It’s Christmas morning, the children (young and old!) are opening their presents, which in today’s world tends to mean lots of electrical gizmos…
The only problem is, some will need hours of charging before they can be used, or worse still, those vital batteries are not included!
And batteries used to be one of the problems with solar panels too – it was all very well being able to generate your own electricity, but early systems had no capacity for storage, so whatever couldn’t be used in real time, was lost.
That, however, is no longer the case. Technology in this field has been developing at great pace, which means you can how both harness this fantastic resource AND keep a reservoir of surplus electricity for when you need it.
By 2022, storage capacity for solar panels installed on UK properties (both domestic and other buildings) is expected to be 50 times what it was just two years ago.
And that means, the cost of equipment is likely to come down.
At the moment, most home energy storage batteries are lithium-ion. These are lighter, smaller, more efficient and longer lasting than traditional lead-acid batteries (like your car battery) and can store more electricity for their size: they can also discharge a larger amount of power at any one time.
However, lithium-ion batteries are more expensive and have lots of different features. Some of the considerations to take into account before you make a purchase include:
• How much power your battery can discharge compared with your needs at any one time (for example it takes around 5kW to run a kettle???)
• Whether you want your battery to provide back-up in the event of a power cut (this may require specific wiring with your property)
• Are you planning to utilise power from solar panels for an electric vehicle?
It is complicated, which is why you need an expert to give you an honest assessment to help guide you to the right system based on your personal circumstances.
Why not give us a call, and we’ll walk you through all the factors and options to help you make the right choice for your needs – and who knows, your dreams of a green Christmas could become a reality! The number to ring is 07771 990064.
