Why You Should Consider Installing a Solar Battery System
Solar batteries help you save thousands on your electricity bills, become energy independent, and live a green lifestyle. However, they come with high upfront costs and require maintenance.
Typically, solar batteries have storage capacity measured in kilowatt-hours (kWh). It’s essential to consider this when deciding to purchase one. Other specifications to look for are: a charge controller and an inverter.
Reliability
A solar power system uses photovoltaic cells to convert sunlight into electricity. The technology has advanced significantly over recent years, and studies show that well-designed systems are reliable, robust in severe weather, and affordable to operate and maintain.
Adding solar batteries to a PV solar energy system allows homeowners the ability to utilize renewables more proactively, reduce grid electricity consumption in off-peak hours, optimize time-of-use rates, and provide backup power during outages. Solar batteries can also allow homeowners to participate in new revenue streams offered by Grid Operators, in which the Grid draws power from many residential battery sites at times when the Grid has excess capacity.
Solar battery systems can also enhance the resiliency of a home during natural disasters or other emergency situations, by reducing dependence on in-demand fuel sources like gas and by allowing homeowners to connect to the Grid at their discretion. They can also help to improve energy efficiency in a home, allowing for the use of smaller appliances and helping to cut bills.
When selecting a solar battery, it’s important to consider its size and scaling as well as the type of chemistry that it utilizes. Batteries are deep-cycle units that will need to be recharged and discharged a solar battery system number of times during its lifespan. A battery with a longer lifespan is best, and it’s worth looking at the manufacturer’s warranty as well as a software management system that can manage the battery.
Efficiency
Using solar batteries in conjunction with your solar array can help reduce energy bills, as well as provide backup power during a utility grid outage. However, it is important to understand how the system works and how to make the most of its capabilities. This is why it’s important to work with an experienced solar installer.
In addition to a battery’s capacity and chemistry, efficiency is a critical factor in determining the overall performance of your solar energy system. A battery’s roundtrip efficiency is a measure of how much electricity it can deliver per unit of charge, and it should be no less than 80%. A higher roundtrip efficiency will lead to fewer kilowatt-hours (kWh) being lost in the storage process.
Energy conversion efficiency is affected by temperature and is measured by a parameter known as the power-temperature coefficient, or PTC. Solar cells with a lower PTC will have a greater efficiency than those with a higher one. Currently, monocrystalline and polycrystalline solar panels have a PTC of around -0.30% /degC, while newer generation HJT and heterojunction modules are able to achieve as low as -0.25% /degC.
To further improve energy conversion efficiency, some solar systems utilize a technique called solar panels for car camping concentrating to increase the amount of light that can be focused on a single cell. This can boost the efficiency of a one sun GaAs cell by up to 15%, but this technology has only recently become cost-competitive.
Safety
Unlike many common household appliances, batteries are not flammable. However, that doesn’t mean they can’t start a fire if something goes wrong. Luckily, solar battery systems that have been properly installed by qualified professionals pose much less of a fire risk than toasters or washing machines.
Solar batteries can get hot when charging and discharging, as they convert electrical energy to chemical energy, or vice versa. This is why it’s important to choose a battery from a manufacturer that follows strict safety standards and ensures their products are safe for use. The type of chemistry also makes a difference, with lithium iron phosphate (LiFePO4) batteries being the safest and least likely to suffer thermal runaway.
A solar battery should be kept away from heat sources, and will need a bit of ventilation to keep it cool. However, most manufacturers ask that you don’t block vents or stack things on top of the batteries. It’s best to leave the battery in a dedicated enclosure that can handle our tough Aussie weather and protect it from physical damage.
If you do notice a battery getting too hot, or it feels warm to the touch, evacuate the area and call emergency services immediately. Also, never put anything flammable near the battery and avoid stacking it with combustibles. If you do spot any signs of a fire, it is crucial to follow the emergency procedures set out by your installer and manufacturer.
Maintenance
Solar batteries are an essential part of any home solar energy system. However, like any other piece of technology, they require a little bit of maintenance to ensure optimal performance and longevity. This is particularly true in Australia given our warmer climate and harsher conditions that can exacerbate the chemical reactions within the battery.
Whether you have a lead-acid, nickel-cadmium, or lithium-ion battery, there are several best practices that should be followed to maintain their longevity and efficiency. This includes inspecting for physical damage, regularly cleaning them (especially the terminals and cables), and maintaining the correct charging voltage set points.
These voltage set points help to ensure that each cell of the battery is receiving an equal amount of charge, which prevents one cell from failing early and reducing the lifespan of the entire battery bank. It is important that the installer of your solar battery backup system sets these values appropriately based on the size and type of your batteries.
In addition to setting the appropriate voltage set points, it is also recommended that you keep your batteries in a cool and dry location, and away from direct sunlight and heat sources. This will reduce the risk of thermal runaway and maintain a higher state of charge for longer. The sonnen app simplifies this process by allowing you to monitor your battery’s usage and health status, including cycle count.