1.5kw solar system pricing

[lee]

Just got off the phone (well earlier today) getting a price to have a 1.5kw solar PV system installed.

9x 170w "sopray' panels
1x 2kw aurora inverter, the slimline one.
colourbond roof
melbourne metro
after the $8k rebate, (which i have approved), i need to still pay $2500, +$140 for the new meter.
can be installed within 3 weeks

doesnt really sound all that "value for money"

any comments?

[Joey]

Just got off the phone (well earlier today) getting a price to have a 1.5kw solar PV system installed.

9x 170w "sopray' panels
1x 2kw aurora inverter, the slimline one.
colourbond roof
melbourne metro
after the $8k rebate, (which i have approved), i need to still pay $2500, +$140 for the new meter.
can be installed within 3 weeks

doesnt really sound all that "value for money"

any comments?

sopray ?? never heard of them and not much research reveals yet another Chinese pop up company , having a look at their specs They rings alarm bells , basically they a panel that is 1580x808x35 , they obviously flash test them under perfect lab conditions what ever output they get they sell them as.
So the same panel can be sold as a 150w or a 180W , not bad marketing really because they sell the reject panels as lower power ones without saying they were hoping for 180W but because of second rate materials they only achieved 150W.( in perfect conditions ).
Quality manufacturers like Suntech underrate their panels so it's not uncommon to see a 185W panel put out 195W , most other companies would sell the same panel as a 195W or 200W panel.

The new PVI-2000 Power One Aurora looks nice , but to soon to know how well they will perform , the slim line one with the bigger lcd display isn't a full outdoor model , I think that's why you mention colourbond roof .

If that price included well known quality panels then it would be quite acceptable.

[lee]

It seems some places charge extra for a tile roof install.
i have seen the big Aurora, looks nice, but have to install it in the garage as i think 'under the eaves" is too much in the weather.
i, like you are "suss" on the sopray panels.
apparently "beyond building energy" use them but that doesnt mean alot.

i have had a look on whirlpool but still confused re the install.

i would feel much happier with Suntech, or similar.

i have quotes from "solar choice" but again its not conclusive.

even "energy matters" said suntech panels in their system but when the quote arrived it stated "solarfun"

It seems that the whole lot is a total scam for the companies supplying the systems.

[dogsbreath]

Look at sunsavers. I am getting a 3.2kw system through Braemac about 9k out of pocket. Time is running out for getting the 8k grant installations done though.

[Joey]

It seems some places charge extra for a tile roof install.
i have seen the big Aurora, looks nice, but have to install it in the garage as i think 'under the eaves" is too much in the weather.
i, like you are "suss" on the sopray panels.
apparently "beyond building energy" use them but that doesnt mean alot.

i have had a look on whirlpool but still confused re the install.

i would feel much happier with Suntech, or similar.

i have quotes from "solar choice" but again its not conclusive.

even "energy matters" said suntech panels in their system but when the quote arrived it stated "solarfun"

It seems that the whole lot is a total scam for the companies supplying the systems.

Yeah I agree Lee there is a whole lot of quality parts being exchanged for cheap reject chinese junk , unfortunately most people aren't as aware as you and end up being scammed.

If you are looking for quality panels ask for quotes that include the new Suntech Pluto panels . All panels have reduced quite a lot in price due to the strong AU dollar , a lot of these dealers are not passing on the savings so you need to push them.

Sunsavers appear to only sell quality components , great to see hopefully they will replace the older inverters on the larger systems with the newer more efficient transformerless inverters.

[rastus86]

where do i find out the details regarding the 8k grant ?

i thought it was all finished now

[Joey]

where do i find out the details regarding the 8k grant ?

i thought it was all finished now

It is finished but some people applied before the cutoff.

[pieces]

Some might miss out on the 8k grant as times running out for the install to be done.
Many have been hand balled to other company's who want the 8K straight away eg meaning the customer has to fund the whole thing and claim back from the government or keep getting the install date put back .

[lee]

Her is an interesting link for calculating paybacks etc

[dogsbreath]

My neighbour is looking at getting this package
for the 8k grant plus recs.
Will still need to pay for meter on top. Country Victoria

[lee]

i got a quote off braemac ($8k rebate)
1.44kw system, 8 suntech 180w, with recs ($38) for $0
1.62kw system, 9 suntech 180w, sb1700 inverter, with recs ($38) for $1826

eco-kinetics also gave me a quote (8k rebate)
1.575kw, 9 sopray 175w, aurora pvi-2000 inverter, with rec's at $40, for $1260 (total system price $9260 inc gst)
2.1kw, 12 sopray 175w, aurora pvi-2000 inverterwith rec's at $40, for $2609

now without the 8k rebate, eco-kinetics:
1.575kw, 9 sopray 175w, aurora pvi-2000 inverter, with rec's at $40, for $2890 (total system price $8250 inc gst)

Not sure why the difference in price of the 1.575kw systems.....

so far i am leaning towards the 2.1kw system above for $2609, but will try and 'negotiate" price lower.
(still expensive electricity as it will take about 3-4 years payback)

got other quotes off solarchoice.net.au as well, but its as confusing as mobile phone plans.

and i have found some good threads on whirlpool.net for discussion too

[anyone]

got my 1kw solar array $0, need a smart meter though, thru diamond energy and solarshop, german inverter, panels kaneka

[lee]

here is a REC calculator

[lee]

After a lot of negotiation I finally decided on the eco-kinetics 2.1kw 12 sopray 175w, aurora pvi-2000 inverter with rec's at $40, for $1150 out of pocket + the $8000 rebate and recs

i was actually offered the 1.575kw @ $0 ($8k rebate) but wanted more panels.

currently eco-kinetics are offering a 1.575kw @ $8250, ($2890 out of pocket after current REC rebates)

[lee]

Feed in tarifs for Victoria

[premsat]

I have a 1kw. [supposedly] Ecokinetics system comprising 6 x Sopray SR05 - 170w panels on a north facing tiled roof. I am in Brisbane and currently the output from this array, mid day and in full sun, is struggling to make 600w @ 180v. That's around 100w from a panel rated at 170w. I suspect that the output from my array is falling compared to what it was last year. Unfortunately I didn't keep any records, but my memory tells me that around 750w was produced just after installation about 12 months ago. I keep the panels clean and have noticed that the white resin? material on the panels is going quite yellow.
Even in full sun, middle of summer, this array rarely produces above 850w. I think it would take a blow torch to make one of these panels produce 170 watts.
I am considering adding another 2 panels to the string but I don't think I will use Taizhhou Sopray panels.

[lee]

in full sun, today my 2.1 kw array was outputting about 1.6kw. so thats about 75% efficient i guess.
from watching the threads in whirlpool your array should produce about 3.5-4 times the array wattage in kWh over a day. (on a great day)

it may not be worth spending $1000 or for two more panels if you cant get a rebate for them.

maybe your inverter is operating not in it efficient region given the voltage you state?

[Joey]

Lee what you are seeing as far as output is about the maximum you will ever see, 1.6Kw from a 2.1kw system is quite high for lower grade panels, it is mostly this high because your system is brand new ,this time next year will reveal better what you will normally see.
At the moment your panels are producing 133W each , when summer comes you will be lucky to see 110W each.
seeing 1.6kw doesn't mean your system is 75% efficient it only means it is producing 75% of it's supposive 100% rated output.
Considering your panels are rated at a maximum 175w in absolute laboratory conditions not real conditions what you are getting is about on par with most other systems using no name brand panels.
When most panels are tested they are rated at the maximum they can produce in perfect lab conditions , called flash testing , if your panels were produced as 160W panels and produced 172w during this test they are sold as 175W.

The big difference between Suntech and any other manufacturer is that they rate their panels at a nominal rating not the absolute maximum , it is not uncommon for a 175w Suntech to put out 190W but it is still sold as a 175W because under more normal conditions this is what you can expect to see.

I have quite often seen my 4kw system putting out 4300w while others using the same inverter with the same size array with cheap Chinese panels are rarely ever achieving 3500W on a perfect day.

Premsat , 600W from a 1kw using cheaper panels is about what most people are seeing , some even less, personally I would not be happy at all seeing only 60% of the systems rated output after only 12 months , the 750w you were getting is also below acceptability .
BTW , Contrary to popular belief , PV Solar Panels worst enemy is heat ! The hotter they get the worst they perform. 25C is optimum .

[lee]

It will be interesting to see how much the overall output degrades in summer.
Although i will have more sunlight down here in melbourne the average temp of the panels will increase. i wouldnt be surprised if they get to 100deg C or more in direct sunlight and that will surely degrade the output.
Anyway for $1150 i still see it as good value.
(My contribution to propping up the chinese economy during the GFC)

[chorrylan]

[QUOTE=Joey;295095they obviously flash test them under perfect lab conditions what ever output they get they sell them as.
So the same panel can be sold as a 150w or a 180W [/QUOTE]

ummm wouldn't all panel manufacturers do this? (eg isn't this the difference between suntech pluto220-udm, 215 and 210 panels; they're from the same production line but rated and hence were labelled differently for retail).
Things like the cpu's for pc's have pretty much always been rated, labelled and sold this so I just assumed solar panels would also.