A solar system is made up of a number of key components, all of which combine to generate electricity, regulate and control the flow of the electricity and to connect and mount the solar system to your building.

Panels – Solar PV panels on roofs of homes and businesses generate clean electricity by converting sunlight into usable electricity. This conversion takes place within the solar cells and is a process that requires no moving parts.
Inverters – A solar inverter is one of the most important elements of the solar system. It converts the variable direct current (DC) output of a photovoltaic (PV) solar panel into a 240V alternating current (AC). This AC electricity can be fed into your home to operate your household appliances.

Long lasting solar systems for the Australian climate require high quality inverters. Unfortunately, lower quality inverters and panels have failed to perform under Australian conditions in large numbers and failed in as little as 2 years.
Batteries – Since 2015 solar storage batteries have reduced steadily in cost to the point that pay back is coming down from more than 10 years towards 7 years and less. In future years most residential solar systems will include a battery as part of the solar system package. Discuss with us if batteries are feasible in your circumstances, or if you should get a “battery ready” system.

MOUNTING SYSTEMS
Solar systems are mounted to roofs with a mounting system using various railings, frames and tiles or tin feet. Most mounting systems are made of aluminium with stainless steel hardware and are designed to accept a variety of solar modules on a variety of roof types. Aluminium rails with clamps attach the solar panels to the rail and connection brackets fix the rail to the roof (see diagram below). Superior mounting systems are manufactured with higher grades of aluminium and stainless steel, often resulting in less weight on the roof and lower levels of corrosion over longer periods of time. Quality mounting rails may also feature robust anchoring points and design solutions that speed-up the installation time of your solar system.

RATING YOUR SOLAR SYSTEM
Your solar system is rated according to the number of watts it can produce per hour. This rating is rarely achieved in full during real life conditions as dust particles, clouds and other natural issues will affect the quality of light that your PV panels receive. For example 16 x 330W solar panels will create a 5.28 kW solar system. In regards to overall system output on an average day with intermittent clouds this system will produce approximately 3-4 kW per hour in the best sun irradiation hours of the day. The system will only achieve 5kW per hour on a very sunny day, in the middle of the day and clear sky, for example after rain.

TILTING AND ORIENTATION
Solar modules can face anywhere from the East to the North and the West, while still providing good output performance. In Australia, a grid-connected solar system will generate the most solar electricity when the solar panels are facing north at a tilt angle of 15 to 30 degrees. But with the introduction of time of use metering by electricity providers in Australia, a north-west or fully western facing solar system may give a more positive financial outcome. Time of use metering is when energy retailers charge more for their electricity (approximately 45 cents per kW/h or more) in peak usage periods, for example weekdays from 2pm until 8pm. During these times Western facing panels will produce a greater amount of solar electricity, therefore creating better savings.

SHADING
The amount of electricity generated by your solar system directly relates to the amount of sunlight that your PV panels receive. The more your solar modules are covered in shade, the less electricity your system will generate. Even a single antenna or a chimney shadow on your panels can affect performance, while the overall effectiveness of your solar system is dependent on where you live. In some areas of Australia (for example, the Blue Mountains near Sydney) over 20% of homes have reduced suitability for solar systems due to extended tree coverage close to the home. Using micro-inverters or power optimisers on each panel, instead of one large string inverter (where multiple panels are connected to one inverter) can help with shadow issues. With each individual panel managed to achieve its maximum electricity output individually, the losses associated to shade can be reduced by as much as 25%.

PERFORMANCE
For a decade of low maintenance to your solar system, it is strongly suggested that you purchase high quality solar panels, quality solar inverters and ask for a quality balance of system components in all aspects of your solar system. Some cheap solar panels have failed in the Australian and NZ climate in as little as 24 months. Typical issues have been water ingress, corrosion, hotspots, failed bypass diodes or junction box failures. These type of failures lead to the write off of the panel. Often the lengthy promised warranties are hard to claim when dealers, installers or panel manufacturers have gone into liquidation or have stopped operating in Australia.

The key components susceptible to failure in your solar system are the solar panels, the inverter and some components like fuses and isolators. This is often because cheap lower quality products have been sold at low prices, but have been made to look like high quality via long “warranties” and other claims. High quality solar products overall tend to have longer life-cycles as they undertake more quality control steps, use higher quality cells and solders, have stronger UV protection on backing sheets and ensure the water sealing of panels withstands decades of weather induced deterioration. Very low cost panels with less UV stabilised backing sheets, cheaper sealants and more fragile framing can deteriorate faster and some have failed in Australia in as little as 2-3 years. Cheap inverter solutions also have higher failure rates than quality solutions. Unfortunately often lengthy warranties on cheap products have been unobtainable as both manufacturers and installation company have avoided liability by going into liquidation.

The key warranty for solar panels is the Manufacturer’s Warranty. High quality panels cover transport of the replacement panel, the replacement panel and the labour to take the failed panel down and replace it. Cheaper panels often do not cover transport and replacement labour. Make sure you enquire what is covered in the warranty and ask for the detailed warranty document.