Bob and Ila from Surf City, NJ have been Green Sun Energy Services clients since May of 2018. The array was completed that July: 28 panels making 8.96 kW into a SolarEdge inverter with optimizers, a 25-year warranty on both, and an estimated 11,371 kilowatt hours in the first year. Atlantic City Electric interconnected the system that September. The array also carries 184 feet of critter guard around its perimeter, which on a barrier island is not optional in the way it might be inland – gulls and squirrels both work the same sheltered gap between panel and roof deck, and the repair for chewed wiring costs more than the guard ever does. The existing roof was sound enough to build on, so the job stayed with the array.
Project Facts
- Location
- Surf City, NJ
- Services
- Solar Critter Guard, Solar Panel Installation, Standby Generator Service
- Client since
- May 2018
- Panels
- Hanwha Model # Q.PEAK DUO-G5.320
- System size
- 8.96 kW
- Inverter
- SolarEdge SE7600H-US000NNC2
- Mounting system
- Ecolibrium Solar
- Estimated first-year production
- 11,371 kWh
- Critter guard fitted
- 184 ft
Questions from Surf City homeowners
How is the number of panels for a Surf City house decided?
It starts with the home's actual electricity use, then with how much usable roof or ground area there is. A proper design looks at twelve months of consumption, expected future use, roof orientation, shading, roof dimensions, code-required setbacks, module wattage and the limits the utility places on interconnection.
How does an optimiser system differ from microinverters?
An optimiser system puts DC power optimisers at the modules and a single central inverter elsewhere; a microinverter system puts a small inverter at each module. Both can provide module-level monitoring and rapid shutdown when properly designed -- they are different architectures rather than one being the upgrade of the other.
Does a generator need a concrete pad?
Not universally. Approved alternative support systems are permitted for applicable models. Concrete or an engineered platform may still be required because of the site conditions, flood requirements, anchoring, municipal requirements or structural design -- but it is not automatic.