From Russia WIth Love: Perovskite could reduce solar costs by 75%
One of the many advantages of solar energy is its charge down the cost curve as new technologies outstrip old in performance and cost. This week at SQHQ we’re dusting off the crystal ball and looking into the future of solar power. Specifically we’ll be checking out perovskite; the “new kid on the block” (with all the rave reviews). Perovskite is considered to have the potential to replace silicon in solar cells. [Read more…]
There are a hell of a lot of companies offering cheap solar panels right now, and as with all free markets, that is driving down the prices and the margins of solar power installers and suppliers.
The question I get asked the most is this:
“How do I tell if this deal from XYZ solar (which is heaps cheaper than anyone who quoted through your site) is too good to be true?”
So here’s your answer: [Read more…]
Are Munchen Panels German or Chinese or Both?
Recently I’ve been getting a lot of emails along the lines of:
Hey Finn, Have you ever heard of Munchen Solar Panels? Are they any good? I really want “German Engineered” Panels and these look better than any of that Chinese engineered rubbish!
Well, the short answer is this: “Munchen Solar? Never heard of them. (and btw there are some great Chinese panels out there..)”
But after the quadzillionth email asking the same thing, I thought I’d do some digging to try and discover why there is a sudden spike in interest for these I’ve-never-heard-of-them-before German sounding solar panels. [Read more…]
Yes folks, we’ve reached the holy grail.
Always rewarding to bring readers good solar news and this week’s offering is just that. The achievement/milestone/breakthrough (call it what you will) is that the amount of the energy produced by global PV solar power has surpassed the amount of fossil fuel energy needed to make the panels.
It seems fairly certain that a tipping point has been reached, or will be reached in the very near future, say researchers at Stanford University. [Read more…]
The latest Trina solar panel review ticks a lot of boxes
Thinking of putting Trina solar panels on your roof? Then finding a review that you can trust is critical. After all, unless you are an uber solar geek like me you probably have never heard of the Trina brand before (they are one of the biggest solar panel manufacturers on the planet by the way).
Reliable, honest solar panel reviews are very hard to come by. Why? Firstly because properly testing a solar panel takes at least a year – so that you get all the seasons. Secondly it takes a big investment in carefully calibrated measurement hardware. [Read more…]
We’ll miss you Bosch Solar
Yesterday was a really sad day for fans of top-of-the-range solar panels. German giant Bosch announced that it could no longer bear to haemorrhage any more cash from its solar division. So it is going to shut the whole shebang down ASAP. [Read more…]
Panel prices have dropped 80% in 4 years – can they get any cheaper?
If you want to buy some absolute junk you can currently buy bottom end, ultra cheap solar panels for $0.50 per Watt. But I wouldn’t recommend it. Unless you want to risk your roof turning into a giant barbecue.
Most solar panel factories have been losing money hand over fist for at least the last couple of years. Many of the largest companies have lost many hundreds of millions. This has led many observers to believe that solar panel manufacturers will have to start raising prices in order to survive. In fact there is evidence of this starting to happen with panel prices rising slightly in the first 2 months of 2013.
So is this the end of dirt cheap solar panels? [Read more…]
What warranty are you really getting?
One of the most important things you have to watch out for when buying solar is the warranties that are offered. All too often people end up going with a cowboy firm because they have been reassured by their “25 year solar panel warranty”. What many people don’t realise is that, in reality, this warranty can be worthless. You really need to understand how solar warranties work when you are buying a system that is designed to last 30 years or more, so you can separate the worthless promises from the genuine guarantees… [Read more…]
Is this what the windows of the future will look like? Picture: OxfordPV
Imagine, in a time in the not-too-distant future, when tall office buildings will have their photovoltaics built into their structure. Tall skyscrapers for example will provide their own energy needs through their glass windows and frontage. More than that, the buildings will be pumping clean alternative energy back into the power grid.
A bit far fetched I hear you say, perhaps your correspondent needs a Bex and a good lie down? [Read more…]
Crunching the numbers on your solar panels’ performance is fun!
One from the mailbag today that is bound to please fellow solar nerds:
Finn Peacock (RSS) (330)
Ronald Brakels (RSS) (502)
Michael Bloch (RSS) (3263)
Staff Writer (RSS) (261)
Richard Chirgwin (RSS) (159)
Anthony Bennett (RSS) (189)
Kim Wainwright (RSS) (78)
Pat Southwell (RSS) (16)
Neerav Bhatt (RSS) (7)
Max Opray (RSS) (24)
Toby Hagon (RSS) (1)
Baran Yildiz (RSS) (1)
Tim Johnston (RSS) (1)
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