A Solar Hybrid for the Hills
Surrounded by native bushland on the outskirts of Melbourne, these home owners came to EnviroShop with:
- High and rising electricity costs
- Power outages and limited supply causing inconvenience and limiting lifestyle
- High dependence on grid electricity – TV, internet, heating, cooling, cooking, hot water, using water and flushing, toilets from tank water.
Taking all these issues into account, EnviroShop was able to design, supply and install a solution that reduced electricity consumption in the home while also producing and storing electricity on site. Now the family can live comfortably with or without grid power and at a fraction of the original running cost.
Grid Connected Solar Power System
The solar power system was designed for maximum performance despite the shading from the tall gum trees early and late in the day. Combining a high performance Yingli solar panel with individually controlled Enphase micro-inverters allowed for higher energy production and improved system monitoring over traditional solar systems.
Hybrid Energy Storage System
While most solar power systems only operate while the electricity grid is available, ‘hybrid’ energy storage systems can operate both on grid and off grid. For this household a hybrid energy storage system was chosen that could switch to stored energy if the local grid supply dropped out or reduced in capacity. The storage system can be
programmed to switch over to stored solar energy when the sun goes down, using this in the home instead of purchasing electricity from the grid.
Only the highest quality components were chosen to ensure reliable energy supply and long system life. The Selectronic SP Pro My Grid consists of a energy controller manufactured here in Australia and maintenance-free German Sonnenchein batteries all in a neat and tidy cabinet.
Both the solar power system and the storage system can be remotely monitored by the homeowner and by EnviroShop technicians.
Efficient Hot Water
The original hot water service was an electric boosted hot water storage tank running on off-peak electricity. This accounted for almost 30% of the home’s daily energy needs. EnviroGroup installed a high efficiency heat pump hot water unit reducing electricity consumption by over 70% and which runs in the daytime directly from the available solar electricity. The Sanden Heat Pump was chosen because it is highly efficient and cost competitive to install when compared with solar hot water.