Solar Go
Start Producing Power
5kW Inverter with one 5kW battery pack and 8 solar panels to produce upto 3000W of peak power. This power can be used to recharge your battery and be used to power your home.
System Description
The Solar Go system consists of a single inverter and battery pack that provides power to plug and light points in a standard 3-bed room home. This system also includes x8 Solar Panels. This system provides automatic and instant switchover when the utility power drops as well as generating electricity during the day to supply the home as well as charge the battery. The system is used to lower utility electrical usage and provide backup power when needed. This system is generally set to stop using grid power even when it’s available to make use of the battery as part of its daily usage cycle.
System Specifics
x1 5kW hybrid inverter with x2 MPPT inputs and battery connection.
x1 5kWh Lithium battery with built-in BMS and communications module.
x8 450W Tier 1 solar panels
Included in Package
- Installation of the solar inverter and battery in a convenient place, usually the garage or kitchen.
- Electrical wiring between the main distribution board and the inverter.
- Along with the electrical wiring, an additional Inverter DB is installed close to the inverter that houses the input and output breaker with a changeover switch.
- Along with the installation of the inverter, training and a full demonstration of the system is provided on the day of installation.
- Once the installation is completed, a Certificate of Compliance (COC) is provided which can be used to register the system with your insurance.
System Functionality
The system will function as a grid tied solution. Simply put, it will provide power when the utility supply fails as well as solar power during the day. Power is discharged from the battery and used by the plug and light circuits in the home when there is no utility power or during the early mornings. At dawn, the system will start producing solar power and charge power back into the battery if needed. It will continue to produce power a provide electricity to the plugs and lights.
Frequently Asked Questions
Not all the power in the battery is usable. The battery will switch off at 10% to protect it from being over-discharged. This is a safety feature to ensure that the battery isn’t damaged by an over discharge situation. That said it is also a good idea to set the inverter to disconnect from the load when the battery reaches 15% State of Charge. This will allow the battery to keep the inverter on until solar or the utility supply return to charge the battery.
A batteries discharge time is determined by how quickly it’s being discharged. This means that a high load will discharge it faster and small load will allow it to last longer. To put it into perspective, the battery as about 4.7kWh usable capacity. If you don’t use things like a kettle, heardrier or any appliance that useses a high amount of power, you can expect the battery to last between 15 and 20 hours at 200W – 300W of load. If you make normal use of the battery, you can expect the battery to last anything between 5 – 10 hours.
The battery can be charged from two sources at the same time. Charging the battery from the grid is usually set to 15A or 720W as opposed to charging from solar where there is no limit apart from the battery’s maximum charge limit.
To put the charge rate into perspective. – If the battery is at 50% State of Charge or SOC it will require 2500Wh to be charged back into the battery. When charging from the grid at 720W, it will take roughly 3.5 hours to recharge the battery. When charging from solar power it charges the battery from an empty state in a little over 2 hours. This being the case means it’s much better to charge batteries from solar as opposed to grid power for two reasons.
1. Charging from the grid is slower and you end up paying for the power charged to the battery.
2. Solar charging is faster and the power generated from the panels is at no cost.
Most batteries carry a duty cycle of 6000 cycles. A cycle is defined as a discharge down to 5% or 10% and recharges back to 100%.
In reality, no one would ever use a battery in this manner so normally you’ll only discharge the battery down to 30% or 40%. This extends the life span of the battery to possibly 7000 cycles or even 9000 cycles.
In comparison, if you cycle the battery once a day, every day, then 6000 cycles amount to a little over 16 years. 9000 Cycles is a little over 24years.
We generally make use of Tier 1 solar panels which is the highest quality panel available for new installations. What this means is that different manufacturers will produce the same quality panel with the same specification. Generally, a Tier 1 solar panel has linear degradation of 25 – 30 years.
This means the panel loses 20% of its original generating capacity over 25-30 years of use.
Solar PV systems generally require minimal maintenance. Periodic cleaning of the panels to remove dirt or debris will boost their efficiency and power production. Dirty panels could cause some cells to become faulty due to reverse polarity if a cell is covered by dirt while the rest of the panel is producing normally. The time between cleaning depends on the environment where the panels are installed. An environment like a farm may cause panels to become dirty much faster due to dirt roads and diesel vehicles operating in the area. Urban environments cause panels to become dirty less quickly but monthly checks will give an indication of visible dirt on the panel surfaces. An efficiency check on the inverter by a professional may also indicate lower-than-normal power production due to dirty panels.
Annual system checks are also required to ensure the system operates normally. Fans and filters on the inverters must be cleaned to prevent heat buildup. Wiring and connectors are also checked while DC combiners have fuses that could protect the system and panels from overloads.
Yes, solar panels will produce electricity on cloudy days, but their output will be reduced. They don’t require direct sunlight to generate electricity but perform best when there is no obstruction between the sun and the panel.
