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We are just outside the Brisbane metropolitan
area. How much will it cost for us?
We have negotiated our great price based on a concentration of
households to optimize savings. If you are within 30-40km from the Brisbane CBD, we should be able to include your household. (In the Local Power Buying Group #1-#5,
which had 500+ homes, we managed to cluster all but a handful of
interested people in the Brisbane metro area.)
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We are way outside Brisbane.
Does that mean we can't participate?
Unfortunately, as Local Power is a community group which handles
the installation logistics, we can't easily service distant homes while keeping the prices low.
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We are building a new house (or renovating our
old one) and are not ready yet, can we still participate?
Part of the "trick" for a buying group is to buy the components
in bulk and then install them as soon as possible in bulk (otherwise
Local Power has to bear most of the component costs for an uncertain
period of time until you are ready to install which is impossible
for us to do). This is why we need to insist the participant is
ready to go when we are.
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We plan to raise our house, and perhaps replace
the roof. What will the impact be?
If you will be replacing your roof after the PV system is
installed, you will need to remove and
replace all the frames and panels, which will cost quite a bit in labour.
Raising the house but not replacing the roof may impact the existing
cabling from the panels to the inverter, as you may need
to replace them with longer DC cables. In some cases the
inverter can be moved to compensate, but that would involve
replacing the AC cables.
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When will installations start?
If the
components are in stock (depends on how many people sign up), the
installations will start soon after we finish inspections. We
expect installations will start in early April 2011 and will finish
by the late May 2011.
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Will you run more buying groups in the future?
If this sixth buying group goes well, then we would certainly
consider doing more.
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What is the difference between the panel
manufacturers defect warranty of 5 years and the power performance
warranty of 25 years?
Local Power is simply passing on whatever the manufacturer
offers. Click here to
read the actual warranty details from Sharp for yourself to see what
it means and what the exclusions are. If the product fails in
the first 5 years under the manufacturers defect warranty (faults
in materials and manufacture), Local Power will remove it from your
roof and return it to the distributor and manufacturer and also
replace it back onto your roof when the replacement arrives back.
Removal and replacement are at no cost to you in the first 12
months.
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You mention you use quality panels like Sharp,
why is that important?
Lots of panel manufacturers offer long warranties. We
think you need to consider whether the manufacturer will be around
to honour the warranty and whether they will be able to afford to do
so. Sharp has been in business for almost 100 years and been
making solar cells for decades. Although we don't know for
sure whether they will be around in 25 years, we are reasonably
confident they will, and will want to protect their brand reputation
if something goes wrong.
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Who else sells Sharp panels in Australia?
Many companies sell Sharp panels in Australia. Origin Energy
is the most notable one, although recently we understand they
haven't been able to get much stock of Sharp and have also started
offering other brands. If you get a PV quote from other
companies, get the panel brand they will be supplying in writing.
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My roof is totally flat. Is it possible to
tilt the panels to operate better?
In general it is possible to tilt the panels more than flush
mounting against the roof, by using legs. For example a
2kW system has 20 feet on the framing and most likely 10 legs would
require extension to get the required tilting. Overall the extra
tilting components and labour would cost at least several hundred dollars more.
However, depending on the size of the array, it may still only
constitute a small percentage of the overall system cost. If you
still wish to order knowing that there are likely additional costs,
we will be able to confirm the detail of that after our and the
installers inspection. But you won't have to go ahead and
install if you don't agree to the higher than standard install cost.
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My largest available roof is between NW and West.
What will the impact of that be?
From what we have read, a west facing roof can lose about 13% of
annual production (and northwest lose 4%) compared to a northern
roof. see section 4 of this university
research paper. However people do install on
east or west facing
roofs
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I don't understand the difference between kW,
kWh, DC, AC. What size system do I need for my home?
A
1.5kW PV solar array generates about 2161 kWh/year of
electricity. You should be able to see from your last 4 quarterly
electricity bills how many kWh you used in a last year and therefore
calculate how many kW of PV solar capacity you might need to be
totally "self sufficient". It might be quite a shock to see how big
(& how expensive) a PV array you would need to meet your current
electricity use.
Another way to think about PV solar is to also use your array as an
incentive to reduce the amount of energy you use by actively working
towards the gap between your electricity use and the amount your
solar array produces. (This is similar to the way people who
have water tanks tend to be more conscious of how much water they
use.) Some people who have installed moderately sized PV solar
systems have also found ways to reduce their electricity usage by up
to 70% over time. Local Power prefers to support energy efficiency
measures, rather than simply putting in a large array to meet your
current requirements.
For example you could ask the questions:
1) Do I have adequate insulation so I need to use less heating in
winter and run less aircon in summer?
2) Do I have solar hotwater, or gas hotwater, or an efficient heat
pump, each generate significantly less greenhouse gases than a
regular electric hotwater system and would also reduce your
electricity usage.
3) If I have a pool, do I have an energy efficient pool filter
and/or use a solar heater.
4) Do I have efficient lightbulbs, turn off appliances at the wall
etc.
5) Do I have an energy efficient modern fridge and/or run too many
fridges?
6) If I have an air conditioner is it set to 24 degrees Celsius
which is the most efficient setting for South East Queensland.
There are a list of energy savings tips/ideas at
http://localpower.net.au/saveenergy.htm
If you wish, please email through your last 4 quarterly
electricity usage, and we can help you calculate the size of PV
system for your current use, and we are also interested in
getting a feel for averages around Brisbane.
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Your website mentions Energex but I am with
Origin or AGL. Can I participate?
Yes. Energex is the network owner, while Origin, AGL and
others are the retailers who sell power over that network. Everyone
in Brisbane connects to the Energex network & most people in
Brisbane use Origin and AGL as their retailer currently. To
connect a PV system to the grid you need an agreement with Energex
(Local Power will prepare these application forms for you).
To sell power back to the grid you sometimes need an agreement with an
electricity retailer.
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A different brand of panel or inverter would suit
my needs better. Can I get them instead?
People generally join a Buying Group to save money.
Usually Buying Groups want to also ensure members get good quality,
good warranties, etc. in the Buying Group's selection of the product. One
element of savings for members of Buying Groups is through buying
the same materials in volume. In the case of our Buying Group
to achieve volume, it means only a few options in terms of panel
type and inverter type. Local Power has chosen components
which strike a good balance between quality and price.
However, you may find your component preferences or needs differ
from the options available (you may want components that are
cheaper, more expensive, have different features, or are just different
for whatever reason). Unfortunately we cannot cater for all these
variations because Local Power would not be operating as a Buying
Group, but more as a retailer. People who join Buying Groups
have to be able to tolerate this limitation in choice.
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I live off-grid and have a standalone power
system. Will Local Power sell just panels to me?
Unfortunately the answer is no. When we started we were quite open to supplying panels for
off-grid. As it has turned out, to get the best pricing, we
ended up negotiating buying complete grid connect kits (panels,
inverters, mounting frames). Also if you read the detailed panel
specs, they are designed for grid connect applications, some of
which having a
lower nominal voltage instead of 24V, so may not work as well (or at
all?) on battery based off-grid systems.
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I am unsure what size my roof is, can someone
come out and assess it before I sign up?
Many people don't feel confident in assessing their roof, which is
why Local Power (& also the installer if required) will do an
inspection upon ordering.
If your install does not go ahead (due to home is unsuitable or if
the REC (STC) price drops below $35), you will be refunded in full less
the $88 inspection fee. As a community not for profit buying
group, we have no gross profit margin to spend on sales and
marketing, so unfortunately can't do "free" inspections as part of
the "sales" process that a commercial organisation would do.
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What are RECs and Solar Credits
Origin, AGL and other electricity retailers and large
electricity users operate under the RET (renewable energy
target) scheme where they need to purchase a percentage of their
electricity from renewable sources (actually there is
a fixed industry wide target in GWh rather than a percentage).
Buying RECs is the way they do that, otherwise they need to pay a
fine, equivalent to $65/REC but it's not tax deductible for
them so the real value could theoretically be as high as $92, not
counting the reputation cost of being fined.
Installing a PV solar system creates RECs,
and Solar Credits multiplies the number of RECs by 5x (until June 30
2011) for the first
1.5kW of a system. Our website talks
about the various number of RECs created under Solar Credits for various sizes of
systems, based on a 15 year period (15 year RECs need
to be created within 12 months of installation - see the ORER website
for all the details on how to calculate them etc.).
Most people are happy to assign/sell their Solar Credits (RECs/STCs) to
lower their overall install price. RECs is quite a
specialized and technical area to understand. You can find
more information at the website of the Office of Renewable Energy Regulator
(ORER) here.
Assigning the right to sell RECs (STCs) from PV systems is
currently (4/3/2011) worth around $35 selling to the REC brokers. You can see a graph of some recent REC prices
here
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I don't want to sell my Solar Credits and want to
keep my RECs. Can I still participate?
Yes. But
your "balance payment" will obviously cost more than if you are
using Solar Credits (and RECs/STCs) as part payment. It will be
"system cost" less the "deposit payment". Please contact us
and we can confirm and calculate it for you. If you later want
to sell your Solar Credits, we understand this must be done within
12 months of system installation.
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Why does the 3kW "total payment" cost more than
twice the 1.5kW (& the 4kW more than twice the 2kW)?
The reason is that the Solar Credits incentive (5x the regular
number of RECs/STCs until 30 June 2011) only applies to the first 1.5kW of the system.
The 1.5kW system is therefore the cheapest out of pocket cost per
Watt. If however you look at the unsubsidised "system cost"
you will see that larger systems are cheaper per Watt than smaller
ones as you would expect.
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What's the difference between monocrystaline and
polycrystaline cells?
Both cell types are a mature silicon based solar panel
technology. When put into panels, monocrystaline cells are
slightly more efficient (14.24%) per square meter of roof than
polycrystaline cells (12.84%). However to manufacture mono
cells requires more energy than poly cells, so the embodied energy
is lower and energy payback is quicker on poly. With Brisbane's
solar resource, modern solar manufacturing techniques ensure the
energy payback is within a few years for both cell types. This
research paper goes into a lot more detail.
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How much money will I save on my electricity
bill?
A 1.5kW system generate about 2161kWh/year on an unshaded, north
facing, perfectly pitched roof. Some of this electricity will
be used in your house, while some of it will be exported to the
grid. The financial savings have two components, with the
exported electricity having a higher dollar value. If you
didn't export any to the grid it is estimated you would save
$461/year based on 21.351c/kWh (Queensland
tariff
11). The Solar Bonus Scheme (Feed in Tariff paying at least
44c/kWh) for any energy exported to the grid results in credits on
your electricity bill and adds to the above savings. e.g. if
you export 50% of the energy from a 1.5kW system at 44c/kWh, the
electricity savings will increase from $469 to $706/year.
Please see the electricity savings calculator by
clicking here.
Both
of these savings will help pay for your system over time, in many cases
income tax free.
