If someone’s pushing micro inverters as the way to go, ask the question “Do I have shading issues”?
You will generally have a good idea yourself if this is an issue, having lived in your home for some time. If you don’t have shading issues you’ll be paying approximately 20% more for your solar system with no real benefit at all.
Don’t be fooled by someone offering you a say 5kw system and 5kw in panels or slightly less. You can have up to 33% more capacity in panels than the inverter is rated at.
By having a larger capacity than the inverter you’ll immediately get a bigger solar rebate, lots more power in winter, and you’ll have the capacity to offset panel degradation over the long life of the panels, to ensure maximum gains from your system at all times.
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The Inverter is like the tyres on your car, it’s no use having a V8 CAR with all the power and quality of an
expensive car, and then putting
re-treads on it, it’s not a good match.
This is exactly the same with your Inverter. It’s the most expensive part of the system, and the better the quality, the better the features and benefits, the better the lifespan, the better the backup service and the better the warranty in most cases.
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Have a long term look at your future plans. Are you a couple that want children in the future? Are you about to build an extension to the home?
Are you considering or planning to purchase say ducted reverse cycle air conditioning? Taking a snapshot of your future can be so much more important that just looking at your current bill, as the wrong decision today can cost you thousands of your hard earned dollars in the years to come.
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