Photovoltaics - Solar Electricity

Producing Electricity from the Sun

GRID TIED SOLAR ELECTRICITY

HOW DOES IT WORK?

Solar electric panels (otherwise known as photovoltaic, or PV modules) convert sunlight into DC electricity. This DC electricity is then conditioned to AC electricity at the same voltage required in your home or other building through use of an inverter system. Solar PV systems require little to no maintenance over the system lifetime of 25 – 30 years, making them a sound green energy investment you can feel good about. Solar PV systems are inherently low maintenance because they contain no moving parts to wear out over time.

Thermo Dynamics Limited installed 2.8 kW roof top system c/w string inverter on a house near Prospect, NS. South facing and racked up to 30 degrees for great electricity production! This system was designed to offset the entirety of our customer’s electricity usage for the year.

Thermo Dynamics Limited installed 3.5 kW micro-inverter system in Cole Harbour, NS. Mounted flush on a south facing wall at our customer’s request - to offset use of an electric vehicle - systems tailored to you!

NS POWER ENHANCED NET METERING

Enhanced Net Metering is an agreement with Nova Scotia Power (NSP) which allows building owners to tie PV Systems into the NSP Grid. When there are sufficient electrical loads in your building, solar energy being produced is used to power said loads, which reduces your power draw from NSP and in turn, lowers your power bill. When electrical loads are not high enough to use up the power being generated, excess energy is metered, fed into the grid, and banked for use on later bills. If your system over produces for the year, NSP will pay you (in the form of a cheque) the same rate per unit of energy that you buy electricity for. It is important to note that NSP only allows systems up to the size which will produce roughly what you have consumed historically.

INVERTER SYSTEMS

There are two main types of inverter systems on the market today: string inverters, and micro-inverters.

String Inverter: a large inverter which conditions power from an entire array of PV panels. String inverters are the most cost effective solution for a monoslope roof. String inverters allow for monitoring of total system energy production.

Micro Inverter:  a small inverter dedicated to a single PV module. Each PV module in an array has its own micro inverter, which increases performance during times of shading and snow coverage.  Micro inverters are the solution for complex roofs with multiple panel orientations. Micro inverters also allow for panel by panel monitoring of energy production.

Left: Enphase Micro Inverter
Right: Fronius String Inverter

Thermo Dynamics Limited installed 3.5 kW roof top system on complex roof with multiple slopes and orientations. This system was designed to offset one third of our customer’s electricity usage.

ENERGY SAVINGS

The most important part of any investment is economics. Thermo Dynamics Limited systems start at a low price of $3000/kW. Solar PV systems installed in Nova Scotia under Nova Scotia Power’s Enhanced Net Metering program have a payback period of 15 – 18 years, while system lifetime is 25 – 30 years. Don’t forget: your electricity bills will be significantly reduced! A 3 kW system can reduce your power bills by $500 per year, and as power rates increase, so does the value of the electricity the system generates! A sound investment!

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