy (like solar), such an attractive option for these Pacific Islands, besides the abundance of sunlight? A major reason is that the isolation of islands makes transporting expensive fossil fuels to power generators both expensive and environmentally-unfavourable. There are not rail lines to transport coal, or pipelines to pump natural gas, so most island communities are reliant on importing diesel.

For Tokelau, 2,000 oil drums needed to be shipped by ferry over 500 km from Samoa every year to meet the population’s energy demands, according to the documentary “The Solar Nation of Tokelau.” Not to mention, transporting diesel carries a significant environmental hazard, should some disaster befall shipments as they travel vast distances across the ocean.

It was a similar situation facing the islands of Ta’u and Kauai, says Vox Media. The installation of solar as a safe, cheap source of energy makes perfect sense. Yet come nightfall, the diesel generators would kick in again.

While solar energy cut the amount of diesel these islands needed, it was the solar battery systems that enabled these communities to make the leap to 100 per cent renewable energy.

Going 100 per cent renewable with Tesla batteries

For the islands of Ta’u and Kauai, storing the solar energy produced during the day in Tesla solar batteries was the solution that freed them from the dependency on diesel generators. 

The 60 Tesla Powerpacks installed for Ta’u’s 5,000 solar panels are able to store three days worth of energy to power this 300-600-strong community, says National Geographic. In Kauai, 272 Powerpacks saves 1.6 million gallons of fossil fuel per year, according to Tesla.

Your own slice of Tesla battery power

While your home may not be as large as a tropical island, the principles behind Ta’u Kauai and Tokelau’s switch to 100 per cent renewables apply in the same way. Rather than drums filled with diesel, residential homes are reliant on the energy grid. With a solar power system, this reliance drops to a minimum during the day, but rises at night when the panels are no longer producing energy.

In this situation, RK Solar & Consulting Services supply both residential and commercial applications with the Tesla Powerwall 2 to store the energy produced during the day, for use at a later time. With a 13.5kW storage capacity, powering the average home through the night is easy.

Relying less on the energy grid also helps lower your energy bill, and with the addition of a solar battery system, that dependency drops even further, putting more in your back pocket. 

Getting started with a solar power system is easy with RK Solar & Consulting Services. We provide an end-to-end solution for both commercial and residential solar systems, and with over 3,000 customers in and around Sydney, we know a thing or two about getting the most value from your solar panels.

To find out more, get in touch with us today.

The post Pacific islands are run on solar energy. Powering your home is a breeze appeared first on RK Solar.

However, PV systems with Enphase micro inverters can sit happy knowing that no matter the season, their solar panels are making the most of available sunlight.

Will winter be a problem for your solar panels?

Why winter isn’t all grey skies for solar panels

Sydney solar customers don’t have to worry about how temperature might affect their PV panels.

Solar panels are tested at 25 °C, and higher temperatures can limit the maximum efficiency, reports Gizmodo, so a drop in temperature can actually be good thing.

However, winter isn’t just about a drop in the thermometer. Winter means shorter days and longer, more persistent shadows that can adversely affect PV efficiency.

In a previous article, we explained the difference between micro and string inverters. String inverters are nice under optimal conditions. However, the reality is that not all roofs face the same way, there’s the occasional shading and weather patterns can affect the overall performance, especially in winter. In this case, micro inverters are the ideal solution.

Why Enphase micro inverters are the smart choice the whole year round

Micro inverters are the ideal type of inverter when solar panels are subject to a variety of conditions which would otherwise lower the efficiency of string inverter systems.

But even in optimal conditions, Enphase micro inverters outperform string inverters, reports PV magazine. In an independent test conducted by PV Evolution Labs, over the course of six months Enphase micro inverters were able to produce 1.2 per cent more energy than a string inverter system under unshaded conditions.

Additionally, in low light conditions, Enphase micro inverters were able to harvest over 10 per cent more energy than the compared string system.

“Enphase microinverters can convert available energy of a solar PV module at very lower power levels with higher conversion efficiency due to a feature called ‘burst mode’,” Enphase CEO Paul Nahi explains to PV magazine.

During winter, with fewer daylight hours and longer shadows cast by the sun, string inverters are much more likely to deliver low output energy, says PV magazine. This is because during winter some panels within a solar system will be shaded for longer, dropping overall performance.

Enphase micro inverters do not have this problem and can draw out the most from the available sunlight all year long.

To find out more, get in touch with the team at RK Solar today.

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Thankfully, if you’re consulting the solar power experts, you have a friendly hand to help you understand the ins and outs of solar technology. For those who wish to do their own research on the topic, here’s a handy list with some of the common phrases you might encounter and what they mean:

What are some common solar power terms?

AC/DC current

Alternating current (AC) and direct current (DC), relates to the energy, or current, produced by solar panels and the type of current your house uses. Energy produced by solar panels is DC (think of a river flowing in one direction), while houses use AC (now think of that river switching directions multiple times per second). Before the solar power can be used by your home, the DC current needs to be converted into AC, which is carried out by an inverter.

Feed-in tariff

A solar energy feed-in tariff refers to the payment residents receive for feeding solar power their systems produce back into the electricity grid. For residents in NSW, you may have heard of the Solar Bonus Scheme, which came to an end December 2016, offering subsidised payments for the excess energy produced. Now that the scheme has ended, the tariff has reverted to an unsubsidised feed-in tariff from retailers, according to the NSW Government.

Grid

The energy grid is the term used to describe connecting facilities and utilities that homes and businesses in turn pay for. If someone is going ‘off the grid’, then they are adopting systems that let them be self-sustaining, not relying on (or paying for), the energy produced by third parties.

Beyond saving money, drawing less energy from the grid also contributes to greater sustainability for the wider community, as electricity companies don’t have to produce as much energy from non-renewable resources such as coal or other fossil fuels.

Micro inverter system

Mentioned above, an inverter system converts electricity produced by solar panels into something that can be used by houses, something we’ve described in more detail previously. The process of conversion can happen at two points in a solar system: where the energy feeds into the house (string inverter), or at the base of each solar panel in your system (micro inverter).

The main benefit of a micro inverter system is that you can draw maximum efficiency from your solar panel system, even if some panels are shaded or performing poorly.

Net meter

A net meter is the device that records both the amount of energy a home draws, and the amount of energy exported to the grid. It’s used by many retailers to determine how much energy is saved and produced, which translates to how much customers save on their energy bill, according to the NSW Government.

Photovoltaic (PV) 

The process of converting sunlight into electricity is also known as the photovoltaic (PV) effect (photo, meaning light, and voltaic relating to electricity). A solar power system uses this PV tech, with PV cells making up the components of solar panels.

Solar power is just one form of renewable energy.

String system

Like a micro inverter system, string inverters are important in turning solar energy into electricity your home can use. String inverters are generally cheaper than micro inverters, but are less versatile.

Renewable energy

Energy that is produced from resources that can be easily replenished. Common examples are wind and solar, but can also include tidal, rain and geothermal energy, according to Penn State University.

There’s much more to know about solar energy, including how it can be a great way to save your home and business money. To find out all about this and more, get in touch with the team at RK solar & Consulting today.

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