Solar Power Guide
Everything you need to know about solar panels
Invest in your Future
Solar PV panels absorb photons emitted by the sun to produce DC electricity which is then converted to AC power using an inverter. Direct sunlight is not required and the colder the weather the better for electrical conductivity. The Solar electricity is then used first before mains power which substantially reduces your electricity bill. Further savings can be made by storing solar power to batteries for night-time use and trickle charging your hot water storage tank.
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Technological advances have increased the wattage of solar panels from 180 / 240 watts to over 340 watts which means we can obtain the same results from fewer panels. However, it does makes sense to oversize a solar array in order to boost production during those grey winter days. Because, for example, an array of panels rated at 4kW at peak performance does not mean this is a constant amount of power and will in fact only be achieved on cloudless bright days. Therefore, it makes sense to overcompensate by fitting a higher number of panels where possible.
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Solar cell efficiency refers to the portion of energy in the form of sunlight that can be converted via photovoltaics into electricity and his can be further enhanced by up to 25% using optimization, particularly if some panels are shaded at a point in the day. Please see the Solar Edge brochure, for further information. It can be argued that inverter efficiency is more important than panel efficiency.
Design plays a huge part in the energy production of an installation we use a sophisticated industry standard computer model (PV Sol) to match solar panels and inverters to the orientation and elevation of a building. If orientation is an issue, we may mount panels on both east / west roofs using twin string inverters to equalize the solar effect throughout the day and optimise the supply of electricity. Alternatively, if shading from adjacent buildings or trees is a problem, we would design a system using individual optimizers for each solar panel to negate the shading effect. We have found the most effective method of minimizing shading is the Solar Edge optimization system. For smaller areas of shading we install a Tigo to individual panels. Solar Star Power supply and install a large range of solar panels, we are not tied to a single supplier and can design a system specifically for your property.
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Our preferred panel mounting system is Schletter on most concrete tiled roofs, Red Tip for Rosemary and Staffordshire Blues and the K2 system for modern double tiles. We space our roof anchors approximately 1.25 meters apart. This is well within MCS recommended guidelines which also advise notching the roof tiles where required to ensure they lay flat to the roof.
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A ten-year warranty is supplied on all parts and labour. The Solar Edge HD Wave inverters can be supplied with an additional 20-year warranty whilst all solar panels have a performance warranty of 25 years. After installation we will request annual meter readings to compare production against our original quotation and any under-performance greater 5% will be corrected by us.
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This may not add up to the cheapest method of installation or equipment on the market but equally it will not be the most expensive and is guaranteed to provide reliability with peak performance for the lifetime of your system.
Finally, we can normally install a solar array and ancillary equipment in one working day. Scaffolding is usually erected one day prior to install and removed two days after completion so that we can monitor the system for a short period. Upon completion we will issue the handover pack along with the relevant MCS Certificate.
Solar Star Power Promise
We offer a 10-year warranty on all parts and labour,
a 20-year warranty on Solar Edge HD Wave Inverters
and all solar panels have a performance warranty of 25 years.