How to Upgrade Your Solar Power System
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Are you considering going Solar and wonder what will happen if your needs change in future? That’s very likely to happen as you expand your family and upgrade your equipment.
Thank you for reading this post, don't forget to subscribe!The good news is that Solar is modular unlike a car or a rental home. Upgrading it is definitely pocket friendly. You don’t have to dispense all your old equipment and buy a completely new system. There will be some apparatus that you can keep and there will be other equipment that may need replacing. What’s more, it’s always useful to bear in mind that upgrading is still significantly cheaper than returning to a life of limited power supply and fuel bills.
Here’s our breakdown on what you need to know about upgrading your system when you supersize your life!
Inverter
If the capacity of your inverter is larger than the capacity of your solar panels you won’t need to purchase a replacement inverter. For example, if your Solar Home System (SHS) has 2KW panels whilst your inverter capacity is 3KW you can upgrade a to a 3KW SHS without having to purchase a new inverter. However, an upgrade beyond 3KW will require a bigger one.
Solar Panels
Solar Panels are easy! You can keep your old solar panels and simply add more to your array. A reputable installer will ensure that you have enough roof space, check your old panels for any defects and ensure that the specification of your new panels match the old ones in terms of wattage and voltage. They will also check the solar panel junction boxes and cabling of the entire system to ensure that your upgraded SHS performs optimally.
Batteries
It’s not ideal to mix old batteries that have been in use for a long time with new ones. A physical inspection of your batteries is necessary to determine their output before a decision can be made on whether to replace the entire battery bank.
Charge Controllers
Charge controllers come in different voltages. It may be possible to keep your existing charge controllers and add new ones if the system you are upgrading to is configured with the same voltage. If that’s not the case it’s likely you will have to replace them. Thankfully charge controllers are the least expensive part of a SHS.
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