Contractor Blog

With energy prices rising, we often get clients asking if they can go off-grid with solar PV. It’s an alluring idea, especially since affordable battery storage has brought greater grid independence within reach. But living entirely on solar power is not so simple.

In this blog, we’ll investigate how to go off the grid with solar panels and assess, crucially, if or when it’s worthwhile.

A few years ago, SunPower struck a deal with Enphase. Part of this involved an agreement for SunPower, known for its high-efficiency solar modules, to integrate Enphase’s market-leading micro-inverters. We are now seeing the result of the collaboration coming to fruition with the release of the Maxeon 5, an AC solar panel touted by the company as the ‘most powerful’ domestic module available.

It’s something of a solar industry cliche, but the inverter really is the heart of a photovoltaic system. While solar panels harness the sun’s energy, it’s the inverter that converts this direct current (DC) into usable alternating current (AC) electricity. Yet, compared to the panels, inverters rarely get much discussion.

Image source: Wikimedia.

With more and more properties looking at reducing their reliance on fossil fuels, becoming more sustainable, and increasing their grid independence, opting for a heat pump ticks a lot of these boxes. Heat pumps may also see a significant rise in the coming years due to the announcement that it is highly likely gas boilers will be banned in new build properties in the next few years.

Though Spirit does not install heat pumps, we are interested in how they form part of a renewable energy powered home.

Technological breakthroughs are a mainstay of the solar industry. One area of development that’s received a lot of chatter over the years is perovskite solar cells - an alternative to the silicon that all conventional solar cells are made from.

So why are people excited about perovskite, and will it be the future of photovoltaics?

When in the planning and design stages of a solar PV project, you may come across the term export limitation. Essentially the process involves fitting a device to cap exported power going from the solar system to the grid. But why would you want or need one? Read on to find out...

At present, electric car charging is simple: you plug in and top up the battery. But many predict that in the future, EVs will have a more symbiotic relationship with our national electricity network. Enter vehicle to grid charging.

A perennial source of confusion when researching solar PV is peak performance. We regularly classify solar systems by their peak, their kWp. But does a system ever reach its peak? In very hot weather over the summer, system owners often observe a drop in performance - so is the peak power in solar panels even significant?

Spirit Energy is delighted to have been part of bringing renewable energy generation to the Natural History Museum in Tring.

For many commercial flat roofs, we install solar PV with Van der Valk mounting. It’s high quality kit, produced in the Netherlands, that offers flexible layouts, compact ballast, quick install time and affordable prices.

Read on for more on the challenges of flat roof solar and why we recommend Van der Valk.