Frequently Asked Questions
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Solar FAQs
Solar energy systems are sophisticated, integrated, electrical systems and not suitable for DIY installations. Electricity is extremely dangerous and the DC portion of solar systems can easily cause fires if installed incorrectly. Your insurance company will require that a Certificate of Compliance (COC) be issued for any electrical system or change to your home electricity and the equipment manufacturer may not warranty their product when installed by an unauthorised installer.
The sooner you get solar, the sooner you will enjoy its benefits. Why wait for some unproven technology down the road, when you can enjoy saving and the convenience of having power now. Solar Panels have already dropped 99% in price over the last 4 decades as production of solar panels has increased exponentially, economies of scale and improvements in efficiency are already in place.
You will have to inform your insurer and update your homeowner’s insurance policy to include cover for your solar system. Although this will increase your monthly insurance premiums, the increase is usually small and savings from a solar system will more than make up for this. An approved supplier must do the installation and a relevant certificate of compliance (COC) must be issued. COC’s may only be issued by qualified registered electricians.
Solar panels can be installed on the majority of roof types in South Africa. Slate roofs generally require a slate roof specialist to provide the mounting structure and panels cannot be mounted on thatched roofs. With thatch roof homes a carport structure or pergola can often be built to accommodate solar panels.
Some municipalities, most notably the City of Cape Town, offer a feed in tariff, meaning that you can sell excess energy back to the grid and recover some costs. However, not all municipalities offer this facility. Until all the municipalities are on board are best where they are designed to maximise your consuming all the power yourself and minimise feeding back to Eskom or the municipalities, mostly because the feed-in tariffs offered are far lower than what you would pay when you use grid electricity.
In the southern hemisphere north facing solar panels generally produce the most power at midday. Power output is, however, affected by panel temperature so on a day where the sun is bright and the air very cold generation will be better.
Even though the sun will shine for around 12 hours on a South African summers day, the annualised average time you will get the full power your panels are capable of will be about 5 hours.
Solar panels are designed to work in most conditions, so do solar panels work in the rain? Yes, they do. However, the amount of solar radiation drops significantly when it rains so the amount of energy available for your panels to use is less than normal so they produce a lot less when it’s raining.
The only regular maintenance needed for your solar panels is cleaning and an annual inspection. Reputable installers will monitor whether your panels are working properly, but they normally won’t need additional maintenance.
No, solar panels only operate during the day. This is because certain frequencies of light from the sun are key to allowing a solar panel turn the light into electricity.
Tier one solar panels, also known as photovoltaic or PV panels, are warranted to last 20 years but most last more than 25 years.
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Offering our clients outstanding products and services through continuous innovation
We are passionate about what we do and it shows in the quality of our work, our experience and qualifications backed by certification.
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Battery FAQs
Li-Ion needs no maintenance. Sealed lead-acid batteries require no maintenance while flooded batteries will regularly need to be topped up with distilled or reverse osmosis water.
Lead-acid batteries require a cool and well-ventilated environment in order to prevent the build-up of hydrogen, which is highly flammable. Hot environments shorten the expected life of Lead Acid batteries significantly.
Yes. Energy from the sun will still be sent to your batteries. This will extend the expected running time of your batteries as the sun continuously subsidises your load.
In order to decide what is cost effective, you will need to know the following three factors. The expected cycles of your batteries, the price of your batteries and the cost per unit of electricity from your council. You can calculate the cost per kWh from your battery based on the expected life cycle of your batteries and their cost, and compare this to the cost you are being charged by the council. When used at night, Li-Ion batteries, which have far higher life cycles, are more likely to save you money.
Li-ion is better in regards to the performance, efficiency, and longevity of the battery. However, the initial cost of these batteries is substantially higher than that of lead-acid. Initial affordability usually determines whether the superior lithium battery is selected or not.
This will depend on both the size of your battery and the load you intend to extract from your battery. The type of battery you have will also be a factor in how long your battery will last. Lead-acid batteries should not be discharged lower than 50-60% of their capacity. A lead acid battery will need to be approximately twice the size of an equivalent Li-ion battery. The smaller the load and the larger the battery, the longer your battery will last.
