We were recommended to Mr Halliday by a previous customer. Mr Halliday lives in Taunton, Somerset, and he was enquiring about the feasibility and benefits of installing Solar PV in his field.
We arranged a meeting with Mr and Mrs Halliday so we could get an understanding of their requirements and how we can help. Being a fully qualified electrician for 18 years, I could advise on alterations to their current electrical setup to maximise the solar generation. This involved removing a second electrical supply and incorporating all electrics onto the one incoming electrical supply. This made the most of their solar generation, but also removed a second standing charge saving them an additional £219 a year.
After the initial discussion on electricity usage and setup, we went to work on possible designs and locations. Due to the system being 80m away from the house we engaged with a ground work early to give Mr Halliday a fixed quotation and an idea on how the cables would be installed. Mr Halliday has a beautiful garden and was worried how the ground work would impact it.
After we had completed our survey, we were able to specify the size and location of the Solar PV system required and also the battery storage requirements.
The customer had plenty of questions on the benefits of battery storage and how the system would work with the solar panels being installed in their field so far away from the house. We discussed where the inverter and batteries would be installed. We explained how the system would be set up and work and the benefits of charging the batteries from the grid between times where the electricity is cheaper.
After our onsite meeting and gathering of all the required information, I started the design process using our design software and we were able to gauge the correct amount of solar panels and battery storage required. I used a local company to design the ground-mount system. Solarport, who are located in Yeovil, were amazing in their assistance. This was our first ground-mount system so we relied on them. We decided on their X anchor system.
Once the design is completed we put together a design & quotation package for Mr Halliday to look over. They understandably had questions but overall were happy to go with what we believed to be the best fit for them and their house. We were delighted to receive confirmation from the customer that they would like us to provide them with a Solar PV installation so we moved to the next phase of the project.
Following acceptance we can put together the contract which is required under MCS (Micro Generation Certification). MCS is an organisation that creates and maintains standards relating to low-carbon products, installers and installations. MCS accreditation is a sign of excellence and high quality in a renewable energy installer. The contract consists of everything we need to supply and all the work to be undertaken.
Once a contract is signed and deposits cleared, we are then able to send the G99 application to the National Grid. The G99 application is required when either installing multiple 3.68kw systems within the same street/development at the same time or a single system above 3.68kw. The 3.68kw refers to either the A/C coupled battery storage or the inverter. The solar panels aren’t taken into consideration when applying for the G98 or G99 paperwork.
We received confirmation that we could install the system, but only when the National Grid had carried out a transformer upgrade. The local transformer was old and could not cope with the possible fault current the solar inverter could output. This meant that we had to wait, which turned out to be around 10months.
We had to program the work when the weather was nice so the machinery would damage the garden. This was a challenge but we worked with Mr Halliday and were flexible on our dates. Our first job when we arrived to start the installation was to agree on the exact position of the Ground mount system, batteries and inverter. An Inverter is required for numerous reasons, one being to convert the DC generated by the solar panels into AC current. The inverter also diverts the AC or DC to where it’s needed the most and this is all programmed in the commissioning stage. Once the locations were agreed, we then went through how the ground mount would be assembled. The inverter and batteries were being installed in an external enclosure so a base was designed and constructed. We took our time to make sure the complete system was well thought out and installed to the high standards we expect.
The fuseboard was up to current regulations so we could connect our system up to it. Once connected, we completed our electrical tests and found there was a very high external earth loop impedance. This was an external issue, so we contacted The National Grid to correct. This is why we carry out our tests because sometimes there are faults prior to our arrival that have been missed with prior installers. With all the hardware installed, we can then connect the system to the monitoring software. This has a really useful smartphone and tablet app that enables the customer to see what their daily generation and usage is and also set the batteries to control from the grid between different times and battery levels.
Following the completion of the project, we can monitor the system on our mobile app to make sure everything is working exactly as it should. While monitoring the system we noticed the batteries weren’t charging as expected so we visited Mr Halliday to investigate and fix the issue. Not every system works perfect everytime which is why it’s so important that we monitor it. We have been in contact on numerous occasions with our client to help them understand and make the most of their solar PV system, which they have been very appreciative of. Being our first ground mounted system I’m so pleased and proud of our team. The workmanship and quality is impeccable and we can’t wait to do another system like this again.
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