News

4 Considerations For Choosing The Best Solar Battery

If you’ve considered making the switch to solar, you’ve probably wondered whether you need battery storage. It’s not essential to have a battery, however including one in your installation gives you a lot of added benefits.

Why Do You Need Solar Battery Storage?

In a typical grid connected solar system setup, there are two main components: the solar panels that generate solar energy, and the solar inverter that converts solar energy into electricity. The only problem is that the solar energy from your panels can only be used as it’s produced. So, if your solar panels generate more power than you need, the excess energy is typically sold back to the main grid.

Your electricity retailer will only offer you a feed-in tariff of around 5 to 10 cents a kWh for this power. It also means when the sun isn’t shining, like during the evenings, you still need the main electricity grid to power your home. This electricity will cost you about 35 cents a kWh.

With solar battery storage, you don’t need to worry about any of that. The excess solar energy you produce during the day is stored in a battery and used when the panels stop producing power. Solar battery storage will help you gain energy independence. Some battery systems can also be setup to provide backup power to the home when there is a blackout. This improves your energy security.

How To Find The Best Solar Battery

Choosing a solar battery comes down to your personal needs. Every house is different, with varying levels of energy usage. That’s why there’s no one-size-fits-all solution when it comes to solar battery storage. Here are some of the things you should consider when choosing your solar battery.

1-Capacity

The capacity of a solar battery is probably the most important thing to measure. Battery storage is expressed in kWh, which is essentially power multiplied by time. As such, the capacity tells you how much power your battery can store, and how long it will last. This obviously depends on how much energy you use in your home.

Generally, if you’re unsure of the capacity requirements, it’s best to choose more rather than less. This gives you flexibility in case your energy consumption increases.

It is important to make sure solar system will be able to produce enough excess power to fill the battery each day.

2-Power Rating

The other key measurement is the power rating, which is expressed in kW. This rating tells you how much power can be drawn from the battery at any one time. If you have appliances that require a lot of electricity, you’ll want to be sure your solar battery can deliver the required output to keep everything in your home running smoothly.

3-Back Up Power In A Blackout

Another consideration is do you want backup power during a blackout? Many batteries can provide power your home if there is a power outage. The battery will need to be specially set up by the installer to do this. Often extra hardware may be needed.

Some batteries cannot charge from the solar if the grid is down. You will only be able to use the charge that is in the battery. Other systems will allow you to keep charging the battery from the solar until the power comes back.

4-Battery Life

You can measure a battery’s quality by its expected throughput and cycles. This refers to the number of times a battery can be charged and discharged. Throughput is also important here because it tells you how much electricity can be pumped through your battery in a lifetime. Generally, this will be reflected in the warranty.

A battery may offer a 10-year, 10,000 cycle warranty. This means the battery is warranted for 10 years or 10,000 cycles, which ever milestone is reached first.

SolarBright’s Solar Battery Options

Perhaps the most well-known solar battery option is the Tesla Powerwall 2, which is a 13.5kWh battery that is powerful enough for most modern residential homes.

However, here at SolarBright we also offer the Sungrow Modular SBR Series batteries. These powerful units can be expanded in 3.2kWh modules from 9.6kWh to 25.6kWh. You can even join four fully stacked Sungrow batteries together for a whopping 100kWh capacity. Although that’s far more than most residential homes need, it does give you enormous flexibility.

Need More Information?

SolarBright is your local expert for solar installations and solar battery storage in NSW. You can book a free consultation today and one of our solar experts will visit your home. We can tell you how much money you could save with any of our amazing solar packages

Whether you want a full solar and battery storage solution or a standard solar panel installation, we’re the team you can count on. Contact us today and be part of the green revolution!