Grid-Tied Solar PV

The percentage of your energy needs that the solar PV system will produce is dependent on the space and orientation of your roof and the local municipality’s generation limits for your property.

Click here to learn how to get started with solar by using our step by step guide.

No, your photovoltaic panels will not power your building if the grid turns off during the day. This is because of the choice of the grid-tied inverter. It is a cost-effective and simple product that works well to give you savings on your electric bill, but you won’t have power during load shedding. If you would like energy security we will need to add batteries. You have the option to either add separate, modular battery backup (link to page) systems with your grid-tied solar PV system, or to install a battery-tied solar system (link to page) with a hybrid inverter.

But don’t worry, you don’t need to make the decision yourself about which solution is right for you. AWPower’s services include designing systems that are custom-tailored to each individual’s needs – whether its commercial or residential – while making the whole process as simple as possible for you.

Click here if you would like to learn more about the differences in solar panels.

This depends on your municipality, as some do not have the capability for you to sell excess solar energy back to the grid. For the highest savings, we recommend maximising your personal use of the available solar power instead of aiming to export to the grid. In our experience as solar PV installers, we have not come across any municipality that will buy exported solar power at the same rate for which they sell their own power; it is usually less, resulting in lower savings if you export than if you used the solar power yourself.

To maximize your self-consumption, we recommend adding some battery capacity to your system, so that excess solar power gets stored in the batteries during the day and you can use this stored energy from the batteries in the evening and at night.

This doesn’t mean that it is a bad idea to have the option of exporting to the grid. In cases where your batteries are full and there is excess solar power, exporting to the grid would be the next best option to fully utilize the potential of your solar photovoltaic system. To export to the grid you will need a special meter installed by the municipality. In Cape Town, a commercial business or company can apply for the city to install this meter free of charge.

Would you like to learn more about financing your solar installation? If yes, click here.

The component of the system that reduces the payback period of the installation is the solar photovoltaic panels, as these are what produce electricity and generate savings. The more PV panels you install, the lower the payback period will be. Batteries have a large capital expense and although they provide energy security during times of load shedding, they do not produce savings directly. Adding batteries to your system will increase the time it takes for the system to pay back its initial investment.

Installing your solar PV system in a modular way can make adding battery capacity more affordable. Because of the modular nature of these systems, you can add solar first and batteries at a later date or vice versa.

If you would like to get an estimated cost for a solar installation with projected monthly savings, use our solar calculator here.

The solution for generator integration is a little tricky for this type of system, but it is possible. The generator power needs to be at least the same size or larger than the solar system. We usually only look at generator integration for commercial systems of 100kW and above.