Month: October 2017

Solar Power From the Actual Experts

I must confess I am just about the furthest thing from an actual engineer – while I have a great deal of curiosity about the nature of solar power and its possible impact on household energy consumption at a micro level, on certain technical matters I will be a small kid with armbands swimming in the deep end.

What do we do when we are potentially out of our depth? We consult a real world expert. So for that reason, this week we speak to Martin King and Bryn Bennett of Degree Limited, who specialise in the installation of all things heating and cooling.

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Why It Helps to Start Planning a Year In Advance When It Comes to Solar Power

In last week’s article I wrote about the need to calculate your own power consumption before investing in any solar power proposal. This week I want to talk about how extending the timeline for your data set well in advance can help you to improve the data accuracy of your energy saving calculations.

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Why It’s Important to Calculate Your Own Power Consumption Before Buying Solar Power

In a past article I talked about how the main environmental benefit of installing solar power systems in New Zealand is that it reduces demand on the grid during periods of peak consumption. This time I’m going to look at the flip side of that equation – if you want to receive the maximum economic benefit from your solar power installation, you need to begin with a clear understanding of your own home or business actually uses power.

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Evaluating the Arguments Against Solar Power in NZ: Too Much Green Energy Already Comes Off the Grid

One of the main arguments made against solar power in New Zealand is that the New Zealand electric supply already derives primarily from renewable energy sources anyway. Because of this, introducing home- or business-based solar power generation systems will do relatively little to improve the eco-sustainability of the business or household.

Today I’m going to take a look at some of the reasons why this is not the case, and that even with a power supply network derived primarily from renewable sources, there is still a lot to be gained from solar installations.
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Doing the Math on Solar Power in New Zealand: An Introduction

The problem with solar power is, all too many people are looking for quick fix calculators that will tell them at a glance whether solar is affordable for them or not.

The reality is, return on investment calculations for solar power will depend upon your home or business’s specific circumstances.

This reductive thinking often leads people to overestimate the benefits of solar, or even, and perhaps worse, miss some of the critical benefits that would have made solar power worthwhile.

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