Two New Records - and a Pigeon Nest!

Today the solar panels have passed a landmark and set a new peak production record. We have now generated over 1MWh (1000kWh) of electricity which seems incredible in 5 months that cover the worst winter period. Based on the current generation amounts it seems feasible that we could generate double this over the next 7 months. 3000kWh  from 3kWp panels would be an excellent result and give even faster payback on the panels.

We have also hit a new peak generation record today with 3.012kW being recorded at 1310 today. As today has been such a mix of sun and cloud it seems that the cooling effect of the clouds allows the generation to jump to the maximum when the sun comes back out again. It seems slightly strange that the peak recorded is above the nominal output of the inverter which is rated at 3000W.

Peak solar panel output and pigeon nests

Finally we discovered that a pigeon had decided the space under the panels would be perfect to start to build a nest. Sadly we disagreed on this and the pigeon will have to look elsewhere as sticks taped together and access to the panels via the velux window were enough to dislodge the sticks from beneath the panels. Having the velux window in the middle of the panels has proved to be very useful!

Maximum Solar PV Power Output Achieved!

Today has been a complete mixture of weather from bright sunny spells to cloud and rain with thunder and lightning. Overall the solar panel power output hasn't been fantastic but the mix of cloud and sun has meant that we have achieved the maximum possible output from our solar panels today.

Solar PV panel peak outputs

Our panels are rated at 3010W potential (Wp or 3.01 kWp) meaning that the theoretical maximum peak output that could be obtained would be 3010W.

What is the maximum output of solar panels connected to a Sunny Boy HF3000 Inverter?

 Our panels are linked to a Sunny Boy HF3000 inverter which therefore limits the maximum power output to 3000W. This was achieved at 1230 today just after a cloudy sky had given way to sunshine. The solar panel output soon dropped as the panels warmed up but it shows that the maximum PV output from the inverter can be achieved.

March 2012 breaks Solar PV Generation records

As April begins with a new daily high, we now have a compete month of data for March 2012 which has beaten even the wildest expectations.The total generation for the month from our 3kWp panels was 314kWh so an average of over 10kWh per day. This total generation was obtained despite a very poor, cloudy start to March but the sunny days in the second half more than compensated for the slow generation at the start.

The predicted output was 210 kWh using SAP calculations and 243 kWh using PV-GIS so the actual output of 314kWh was over 50% higher than the SAP2009 estimate. This number is slightly higher than the number shown on the website link below as our inverter reads slightly lower than the generation meter.

Our solar PV installation consists of 14 x 235W Sungrid panels with Sunny Boy 3000HF inverter.

It will be interesting to see how this pattern continues over the rest of the year. The South East of England is currently suffering a drought so further sunny days may be good for Solar PV but not for water resources. I guess the ideal weather is sunshine during daylight and rain overnight.

Solar power generation during the drought

The monthly statistics for the generation of electricity from the panels is shown on the website below:

http://solar.rainham-kent.co.uk/

This compares the peak generation, maximum daily output and times that the panels were generating electricity by month.

Solar panel performance beats SAP 2009 estimates

For the fourth month running our solar panels have comfortably exceeded the estimates given under the SAP2009 guidelines. With 7 days still to go before the end of March the estimate for the month has already been reached and the weather forecast of sun for the next 5 days is looking promising for a good output by the end of the month.

PV GIS vs SAP solar PV generation compared

When choosing the solar panels, the output estimates supplied by PV Solar UK were substantially higher than other companies and didn't conform to the SAP regulations. However so far these estimates using PV-GIS are proving a more accurate guide to the output of our system. Over the summer months the difference is less marked but over winter & spring the numbers are at least 10% higher than the SAP figures.

For example in January SAP2009 gave an estimate of 93kWh, PV-GIS 112kWh and the actual was 112. Dec was 68 for SAP2009, 101 for PV-GIS and an actual of 103kWh generated.

On current trends it appears March actual output will beat both the SAP figure of 210 as well as the PV-GIS figure of 241kWh electricity generation.

Maximum Peak Output from Solar Panels

Another record was reached yesterday with the output from our solar panels. The peak output reached 2960W, comfortably passing the previous maximum of 2760W. This is only the instantaneous output and was achieved after a cloud had passed, cooling the panels and therefore increasing their efficiency. So for our 3010kWp panels we are achieving a peak efficiency of 98.3% at the moment. It will be interesting to see how that changes over the summer months.

We have also achieved another record today with a total daily output of 17.5kWh but with the lengthening days I expect this will happen very frequently until we reach mid June.

Maximum peak output of solar panels

February Makes New Records

February has broken records for our solar generation, not all of them good!

You can see the stats for our solar panels generation data here but the key records are:

• First day with no electricity generated due to snow lying on the panels
• Lowest non-zero day (heavy snow cloud gave a paltry generation of 0.2kWh total
• Highest generating day since installation and first over 10 kWh
• Longest generation day (earliest start and latest finish)

It is also good to see that the shading issues that covered the roof over the winter are now over. Due to the sun now being higher in the sky in the afternoons it misses the trees and we get full sunshine through to sunset now.

Same roof with shading in late afternoon in early November

First FIT reading submitted for payment to British Gas

With the panels now generating for over 3 months the time has come to submit our first reading to British Gas for our Feed in Tariff payments.

400 units @ 43.3p should be a cheque for £173 which isn't bad for what is probably the worst quarter of the year for electricity generation.

british gas fit payment