Investing In Solar
Free sun power.
Solar technology has greatly progressed since they were first implemented on space vehicles in the 1960's. Today, basic solar systems are relatively inexpensive to install for most households or businesses. Solar systems come in different types of setup and tailored individually from one site to another from hybrid systems that can work in tandem with your electricity supplier to full off-grid systems that are fully independent from the local power grid.
Whether your on a budget or just looking to shave off the electricity bills by just wanting to buy a few solar panels installed on the roof or you want something more sophisticated like a solar system with battery backup to keep the lights on at night, we can consult you on the best solar setup for you and find the right balance between your budget and your power needs while still considering for future scalability if ever you want that option.
There are many different types of solar system setups but the two most common are Grid-Tied Systems and Hybrid Systems.
GRID - TIED SYSTEMS
Solar Systems w/o Battery Storage
In this setup, power generation from the solar panels will only provide you with power during the day (assuming it is not a cloudy day) and because this system setup has no battery storage included, so in the evenings you rely on the power grid to supply you with your electricity needs. A string inverter is used in grid-tied systems.
Net Metering
"GREATLY REDUCE OR ELIMINATE YOUR MONTHLY BILLS?"
When your generating more energy than your using – then that excess electricity your solar panel produces can be sold to the utility company which means your meter will go in the opposite direction as a credit to you, this is called "net metering". You will of course need to apply for net metering with your utility company and have them install a Bi-Directional meter that takes advantage of net metering.
HOW NET METERING WORKS
Hybrid Solar Systems
"WILL GRID-TIED SYSTEMS STILL WORK DURING BROWNOUTS?"
During brown outs your grid-tied solar system will automatically shut down due for safety reasons because you can not export power to a deenergized grid and this is called the "Anti-Islanding" law.
However, to get around this problem you will need to get a special type of inverter called a hybrid inverter which will automatically de-couple the grid from your system if it detects a loss of power but will still keep your system running on solar power or via battery storage.
Hybrid Inverters are designed to take advantage of using battery storage, however they can be configured to run without batteries and function similarly like string inverters if needed.
OFF-GRID SOLAR Systems
An off-grid solar power system relies solely on solar for the day and battery storage backups during the night or during days when there is only clouds. It is completely isolated from the grid so usually, these off-grid power systems have other source of alternative power backups such as diesel generators and/or small wind turbines.