SolarQuotes Blog

Where should your solar inverter go and should you worry about voltage drops?

August 17, 2012 2017-01-16T12:11:49 by 83 Comments
Solar Inverter Position

I got a great email the other day: “One solar installer has told me that it is best for the inverter to be as close as possible to the panels and NOT to the meter box as your checklist indicates. Is he crazy?” Short answer. Yes – he’s crazy. Longer answer: As close as possible […]

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Solar energy Australia: the sky’s the limit

August 13, 2012 2017-10-25T10:23:50 by 1 Comment
solar panels and sky

One of the key sub-themes that tends to elbow its way through these SolarQuotes weekly columns is the understating, or inability to recognise, of the potential of solar energy in Australia. Time after time we at SolarQuotes HQ are forced to report on cuts in support from slow-moving and slow-thinking state governments. The bad news […]

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Solar amongst cheapest energy sources by mid 2030s: report

August 10, 2012 2017-10-25T10:24:04 by 1 Comment
protestors with a banner

The Australian solar energy sector received a huge morale boost this week with the release of the Bureau of Resources and Energy Economics’ Australian Energy Technology Assessment (AETA) Report. Putting the report’s findings in a nutshell, which is always dangerous, it seems previous reports and energy assessments were, to put it bluntly, dead wrong and […]

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This Growatt Inverter Review is Good.. But What About The Reliability?

August 6, 2012 2019-09-25T09:33:32 by 82 Comments
The growatt 5000MTL inverter and photon scores

A Growatt 5kW inverter got a great review in Photon Magazine recently, but there is still a question mark over the Growatt’s reliability.

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Time to batten down the hatches as China, EU solar trade war looms

August 3, 2012 2017-10-25T10:24:15 by Leave a Comment
chinese and EU fists

Is there going to be a solar trade war between China and Europe? Will it push solar panel prices sky high?

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Australia’s solar sector from a German perspective

July 26, 2012 2017-10-25T10:24:48 by Leave a Comment
How much solar contributed to german electricity production on July 23

Wunderbar! All those solar naysayers may want to have a look at the German experiment with Feed In Tariffs, where wholesale electricity prices have been hugely reduced by solar panel installations and on a good day 46% of german household electricity needs can be met by solar. (Oh and did I mention their economy is the envy of the world?)

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Solar Flagships set to sail in country NSW but will it survive?

July 19, 2012 2017-10-25T10:25:00 by Leave a Comment
desert

A happy story about successful negotiations between AGL and a farmer near Broken Hill under the Solar Flagships Program. However it soon gets depressing as Rich asks the question if the Program will survive under a change of government.

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Solar Panel Tilt Frames: Are they worth it?

July 15, 2012 2024-06-05T11:52:57 by 61 Comments
tilt frames for solar panels

To tilt or not to tilt your solar panels. That is the question.

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Subsidising solar development for polluters

July 12, 2012 2017-10-25T10:25:13 by 1 Comment
Bluescope steel logo

Bluescope steel, who have lobbied hard against the carbon tax are now asking for government funding to help develop solar powered roofs… Can anyone spot the irony?

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Queensland’s feed-in tariff: playing politics with solar?

July 5, 2012 2017-10-25T10:25:25 by 2 Comments
Solar Cuts

As was widely expected, the new QLD government finally axed their generous Feed In Tariff last week. Here’s what Rich Bowden makes of it all..

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