Why Solar Photovoltaic (PV)

Have you ever thought about the possibility of generating all or part of the electricity needs for your home, community or business? Solar PV is an ideal way of generating clean, renewable energy which will reduce and potentially eliminate your electricity bills.

The use of renewable energy has both economic and environmental benefits, in this age of rising fuel costs and climate change. It is widely accepted that climate change is one of the main challenges facing mankind in the 21st century and that the main cause of climate change is down to human actions, particularly that of burning fossil fuels and the green house gasses they emit. In order to tackle this, the Government has set a target of a 60% reduction in C0² emissions by 2050, and is encouraging the use of clean and emission-free renewable energy sources such as Solar power.

Available Technologies
Solar PV is a well understood method of producing electricity and as a result a large number of solar PV arrays have been developed. From the standard flat panel array, solar PV roof tiles to flat solar laminates designed for flat roofs.
There are two basic systems available for utilising the electricity generated by the solar PV, stand-alone or grid connected.

Stand-alone systems
In a stand alone system the where the electricity will be stored and used on demand locally, a bank of batteries will be required to store the energy. When the energy is required it will be converted into mains voltage via an inverter
Solar PV systems have traditionally been used to generate electricity for charging batteries to run small electrical applications, often in remote locations where it is to expensive or not physically possible to connect to the mains power supply. Such examples include rural farms, island communities, boats and caravans.
For the greatest efficiency and continuation of supply it is preferable to use a combination of both solar voltaic and wind turbines. Revolution Power’s engineers will design and specify the system to suit your power requirements.

Grid connected systems
In grid connected systems the output of the solar PV array is directly connected to the existing main electricity supply via an approved inverter and OFGEM approved meter. The energy produced by the solar PV array can be used on-site when demand is sufficient, or exported to the grid and sold to your utility company. It is also possible to claim Renewable Obligation Certificates (ROCs) for each unit of electricity generated, which have a significant value. This is particularly relevant if you are a business consumer of electricity, as on-site electricity can qualify you for exemption from the Climate Change Levy.
When a Solar PV system is connected to the mains supply, the connections must be of a high technical standard and comply with the Engineering Recommendation G83/1 and domestic installation must be carried out by a Part P approved electrical contractor Revolution Power’s engineers will deal with all of the connection documentation and will liaise with the local network operator. Depending upon the size of the Solar PV array an import export meter may need to be installed, along with an approved ROC meter.

PV array Orientation

In order to get the optimum output from a solar PV array several factors need to be taken into account. The array should face within 45 degrees of south and have an optimum tilt angle of 30 to 40 degrees which is the typical roof angle in the UK. The last factor, which will affect the efficiency of the PV array is the degree of shadowing across the array during the day from trees or near by buildings. All of these factors will be assessed during any site visit from Revolution Powers engineers.

Area required for siting PV array
The area required for siting the PV array will ultimately depend on the output of the selected solar array along with your individual power requirements.
As a rule of thumb for monocrystalline arrays an area of 8 to 9 m² will be required to produce a power output of 1kW. For the less efficient multicrystalline arrays are used an area of 10 to 12 m² for the same output and for the less efficient amorphous arrays an area 20 to 22 m² will be required.

Planning
Small scale solar thermal installations can often be considered as a permitted development by the planning authorities. This means that you may not have to apply for planning permission so long as you do not live in a listed building, a conservation area or Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty, and the panel is not mounted directly facing a highway (or mounted above the roof-line). We will be happy to pass on any advice we can on planning matters, and can advise you on applying for a screening decision from your local council if you require. Most local councils in the north-east are very pro-environment, and you should encounter no problems in for solar PV installations.