{"id":1717,"date":"2019-11-04T16:52:57","date_gmt":"2019-11-04T16:52:57","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.regalgrid.com\/?post_type=magazine&p=1717"},"modified":"2024-09-25T13:07:58","modified_gmt":"2024-09-25T13:07:58","slug":"pv-system-with-storage-benefits-and-costs","status":"publish","type":"magazine","link":"https:\/\/regalgrid.com\/en\/magazine\/pv-system-with-storage-benefits-and-costs\/","title":{"rendered":"PV system with storage: benefits and costs"},"content":{"rendered":"

Installing a PV system means a lot in terms of environmental sustainability and protection, since it uses\u00a0renewable energy to produce electricity<\/strong>. When approaching the world of sustainable energy, a question arises:\u00a0which kind of system do we choose<\/strong>?<\/p>\n

This is not an easy answer, since each household has different features and different needs, however the most probable answer is: a PV\u00a0system with battery storage.<\/strong><\/p>\n

Let\u2019s see what this is about and let\u2019s discover the advantages of this kind of solar panel system.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

PV system: general advantages<\/h2>\n

The first\u00a0general advantage<\/strong>\u00a0resulting from the installation of solar panels is the cost reduction in electricity bill through\u00a0self-consumption<\/strong>. This allows to reduce the consumption of electricity taken from the grid, avoiding taxes and transport costs of electricity included in the bill. Bills reduction is the immediate advantage.<\/p>\n

PV system clearly involves a rather consistent \u00a0installing\u00a0<\/strong>investment<\/strong>, despite the solar panels market has experienced a cost reduction in the last few years. A 3Kw system, suitable for a family composed of 2 or 3 people, can cost 5.000 to 8.000 euros. Calculating how much you will save, the payback time will be 5 to 8 years, depending on the real solar irradiation where the panels are installed.<\/p>\n

This process improves with energy storage fitted systems.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

How does a PV system with storage work?<\/h2>\n

During the day your system will produce as much energy as the house needs or even more. With a traditional system the surplus electricity can be exported to the grid and\u00a0paid back on the electricity bill<\/strong>.<\/p>\n

In case of a\u00a0storage equipped system<\/strong>\u00a0this surplus is stored in accumulators. With an accumulator it will be possible to use the electricity produced during daylight hours when the system can\u2019t produce clean energy, such as during the night or on cloudy days. By implementing this solution you can drastically reduce – up to 50% (depending on the size of the accumulator) – the\u00a0electricity<\/strong>\u00a0taken from the grid and reducing the cost of\u00a0electricity bill\u00a0<\/strong>as a result.<\/p>\n

Battery storage systems are essential for those off-grid houses, which are not connected to the electrical grid, such as mountain lodges or buildings which are completely sustained by renewable sources because of the owner\u2019s choices. Storage systems are particularly recommended for those families who installed solar panels spending most of the time\u00a0outside during the day<\/strong>, using much more energy when it gets dark. Generally speaking they are always convenient when it is not possible to immediately use the produced solar energy.<\/p>\n

To check out if it is really convenient you can just read the meter: if the energy exported to the grid is higher or equal to the used energy, it is surely convenient to store it and use it later.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Which are the existing batteries for Solar panel systems?<\/h2>\n

While speaking of PV systems the most commonly used battery types are the\u00a0lead-acid<\/strong>\u00a0batteries or the\u00a0lithium-ion<\/strong>\u00a0batteries. The former are less expensive, but they are very large and their expected lifespan is 2 to 5 years on average. The latter are more expensive, but they\u00a0guarantee a higher reliability, they have a longer expected lifespan<\/strong>\u00a0(from 10 to 12 years) and they are becoming a benchmark in this sector.<\/p>\n

There are other types of batteries rating themselves in the middle part on a scale of efficiency and cost. The\u00a0nickel-cadmium batteries<\/strong>, they store energy at low temperature, but they have a low energy density, so they don\u2019t keep a lot of energy in relation to their weight.\u00a0Nickel-metal hydride batteries<\/strong>, they have a higher storage capacity compared to the previous ones, a longer lifespan and low maintenance costs.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

How much does a solar battery storage system cost?<\/h2>\n

The real cost difference on the PV investment concerns the accumulator, which adds up to the cost of the traditional system.<\/p>\n

The prices of solar energy accumulator may vary depending on\u00a0storage capacity<\/strong>\u00a0and\u00a0type of battery<\/strong>. It is interesting to notice that prices are drastically falling, thanks to the interest shown by the mobility sector for the sustainable energy development.<\/p>\n

Lead-acid batteries cost between 2.500 and 4000 euros, nickel batteries between 3.000 and 5.000 euros and lithium-ion batteries between 4.000 and 6.000 euros.<\/p>\n

The total cost is higher than the cost of a traditional system, but the amortisation can be similar or even lower, when people make considered choices about their energy consumption and when they adopt all the necessary measures to maximise the yields of the system.<\/p>\n

In order to understand which is the most suitable solution, you clearly need to consider your household size, because this will define the\u00a0volume and mode of energy consumption<\/strong>. Nevertheless, in order to have an optimised system and to make a savvy purchase we suggest you to get in contact with an independent consultant, or to become a Regalgrid\u00ae user and install the Regalgrid\u00ae SNOCU. This will allow you to immediately\u00a0measure and exactly profile your consumption<\/strong>, granting you to choose the appropriate system with the right size of both photovoltaic generation and accumulator. This choice will give you in the future a better return on investment.<\/p>","protected":false},"featured_media":4404,"parent":0,"template":"","category-magazine":[41],"class_list":["post-1717","magazine","type-magazine","status-publish","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-magazine-solar-and-photovoltaic"],"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/regalgrid.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/magazine\/1717","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/regalgrid.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/magazine"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/regalgrid.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/magazine"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/regalgrid.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/magazine\/1717\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":4406,"href":"https:\/\/regalgrid.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/magazine\/1717\/revisions\/4406"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/regalgrid.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/4404"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/regalgrid.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=1717"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category-magazine","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/regalgrid.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/category-magazine?post=1717"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}