Investing in solar power is one of the biggest and most complicated decisions homeowners and commercial building owners can make, yet many embark on the journey without a proper understanding of what they’re delving into. This can result in difficulty comprehending bills, struggling to understand monitoring tools, and even dodgy installations from companies that take advantage of customers. If you’re thinking about solar power, it’s vital that you understand all that is involved, so you can invest in the best solution for you. My series of blogs are designed to help make your solar experience the best it can be. I understand it is a huge investment and I am fully committed to you, my customer, ensuring that from installation through to monitoring and updates, your experience with Cardinal Solar is a seamless experience for you.
Let’s go over the basics. A solar power system has four main parts:
- Solar panels
- Inverter
- Racking
- Monitoring
Solar panels
Solar panels are a collection of 60 or more solar cells. Panels can use different cell types and different cell arrangements. There are two main cell types: monocrystalline and polycrystalline. The difference is very minimal so this is not something to worry about in terms of effectiveness. There are three main types of cell arrangements:
- Standard
- Half-cut (half the size)
- Shingled (cells overlap a little)
Inverters
The other important part of a solar system is the inverter. It converts what the solar panels produce into electricity for you to use. There are three types:
- String inverter (larger and installed on a wall)
- Microinverters (smaller and installed next to each solar panel)
- Power optimisers (mix of the two above)
At Cardinal Solar we offer long term warranties on panels and inverters (15-25+ years). We carefully source and only use brands that we believe will be in business for the lifetime of the product warranty and that honour claims.
Racking
Racking is very simple but also a vital part of the system. A racking system is secured to your roof which the solar panels bolted on to. This is where you don’t want a cheap racking system so they don’t fly off!
Monitoring
Monitors are stored in your switchboard and measure how much electricity is coming from or going to the grid. At Cardinal Solar, we offer two types of monitoring:
- Self monitoring (download an app and monitor yourself. We install this for all customers).
- Solar analytics (external monitoring with email updates, with an additional subscription fee)
Monitoring tools allow you to measure electricity from the grid, how much electricity is going into your home / building, and confirms your solar system health. Monitoring can also assist you to realise return on investment.
Once you’ve installed solar, how does it work?
The sun shines onto the solar panels on your roof and is absorbed. Following this, the solar will:
- Power your house / building with electricity
- Any leftover electricity from your house / building will power the grid (other buildings / homes) with electricity.
I recommend that most customers opt for a larger solar system, as when you use electricity from your own system you make money, but when you use electricity from the grid you must pay for it. A larger solar system will enable you to use as much electricity from your own system as you can, and rely less on the grid. It’s also important to remember that adding panels to your system after installation can be costly and difficult and not as simple as some may think.
It can take sometimes take a minute to wrap your head around solar and how it works, but it’s worth spending time to gain an understanding. At Cardinal Solar we provide high quality solar systems, maintenance, and analytic solutions for residential and commercial building owners, with all the information needed but always just a chirp away for any questions. The solutions reduce power bills and dependency on the power-grid, which ultimately decreases our nations collective reliance on coal. Find out how much you can save with our systems HERE.
