Reading Time: 4 minutes
People who invest in solar are inherently forward-looking: solar panels last for 25 years or more, producing clean energy for decades to come. For people who are considering a new solar–or solar plus storage–installation today, it’s worth thinking about more than just what solar panels to install on your property. There are a few specific ways that you can set up your solar panel system now so that it’s future-proofed for anything else you might want or purchase over the next three decades. How to future proof your solar installationWhen exploring your solar options, it’s worth thinking about not just your past or current electricity usage, but all of the ways in which your habits could change in the future or the types of solar-adjacent tech you might purchase down the road. For instance, if you plan to switch your heating from fuel-based to electric (i.e., with air-source heat pumps), your electricity consumption will increase in the future. Similarly, if you plan on purchasing an electric vehicle in the future, that will also increase your electricity usage down the road. Recognizing those potential changes in your consumption habits may mean it’s worth buying a larger solar panel system now. Solar for additional loadsThe best way to make sure that your solar panel system meets your bill savings expectations is to be very intentional about the system sizing. There are many ways that your electricity consumption could change in the future, but two of the most common causes of increased consumption are “electrifying” your transportation or your heating and cooling. Electric vehicle ready solarElectric vehicles (EVs) are becoming more and more common throughout the country. And with targets like California’s to transition away from gasoline-powered vehicles by 2035, the adoption of EVs is only going to increase moving forward: it’s very likely that the next car you or I purchase will be electric! There are two things to think about when future proofing your solar panel install for a future EV purchase: first, how much extra electricity will you need; and, second, how easy will it be to connect an EV charger to your existing solar set up? The first question has an easy answer: we’ve got a handy guide of how many solar panels you’ll need to charge most EVs on the market today. In short, between 6-10 additional 330 Watt solar panels, about 20% to 30% more solar than the average install on EnergySage today. The second question is a touch trickier. When you purchase an EV and an EV charger, you’ll generally need to have an electrician come back out to your home to wire the system appropriately. One inverter manufacturer, SolarEdge, offers a hybrid solar inverter-EV charger, and their new Energy Hub inverter can quickly integrate an EV charger to power your car directly from the sun. It’s worth asking your solar installer about options to ease the transition to an EV at a later date. Clean heating and cooling ready solarIf you’re considering switching from a fuel-based heating system to an electrified heating and cooling system for your home (i.e., with air-source or ground-source heat pumps), the calculus for how to future proof your solar install is pretty straightforward: the main thing you need to consider is how much more electricity you’ll use once you no longer heat your home with oil, propane or natural gas. A good rule of thumb, is that the heat pump will use about the same amount of electricity to heat your home in the winter as your AC currently uses to cool your home in the summer. Don’t have AC? Sorry – I don’t have a rule of thumb for that! As was the case with EVs, be sure to tell your installer you’re considering increasing your electricity consumption with electrified heating and cooling, and they’ll size your system as appropriately as they can. Storage ready and flexible storage installationsThere are additional considerations if you’re thinking about adding energy storage to your solar installation now or in the future, both to make sure that it’s easy to add storage to your solar panel system, as well as to ensure that your storage set up is as flexible as can be to meet your future needs. Storage ready installationsThe best, most cost-effective time to install an energy storage system is at the same time that you install solar: the installation company and installers will already be at your property working with your electrical system, so the added cost of installing a battery is much lower than requiring the company to come back out at a later date. However, if you’re interested in energy storage but not ready to add it to your solar panel system just yet, it’s still possible to install a storage-ready solar panel system. The easiest way to do so is to install a hybrid inverter, which acts as the inverter for both your solar panels and your battery. Options like the SolarEdge Energy Hub are built to easily allow a battery to be added to your solar panel system either during your initial installation or at a later date. If you use a microinverter system instead, you’ll need to purchase a battery that includes its own inverter when you add it to your solar panel system down the road. Flexible storage installationsIn many cases, when you install energy storage at your home, you’ll have to decide today which loads–appliances and circuits–to back up with your battery for the 10-ish year lifetime of the energy storage system. That’s a difficult proposition for many homeowners: I certainly don’t know which rooms, outlets or appliances I’d need backed up a decade from now. There are options for installing more flexible storage installations. For one, several manufacturers make batteries that are large enough to power your whole home (or allow you to “stack” enough of them together to power your home). However, you’ll likely pay a significant amount for this extra capacity. A potentially more affordable option is to install a load control device as opposed to a critical loads panel. This type of technology, like what’s offered by both Span and Lumin, is a way to effectively decide on the fly what parts of your home you want to backup with your battery system. Instead of deciding today what to backup for the next ten years, you can install one of these load control devices along with your battery to have more flexibility with how you use your battery. Explore your solar & storage options on EnergySage todayTo get started with a solar (and storage!) installation that can meet all of your home’s existing and future needs, get started with an EnergySage account today. It’s easy to get started, as well as to let installers know that you’re planning on adding an electric vehicle in the future or that you’re interested in adding energy storage to your solar quotes. See how much you can save on your electricity bills today! from https://news.energysage.com/how-to-future-proof-your-solar-installation/
0 Comments
Reading Time: 2 minutes
In this week’s Solar News Roundup, a Yale study on the support of transitioning to a clean economy, and Arizona’s new carbon-free generation requirement. Yale study finds 82 percent of voters support a transition to a clean economyAccording to the Yale Program on Climate Change Communication (YPCCC), climate policy is a central issue to many voters. In a recent poll, Yale found that 82 percent of voters in their study say that “…achieving 100 percent clean energy should be the primary goal of U.S. Energy policy.” Within the voters surveyed, 63 percent said that the U.S. should prioritize developing renewable energy sources to address the country’s energy needs. “There has been a dramatic increase in public concern about climate change over the past five years,” says Ed Maibach, the director of the George Mason center, which has been conducting studies in collaboration with the YPCCC for 13 years. “Increasingly large numbers of voters are coming to understand that the best way to take action to protect our climate is to vote for candidates who will defend our climate.” Although the 2020 election has come and gone already, it’s still worthwhile to note that 54 percent of the voters surveyed agreed that “they would be more likely to vote for candidates who support providing federal financial bailouts to the renewable energy industry.” Arizona utility regulators approve carbon-free by 2050 planA few weeks ago, utility regulators in Arizona approved a plan for utilities in the state to get all of their energy from carbon-free sources (like nuclear and solar energy) by 2050. The plan brings Arizona much closer to where many other Western states already are with respect to zero-carbon planning. Even before reaching 100 percent carbon-free power by 2050, the plan requires electric utilities to get at least half of their power from renewable sources like wind and solar by 2035. By 2050, they will need to supply all of their customer demand for electricity with renewables, carbon-free nuclear, or energy-efficiency measures, such as subsidizing efficient light bulbs or insulation installations. “The climate crisis is impacting Arizonans right now. I am glad the commission was finally able to look past partisan politics to support science and economics-based policy that stakeholders, utilities and ratepayers could all agree upon and benefit from,” said Sandra Kennedy, a Democrat who’s part of the Arizona Corporation Commissioners that voted for the measure. from https://news.energysage.com/solar-news-november-13th-2020/ The Solar Energy Industries Association (SEIA) has released a suite of policies and executive actions that it is asking president-elect Joe Biden and the newly elected Congress to act on during their first 100 days in office. The Solar Vision is consistent with SEIA’s goals in the Solar+Decade and aims to put the U.S. on a path to 100% clean energy. It lays out three strategic imperatives for the solar industry, each of which contains numerous policy proposals. These imperatives are developing aggressive clean energy goals and a comprehensive carbon policy, investing in modern infrastructure and the workforce needed to support it, and ensuring access to clean and competitive energy markets. Among the policies SEIA is seeking is tax policy that rapidly expands the use of solar energy to help address the climate crisis, trade policy that offers clarity and predictability to the solar industry, and permitting approvals that cut red tape and gets more solar installed quickly and at less cost. “Our 100-day agenda aligns with president-elect Biden’s vision to build back better and represents a critical opportunity to meet the moment of the climate era with equity and justice at the forefront,” says Abigail Ross Hopper, president and CEO of the SEIA. “Even as we face a likely divided government, every facet of this agenda has had bipartisan support. Now is the time to take action to generate economic opportunities for Americans in a way that promotes competition and addresses the climate crisis.” To read SEIA’s Solar Vision, click here. The post SEIA Outlines Policy Agenda for New Administration appeared first on Solar Industry. from https://globalsolarsupply.com/seia-outlines-policy-agenda-for-new-administration/ Market Analysis Conference Call. In a few hours you can join me and other solar pros as we talk about the the current state of the solar market. We’ll talk about the election, ITC, supply chain shortages and more. Call is open to anyone for free, you can register here.
Opinion Best, Yann The post This is your SolarWakeup for November 13th, 2020 appeared first on SolarWakeup.com. from https://www.solarwakeup.com/2020/11/13/this-is-your-solarwakeup-for-october-18th-2019-2-2-2-2-2-3-2-2-2-2-2-2-2-2-2-2-2-2-2-2-2-2-2-2-2-2-2-3-2-2-2-2-2-2-2-2-2-2-2-2-2-2-2-2-2-2-2-2-2-2-2-2-2-2-2-2-2-2-2-2-2-2-2-2-2-2-2-2-3-2-2-2-2-2-2-120/
Reading Time: 4 minutes
Many people are under the misconception that they can’t install solar panels on their roof for a variety of reasons, whether because of the material, their location, shade, or the dimensions of their roof. Truthfully, there are many factors that make a roof more or less suitable, but while some roof qualities make them a total no-no for installations, others have a minimal impact on a solar panel system investment. In this article, we’ll review two roof factors that impact the performance of solar panels: orientation and tilt. Your roof’s orientationThe direction that your roof faces, also referred to as its azimuth angle, is one of the primary factors that determines how much sunshine your solar panels will see over the course of the day. Here in the Northern Hemisphere, solar panels are most effective when installed on south-facing roofs. However, even if your roof doesn’t face directly south, they can still produce plenty of electricity – regardless of whether you live in snowy Minnesota or sunny California. Plenty of people install solar panels on east- and west-facing roofs (and save money by doing so!) Pro tip: Not sure which direction your roof faces? Look your address up on Google Maps! Their grid shows which direction is true south – compare that to your roof’s direction on satellite imagery. Why orientation matters with rooftop solarGenerally, solar panels that face directly east or directly west produce about 20 percent less electricity than if they were facing south. This doesn’t mean you won’t save money, but if you’re aiming to cover all of your electricity usage with solar, you may have to install a few more panels than you would otherwise need with a southern-facing system. While it is technically possible to install solar panels on the north side of your roof, it’s not the best location for solar production (in fact, it’s the worst) – you’ll likely need to use special mounting so that the panels oppose your roof’s slant in order to generate electricity. This means that they won’t sit flush with your roof, and will still produce relatively little electricity. If a northern-facing roof is your only option, it’s worth considering alternative installation options, such as ground-mounted solar or a carport installation. Can’t install solar panels on your roof? Consider community solar.Community solar allows you to support renewable energy and save money on your electricity bills without installing any equipment on your property. Check out our Community Solar Marketplace to learn more. Your roof’s tiltIdeally, a fixed, roof-mounted solar energy system should be at an angle that is equal to the latitude of the location where it is installed. However, pitch angles between 30 and 45 degrees will work well in most situations. Fortunately, the angle of your rooftop has a lower impact on solar panel production than the direction your roof faces. Why angles matter with rooftop solarJust like other factors that affect production, the financial impact of the slight decreases in solar productivity related to your roof’s slope depends on electricity prices in your specific market. To give you an example, EnergySage compared data from two places (New York and Washington, D.C.) and estimated the production levels of solar panels tilted at various angles. What we found was consistent with our investigations into the effects of other variables:
* Annual electric bill savings (cost of electricity x electricity produced) You’ll notice above that, if you live in New York where electricity is more expensive, decreasing your panels’ tilt to 5° will lower production by about 10 percent. Although this decreases your optimal annual savings by $115, you still save nearly $980 per year. Because you live in a high cost area, your savings over time will grow even more as electricity prices continue to rise. In Washington, D.C., the production decrease is slightly greater because the city is further south. However, since electricity prices are only around $0.14/kWh, the economic impact is much less—your annual savings only decrease by about $90 per year. Annual savings in D.C., despite the 5° tilt, are still in the range of about $800 per year. In addition, property owners can often find additional savings through federal, state and local programs that offer incentives such as tax breaks, rebates or–if you’re in D.C.–solar renewable energy certificates (SRECs). The bottom line is, even if your solar panels don’t sit at the perfect angle, they can still deliver significant financial returns. Start saving with solarRemember, you don’t need to live in the sunniest state in the country or have a rooftop that faces directly south to take advantage of the financial benefits of solar – the most important factor in determining your solar savings is how much you pay for electricity. By going solar, you reduce or even eliminate your utility electricity costs, so even if you aren’t perfectly maximizing your electricity production, your solar investment can still pay off in a big way. Use EnergySage’s Solar Calculator today to determine just how much you can save. from https://news.energysage.com/solar-panel-performance-orientation-angle/ Nashville Mayor John Cooper’s administration has entered a partnership with Nashville Electric Service (NES), the Tennessee Valley Authority (TVA) and Vanderbilt University to construct 100 MW of utility-scale solar power under the TVA Green Invest program. Vanderbilt will be a 25 MW co-subscriber to the solar array, thereby reaching their own 100% renewable-energy goal for campus operations. Metro-Nashville will be the first local government to pursue access to Green Invest in TVA territory. On Metro’s and Vanderbilt’s behalf, TVA will contract with Nashville-based Silicon Ranch Corp. to build a solar array in Tullahoma, Tenn. Silicon Ranch pioneered utility-scale solar power in the Tennessee Valley and is one of the largest independent solar power producers in the U.S. The company was selected through TVA’s 2020 competitive procurement process for construction of up to 200 MW of solar power on the Tullahoma site. There will be no fiscal impact on Metro’s operating budget until the fall of 2023 when construction of the array is expected to be complete. “Not only will 100 MW of solar power help mitigate a changing climate by affordably and efficiently meeting Metro’s 2025 clean-energy goal, it also puts Tennesseans to work and provides cleaner air during a pandemic characterized by respiratory distress,” says Cooper. “This public-private partnership will serve as a model for NES’s other large customers to replicate. I challenge Nashville’s corporate sector and major institutions to consider TVA Green Invest as a smart way to prepare for what must be a greener future.” Metro’s 100 MW of solar power will produce the clean-electricity with a 20-year power purchase agreement. By reducing harmful air pollution, Metro’s and Vanderbilt’s combined 125 MW of solar energy will result in $3 to $6.8 million dollars of health benefits across Tennessee. Silicon Ranch Corp. estimates the construction of the array will create 500 jobs. The post Mayor Cooper Enters Partnership to Construct 100 MW of Utility-Scale Solar appeared first on Solar Industry. from https://globalsolarsupply.com/mayor-cooper-enters-partnership-to-construct-100-mw-of-utility-scale-solar/ Post Election Interview. As promised, yesterday I spoke with SEIA’s CEO, Abby Hopper. SEIA and the solar industry have to maneuver a divided government in an effort to move solar forward for the solar+ decade. We talk about the ITC extension, trade issues and improving interconnection/permitting issues for all parts of solar. You can find the podcast on your favorite stream or here.
Opinion Best, Yann The post This is your SolarWakeup for November 12th, 2020 appeared first on SolarWakeup.com. from https://www.solarwakeup.com/2020/11/12/this-is-your-solarwakeup-for-october-18th-2019-2-2-2-2-2-3-2-2-2-2-2-2-2-2-2-2-2-2-2-2-2-2-2-2-2-2-2-3-2-2-2-2-2-2-2-2-2-2-2-2-2-2-2-2-2-2-2-2-2-2-2-2-2-2-2-2-2-2-2-2-2-2-2-2-2-2-2-2-3-2-2-2-2-2-2-119/ Mosaic, a platform that provides financing solutions for U.S. residential solar and energy-efficient home improvement projects, says its SwiftLink URL is now available. SwiftLink is a shareable, customizable URL that allows residential solar installers to easily distribute credit application forms to customers without the need to log in to a separate portal. Homeowners can now simply click on their contractor-specific SwiftLink URL using any smart mobile device, complete a single-screen credit application form requiring just three pieces of customer financial information and receive a credit decision in a matter of seconds. “Mosaic has a track record of innovating finance solutions that help improve and streamline partner sales and businesses,” says Patrick Moore, COO of Mosaic. “Now, with SwiftLink, contractors get the easiest way to distribute Mosaic credit application forms to their customers, and homeowners get the easiest way to apply for financing through the Mosaic platform.” Available to PowerSwitch ZERO solar loan partners, SwiftLink can be shared directly with customers via text and email – or hosted on a partner website for the added benefit of integrating with specific business marketing needs and improved user-experience efforts. Credit approval, a necessary step when applying to finance solar installation and home improvement projects, traditionally requires homeowners to log in to a separate portal to fill out application forms in the presence of their solar installer or general contractor. Now, Mosaic’s partners can offer homeowners a contact-free credit application process from the convenience of their own homes and devices. Credit applications approved through SwiftLink are automatically integrated into partner sales pipelines easily accessed via Portal 2X – Mosaic’s recently announced sales tool. This gives contractors and installers access to their pipelines from any smart mobile device, as well as the flexibility to start financing at three different points of the sales transaction (adding a new customer, giving an estimate or pre-qualification). The availability of SwiftLink comes on the heels of Mosaic’s successful launch of PowerSwitch ZERO, the industry’s first residential solar loan with no payments required during the 12-month promotional period preceding a 10-, 15- or 20-year repayment term. Offered in tandem with the company’s new Portal 2X sales tool, this finance option meets an immediate need to put solar installers back to work after the economic slowdown associated with COVID-19. The post Mosaic SwiftLink URL Now Available to Solar Installers appeared first on Solar Industry. from https://globalsolarsupply.com/mosaic-swiftlink-url-now-available-to-solar-installers/ What Can Joe Do? In the past 4 years America learned a lot about what is and is not possible for the executive branch to do without congressional approval. The Supreme Court has heard several cases that made that box clearer including ability to designate a national emergency and issue executive orders. Whether Biden, a politician who favors tradition, gets his hands dirty in this path is to be determined.
Opinion Best, Yann The post This is your SolarWakeup for November 11th, 2020 appeared first on SolarWakeup.com. from https://www.solarwakeup.com/2020/11/11/this-is-your-solarwakeup-for-october-18th-2019-2-2-2-2-2-3-2-2-2-2-2-2-2-2-2-2-2-2-2-2-2-2-2-2-2-2-2-3-2-2-2-2-2-2-2-2-2-2-2-2-2-2-2-2-2-2-2-2-2-2-2-2-2-2-2-2-2-2-2-2-2-2-2-2-2-2-2-2-3-2-2-2-2-2-2-118/ Esdec, a global rooftop solar mounting solutions provider, has acquired PanelClaw, a supplier of solar mounting systems for commercial roofs in the U.S. With the acquisition of PanelClaw, Esdec expands its customer base and portfolio of products available to the growing commercial and industrial (C&I) solar market. The PanelClaw acquisition is the European group’s fourth in the U.S. solar mounting market in the past three years and its first acquisition in the commercial market segment. Today, the combined group generates revenues in excess of $300 million annually and employs over 250 people worldwide. The terms of the PanelClaw acquisition were not disclosed. “Esdec is a global player in solar mounting and racking, so this is a move that just made sense for us,” says Costa Nicolaou, CEO of PanelClaw. “It provides us with access to R&D depth, strong financial backing and economies of scale that will enable us to grow and innovate. Our confidence in the growth and potential of the North American solar market is unparalleled and we look forward to building that future with Esdec.” PanelClaw will continue to operate as an independent business with a focus on directly serving commercial solar developers, EPCs and installers with its differentiated clawFR product and clawOS software. The current PanelClaw management team will continue leading the business. PanelClaw will also retain its independent brand name while becoming an Esdec company. Photo: PanelClaw’s landing page The post Esdec Acquires Rooftop Solar Systems Supplier appeared first on Solar Industry. from https://globalsolarsupply.com/esdec-acquires-rooftop-solar-systems-supplier/ |
AuthorHi i am Deborah Ringgold living in Miami, FL i am 31 years old. I am working with local electric company we deals in solar energey and commercial electrical works. ArchivesNo Archives Categories |