If you live in a remote location in South Australia (or even locally in Adelaide) and are moving into an existing house, adding a removable house or building a new house, then an off-grid solar system can be cheaper than paying large setup costs connecting to the grid.
We custom design every system to ensure we supply the best solution fit for you. It means that one of our Off Grid Solar Specialists gets in touch with you for an energy audit where we ask a few questions, so we can get a good understanding of your specific needs and circumstances. Every client is different and the better we know you the better the system will serve you.
After the initial assessment, our team will size and design a system that will work best for you – both now and in the future. We will take into consideration several factors e.g. your location, roof size, roof angle, orientation, battery technology, expected losses, etc. Our design team will also match systems to your expected power usage, your expectations and your budget.
The installation will be carried out by our local team of certified Clean Energy Council installers and electricians who will ensure the highest quality and smoothest transmission. We estimate the installation process will take (if weather allows) between 1 to 2 days depending on the size of the system.
Buying an Off-Grid system can be both complex and confusing. When considering an Off-grid system as a viable option to power your home, we must assess your daily power consumption. When calculating how much power you may use in your household you must consider 5 important things and how they relate to reducing your system’s requirements, possibly saving you thousands of dollars in system costs. Energy-intensive appliances are those that heat or cool a space, be it air, water, or an element.
GAS, HEAT PUMP, OR SOLAR HOT WATER
An average electric hot water system for a 3 or 4 person house, may easily consume 4 kWh per day alone if it is powered from your Off-Grid system. Gas, Heat Pump, or Solar Hot water is a great way to simply and drastically reduce your power consumption, in-turn saving you big money. Also, remember that in bad weather you may need to boost your solar hot water system and if it has an electric boost you’ll end up using a lot of power at times when the generated power from the solar panels is drastically reduced. Choose instead gas boost.
GAS COOKING
Electric cooktops and ovens are another big requirements for an off-grid system to supply. Although running ovens and elements from your off-grid system is achievable you may find going with gas will save you a lot of money.
WOOD FIRE HEATING
Electric Bar or electric underfloor heaters are massive power consumers and when run for long periods don’t really fit-in with an off-grid situation. Wood fire heating is an option taken up by many of our clients. The nice warm ambient temperature of a wood fire stove can also be harnessed to heat up living spaces.
EFFICIENT APPLIANCES
If you are buying a new property a lot of clients take the opportunity to ensure they get the most efficient appliances to reduce their Off-Grid system requirements. Energy star ratings are now presented on most appliances along with a yearly kWh usage. This can be used to select the most efficient appliances for your budget. LED lighting is now a very efficient option and gives good light. As numerous lights are usually on for at least a few hours a day a more efficient light can add up to big savings.
CHANGE YOUR BEHAVIOURS
It’s simple. When the sun is out, use your bigger consuming appliances. Do your washing, vacuuming and all other household routines during the day, this way the electricity is in-effect supplied directly from your panels and not discharging your batteries. For smaller systems, you may want to load-share, which means staggering the use of your high draw appliances such as toasters, microwaves and kettles etc. This will reduce the requirement for a large off-grid inverter which will save you even more money on system cost. Use common sense.
Designed for one or two occupants with an average 4-5kWh/day usage including:
Basic appliances, water pressure pump,, Fridge/Freezer, washing machine, kettle/toaster, LED lights & Split A/C in the summertime.
The System 7.4kW of Solar with 12kWh Battery Storage
These systems are designed for applications with a daily power usage from 4kWh up to 7kWh
Prices Start from $27,995 + gst
Designed for a family of 4 occupants with an average 6-8kWh/day usage including:
Basic appliances, water pressure pump, Fridge/Freezer, washing machine, kettle/toaster, LED lights & Split A/C in the summertime.
The System – 8.1kW of Solar with 20kWh Battery Storage
These systems are designed for applications with a daily power usage from 5kWh up to 9kWh
Prices Start from $40,995 + gst
Designed for a family of 4 plus occupants with medium to high consumption from 10-35kWh/day usage including:
Basic appliances, water pressure pump, Fridge/Freezer, washing machine, tumble dryer, electric oven, kettle/toaster, LED lights & Split A/C in the summer time.
The System – 14.8kW of Solar with 32kWh Battery Storage
These systems are designed for applications with a daily power usage from 10kWh up to 35+kWh
Prices start from $57,900 + gst
Off-grid solar systems, also known as stand-alone solar systems supply electricity to properties that are not connected to the public electricity network.
During the daytime, electricity is generated by solar panels (1). The solar PV inverter (2) converts the DC power to AC power and either directly powers your electrical loads (3) or/and charges batteries (5) via an Off-Grid inverter/ battery charger (4). During the evening or on cloudy days when the sun isn’t shining you use the power stored in the batteries “Battery Bank” (5). When the sun comes up the next day, the cycle begins again. The third available power source is a back-up generator (6) that can be integrated into the system.
There are two different ways of configuring an Off-Grid system; these are known as AC-Coupling and DC-Coupling, each having their unique advantages. The configuration type will have an impact on the life expectancy, efficiency, and flexibility of your system.
For most remote properties in South Australia, the cost of connecting to the grid is higher than installing an independent Off-Grid system. Besides the initial connection cost to the grid, the other cost factor is the projected total cost for grid power over the next 5, 10, 15 years with an assumption there will be an average 5% price increase per year.
Being responsible for your own energy also means that you are more aware of your energy usage. Additionally, the sense of being independent of your energy needs and generating energy from renewable energy sources such as solar panels instead of using grid power from dirty generation sources can be enormously satisfying.
It usually requires some lifestyle changes, depending on the type of appliances you have and your electricity demand. Talking to one of our Qualified Experts makes the process easy. Setting up your house using our advice and recommendations can save you a lot of money. We custom assess every system to ensure we supply the best solution fit for each individual client. Our experts get in touch with you to ask a few questions and to obtain a good understanding of your specific needs and circumstances. We then take into consideration permanent or weekend living, having house guests, extreme winter or summer conditions in your specific location etc. Based on this assessment we can then design a system that will work perfectly for you – both now and into the future.
Selectronic is an Australian-owned company since 1964 delivering energy solutions to Australia and the world for more than fifty years. Selectronic is the manufacturer of the SP PRO, the only multi-mode, bi-directional inverter chargers made in Australia which forms the heart of every battery-based energy system. Our component approach allows complete flexibility with system design, allowing a tailored solution perfect for you.
We have vast experience in off-grid and grid-connect energy storage systems and our inverters are compatible with solar, wind, hydro, microgrids and diesel generators.
Selectronic inverters are made locally and delivered globally; we offer energy independence, peace of mind, reliability and flexibility that is second to none.
More efficient use of generator and available PV.