Mick and Janet's  Photovoltaic Solar System.

Updated 1 Sep 2008

        My passion for having a solar powered home started in 2003 when I started noticing promotional advertisements for grid connected solar systems in the paper which led me to some internet research. I have been constantly trying to reduce our global footprint, so going Solar was a logical step to take.  The first thing I realised was that before I could get a solar set up, I needed to know how much electricity we consume, and then  work out what size system to buy.  A PV solar system isn't cheap to purchase, so you are better off working out ways to reduce your consumption, rather than getting a bigger system. From July 2003 to June 2004, I measured our power consumption each week by reading the utility meter.  With a base level of consumption established we were able to proceed to the next step, working out what type and size PV system to purchase. 

        We live in the suburbs, and the mains power supply is very reliable, so going off grid with battery banks didn't seem necessary and quite expensive.   A grid connected solar system seemed ideal for our needs. During the day we export any excess power we generate to the grid, to offset any power we import back in at night, giving us a cost neutral system.

          We chose a system consisting of 10 x  BP4170S 170w panels and a GCI1700E (Sunnyboy) inverter.  The deposit  was paid and installation was arranged for the 6th of Jan 2005.  The installers arrived at 8:30 in the morning to commence installing the system.  The roof section was large enough to allow all 10 panels to fit in the same area. The System was operational by 3:30pm the same day. When you have a PV system installed, part of the process is to have a 'two way' meter installed that measures the amount of power you import from the grid, and the amount you  export as two separate figures.  The old analogue style winds backwards when you export power to the grid.  The system has worked as expected since it was commissioned. The supplier estimated it should generate an average of 2500Kwh per year based on our location and amount of sunlight. You can see a graph of Monthly output for the system or  photos from the Installation.

Relocating the Solar Panels.

    I recently accepted a job transfer to regional Victoria, this meant Janet and I had to leave our home in Adelaide. Not wanting to leave the PV system behind, we packed up the panels and inverter and they have been reinstalled on the roof of our new home. The relocation process was relatively painless, but did take a bit of research. The hardest part was finding someone that would do the reinstall. Everyone was happy to sell me a new system, but helping to recommission an existing system was not high on anyone's priority list, especially when you live 3 hours out of Melbourne.  The panels are connected in the same configuration on the new roof. Two banks of 5 panels, but to prevent shading, they needed to be laid out in a single row of 10.  Now that the system is operational, I can recommence the monthly output graphs. 

Solar Buyback system announced in Victoria

One great thing about the moving to Victoria is the solar buy back scheme that has been announced to start in 2009.  To encourage people to install a solar PV system, the power company will pay 60c for every  kilowatt of power exported to the grid, but you only pay the standard 15c for the power you import....  

Energy and Resources Minister Peter Batchelor announced that for the first time Victorian households will qualify for a bonus for installing solar power systems and providing excess electricity into the State electricity grid. The new Feed-in Tariff Scheme will offer householders a premium rate for excess power and is designed to increase the number of private households in Victoria generating renewable energy. Households will be paid 60 cents for every unused kilowatt hour of power fed back into the State electricity grid, which is almost four times the current retail price for electricity and the highest feed-in tariff offered in Australia. “The system will encourage more households to install solar photovoltaic systems and encourage solar powered households to be energy efficient and maximise the amount of power fed into the State’s electricity grid for other customers to use,” he said. The scheme will be introduced in 2009 and will apply to all household systems of up to two kilowatts capacity. (source http://www.budget.vic.gov.au)

 Based on our own real life figures, this announcement is great news. Because we were not home during the day, most of our PV generated power was not needed, and was exported to the grid. When we returned home at night, we imported power from the grid. With this new scheme, we will get 60c credit for every exported Kw.  If we continue to achieve similar exports as seen in the table below (readings taken directly from our power bills), we stand to receive over $1100 credit a year towards offsetting our imported power.    

We would love to hear from others who have an interest in Solar Power.  Please Email us if you have any questions or info to share.

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