Solar power is a fantastic way to save money and help the environment. But with energy prices always changing, it’s important to use your solar system as efficiently as possible. This means finding smart ways to store and use the energy you make, so you’re not wasting any. Let’s explore how you can make the most of your solar and battery setup!
Why Efficiency Matters
Imagine you have a leaky bucket. Filling it with water is like using energy. If the bucket has holes (like a house with poor insulation), you’re wasting water (energy). Fixing the holes (improving insulation) means you need less water (energy) in the first place. That’s why being efficient is so important. The less energy you need, the less you have to buy or make. For a business owner, this translates directly to lower operating costs and a better bottom line.
Think about it this way a homeowner with good insulation in their home needs less energy to cool or heat the house.
Using Solar Power Yourself Is Key
The more solar panels you have on your roof, the more likely you are to have your own power to use. This is called “self-consumption.” When you use the solar power you make, you don’t have to buy power from the energy company. For example, someone with 15kW of solar panels can run their hot water and dishwasher with solar power on a sunny afternoon. They’re using their own free energy instead of paying for it.
Self consumption is one of the best things you can do with solar, let’s say you are a landlord. If you have tenants that are consistently using power then they are going to want to reduce energy usage. By having them consume the power directly from the solar panel you can offer them this benefit
It’s usually better to use your solar power yourself than to sell it back to the grid. Energy companies often pay very little for the solar power you send them. So, use as much of your own solar power as you can!
Smart Ways to Use Solar
Many appliances have timers. You can set your dishwasher or washing machine to run during the day when your solar panels are making the most power. This way, you’re using free solar power instead of buying electricity at night when it’s more expensive.
Hot Water as a Battery
Your hot water system can be like a battery! Instead of storing electricity in a battery, you can store energy by heating water with solar power. There are a few ways to do this:
- Smart Diverters: These devices send extra solar power to your hot water system. They use every bit of extra power to heat the water.
- Simple Switches: These switches turn your hot water system on and off when you have extra solar power. They’re not as fancy as diverters, but they still work well.
It’s best to use a smaller heating element in your hot water tank. This way, you don’t need a lot of solar power to heat the water. You can use smaller amounts of extra solar power throughout the day. Devices like CatchControl can help automate this process. Some solar inverters also have built-in switches that you can use.
For a commercial property landlord a hot water system can have huge costs depending on how many tenants they have, this could be a way to cut costs and make your property more attractive to tenants.
Heat Pumps are Great Too
Heat pump hot water systems are very efficient. They use much less electricity than regular hot water systems. You can simply set a timer to run the heat pump during the day when you have lots of solar power.
Why Using Products from the Same Brand Can Help
Imagine trying to build something with pieces from different Lego sets. It can be tricky to make them all work together. The same is true for solar equipment. It’s often easier to use products from the same brand. This way, all the parts can talk to each other easily. This makes it simpler to set up and manage your system.
For example, Fronius makes many different solar products that all work well together. Having all components work well together means that as a business owner you can focus on your business!
Choosing How to Store Your Energy
You can store solar energy in a few different ways batteries, hot water or electric vehicles. Here’s a smart way to manage it:
- Use solar power directly: Power your morning coffee and toast with solar power first.
- Charge your electric car: Charge your car during the day so you can drive using free solar power.
- Heat your hot water: Heat your hot water after you’ve charged your car.
- Charge your battery: Charge your home battery before energy prices go up in the evening.
Your electrician can help you set up your system to do these things automatically. But it’s also good to learn how to adjust it yourself, in case your needs change. A business might need to adjust the charging schedule to match their business hours!
Even More Control With Home Assistants
If you like to tinker and have some computer skills, you can use a home assistant program to control everything in your house. This gives you even more control over how you use your solar power.
Electric Cars Save Money
Petrol is expensive! One of the best ways to save money is to switch to an electric car. If you have enough solar panels, you can charge your car with free solar power. This can save you a lot of money on petrol.
Home batteries are also becoming more affordable. But for the same price as a battery, you can buy a very large battery and a free car (because the car comes with a battery!).
If you can charge your car at work during the day, you can bring it home and use some of the power at night. This is a great way to save money. Some electric cars can even send power back to your house! This is called “V2L” (Vehicle to Load). This can be useful for backup power or to save money on electricity bills. There are also V2G systems but these are more complex.
If you’re looking to invest in a higher capacity, fully automatic, bi-directional charging solution, then the technology is now available, almost.
Makers like Sigenergy have a solution, only for Ausgrid customers who own a Ford F150 Lightning, but other networks and other car models are still coming down the pipeline, as are other V2G inverters.
Conclusions
Getting the most out of your solar system is about more than just putting panels on your roof. It’s about being smart about how you use and store your energy. By using energy-efficient appliances, timing your usage, and using your hot water system and electric car as batteries, you can save a lot of money and reduce your impact on the environment.
If you’d like to know more about how solar and batteries can help you cut your power bills then get a quote today.
