Solar Power: how well does it Work in my House?
A little bit of information goes along way.
Here at Solarwind Tec we can help you in your educational journey to understand what you are buying and why. Electrical power produced by solar Power it is the cheapest electrical energy you can buy with a correctly design system you can go Off-Grid ….use grid power with the Grid Tire system…. or invest in a hybrid, and get the Best of well both worlds.
AT Solarwind Technology WE SAY ” if you’re gonna do it , DO IT once do it properly!”
This is a government website and I suggest you go here 1st to get a basic idea…. then we can help you.
SunSPOT was built by data analysts
SunSPOT was built by data analysts and engineers at UNSW Sydneyâs School of Photovoltaic and Renewable Energy Engineering and is far more sophisticated than other freely available solar calculators.
Unlike other free tools, the premium version of SunSPOT can help you pinpoint the best areas on a rooftop for solar panel output. How? SunSPOT uses 3D spatial mapping LiDAR data to read the slope and orientation of a roof area, and to assess the impact of shading on that area from nearby structures. And SunSPOT uses Bureau of Meteorology weather data to estimate the amount of sunshine that falls on each 0.25 square metres of the roof across the year.
Users will get the most accurate results by uploading 12 months of interval meter data. But sometimes this is not available.
For more see Why you can trust SunSPOT
If smart meter data is not available, for residential users, SunSPOT uses machine learning to create a synthetic load profile for the household. You can add details from your bills and answer some questions about energy use in your home.
SunSPOT uses this information to create electricity usage data for a typical year based on a machine learning model trained with data from thousands of households.
In less than two minutes, SunSPOT can quickly and simply deliver householders an estimate of the cost of, and savings to be made from, installing solar or batteries.
Get an instant estimate (1-2 minutes)
Users can get an instant estimate by simply inputting:
⢠the address
⢠number of people living at the property
⢠if there is gas, air conditioning, underfloor heating or a pool at the property.
Instant estimates are based upon an indicative electricity usage âprofileâ that SunSPOT creates for your home through machine learning. It draws on the information you provided, electricity usage data from a sample of approximately 4000 homes, historical local weather data and average electricity tariffs for your region.
Using this profile SunSPOT can then estimate:
⢠a suggested system size for early payback of your investment
⢠a range of costs for the installed system
⢠annual savings from solar
⢠the annual electricity bill, and
⢠the payback period.
Get a more tailored estimate by adding information from your electricity bill (5-15 minutes)
Through the Energy usage and Electricity plan tabs, SunSPOT users should add further information to improve the accuracy of the synthetic electricity usage profile and the bill estimation.
Some of the questions SunSPOT asks under Energy usage are about the appliance use in your home such as, âHow many fridges and/or freezers do you have?â and âHow many rooms in your property are heated?â
Having a recent electricity bill on hand will help you answer these questions:
⢠Does your bill show separate peak and off-peak usage?
⢠How much electricity do you use per day, on average, in kWh?
⢠Do you have a controlled load?
Under Electricity plan you have the option to adjust the charges (tariffs) you pay for electricity. These can be found on your electricity bill.
You can leave the solar feed-in tariff that is already there as it is because it should automatically reflect the usual pricing in your area. The feed-in tariff is the amount you get paid per kWh of solar electricity that you donât use at home and is instead exported into the grid.
Alternatively, if you have used Energy Made Easy or Victorian Energy Compare to find a competitive solar electricity retail plan, you can input the tariffs from it in.
Read more: Understanding your electricity bill
Get the MOST accurate estimate â using smart meter data (15+ minutes)
The benefits of solar depend on when you use electricity, as well as how much you use. If there is a smart meter at the property, it has logged your electricity use every 15 or 30 minutes across every day and across every season. This interval meter data is the clearest picture of your energy use available and by uploading this to SunSPOT you will get the most accurate estimates.
To access this data you need to contact your distribution network service provider (DNSP) and ask for â12 months of detailed interval meter data in NEM12 formatâ.
If you donât have 12 months of data you can still use it but it will be less accurate.
You can find your DNSP named on your electricity bill under âFaults and Emergenciesâ.
We have compiled the links to request NEM12 interval meter data for all the DNSPs here.
Find out more:
For commercial properties, itâs best to use smart meter data
We strongly suggest that, when using SunSPOT on commercial properties, you should source and upload the NEM12 smart meter data, if available. This will give the most accurate estimate of solar and battery sizing and savings.
Commercial sites can be assessed by SunSPOT using the average daily consumption from the bill, an estimation of the available roof area and selecting a business type from the drop-down menu. However, businesses have diverse patterns of energy use and these estimates may not reflect the electricity use at the site very accurately.
The most useful estimate will always come from uploading 12 months of NEM12 smart meter data which accurately plots electricity use at the site for the past year.
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