We love sharing real-life examples of how our solar panel installations across Northern Ireland help homeowners cut their electricity bills and gain energy independence. From Belfast to Lurgan and beyond, First Class Solar customers are seeing the benefits of renewable energy every day. In this case study, we’re focusing on a recent solar installation in Lurgan, County Armagh.
Case Study: Lurgan
Damien contacted us after we installed a solar system for his brother in his new-build house down the road. Our solar technician, Matthew, gave him a ring to find out more about what he was after in a solar system. Damien estimated that he was using around 9000kWh of electricity per year which, at an average of 27p/kWh, works out at £2,430 spent on electricity bills each year – quite a lot higher than the average home in Northern Ireland!
He had three non-negotiables for a solar PV system, which were:
- At least 6kW worth of panels
- Full off-grid capacity
- Batteries for storage of excess production
Off-grid solar systems in Northern Ireland
Traditional solar systems are what we call “grid-tied” – this means that the home is still connected to the mains electricity. This is handy for most homes, as in periods of low light and low solar production (think of a dark January day), you can always continue to draw from the grid and not lose power. You can also take advantage of the day/night tariff, which most electricity providers offer, and use the cheaper overnight rate to charge up your batteries, meaning that even on the dark days, you can wake up with batteries filled with cheaper electricity!
Do solar batteries work in a blackout?
Typically, no, they don’t. This is for safety reasons, as there’s a risk of electrocution to anyone working on the mains lines. But this means you don’t have any extra protection during an electric blackout. This was something we needed to consider to overcome this for Damien, and it was the critical point in the system that Matthew designed for him!
Solar Survey in Lurgan
Matthew went out to Damien’s home in Lurgan, County Armagh, where he noted the location of the NIE meter and the main switchboard, and where he was able to discuss the preferred panel and equipment location.
Request 1: at least 6kWh worth of panels
With an average monthly bill of around £200, Damien was looking to reduce this as much as possible. His two-storey concrete tile roof perfectly fits 16 panels of 440W, which works out as 7.04kW in total. A tick to his first request!
Damien was also concerned about birds nesting under his panels, and had done his research into a sleek solution for this. He requested that we order in and fit a SolaSkirt with his system, which does the job of the traditional bird-proofing mesh with some extra style!
Request 2: off-grid capacity
As Damien was really keen to have the off-grid capacity, Matthew went with the SigEnergy products which, alongside the Sig-Gateway, allow the system’s batteries to be used in a blackout to run the entire house. You can also connect up a diesel generator to the Gateway, which is what First Class Solar did for Damien.
Request 3: battery storage
Matthew recommended two 8kWh SigenStor batteries to complement the system and to ensure that we met Damien’s third requirement.
Equipment Location
A serious consideration for a system like this is the location of the customer’s NIE meter, the main home switchboard, and the preferred inverter and battery positioning. As Matthew noted in his survey, this installation would be possible for the following reasons: the NIE meter and switchboard were both out in the garage, right beside where he wanted the equipment to be installed – bingo! This keeps the cable runs both straightforward and short, meaning we can safely ensure a fully off-grid system without voltage drop, and have it linked up to his generator, also in the garage. There was also already a cable run in place from the roofspace down to the garage, so we were able to follow this cable run with the two strings of PV cables from the roof, and connect them easily into the inverter in the garage.
Installation
Our team arrived around 8am on the scheduled installation day, and got to work! In total, this solar PV system in Lurgan consisted of:
- 16 x 440W All-Black Panels,
- 1 x 3.6kWh Sigenergy Hybrid Inverter
- 2 x 8kWh SigenStor batteries
- 1 x Sigenergy Gateway
- 1 x SolaSkirt kit
In total, this installation cost our Lurgan homeowner £11,942 – the higher end of the scale, but with additional benefits of the off-grid Gateway, 16kWh of battery power and the SolaSkirt around the panels. This system is estimated to save Damien £1,522 per year on his electric bills, and works out as a 6-year 11-month breakeven point. Another happy First Class Solar customer in Lurgan, Co Armagh, showing how solar panels across Northern Ireland can save homeowners money and provide energy independence.
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