Posts By Ronald Brakels, Author & Fact-Checker At SolarQuotes

SunTenants: A Simple Way To Get Solar On Rented Roofs?

August 6, 2018 2021-08-25T13:32:41 by 30 Comments
tenant and landlord looking at returns

Suntenants offers simple solar for renters.

Update August 25th 2021:  Sun Tenants is no longer in operation.

Almost one-third of Australians live in rental properties.  This is a problem because tenants don’t like paying their own money to put solar panels on their landlord’s roof and few landlords see solar power as a good investment.  Because of this, lots of the population are missing out on the savings solar slathers all over electricity bills.  It also prevents the world benefiting from the extra clean energy that would be generated. [Read more…]

Filed Under: Economics Of Solar

Solar Panel Performance Warranties Are Still Crap But Getting Better

July 30, 2018 2018-07-30T08:47:59 by 20 Comments

crap solar panel warranties

I’ve already written about how incredibly awful solar panel performance warranties are, but I’m writing about them again because they are so bad I could write for days on the topic and still have a big sack full of snide remarks left over. However, despite my massive sack, I have to admit that warranties are improving.  And not just performance warranties, which are currently for 25 or 30 years, but also the more useful product warranties that are mostly for 10 years.

[Read more…]

Filed Under: Solar Panels

Poor Solar Panel Performance? Be Sure To Check Both Energy and Power.

July 25, 2018 2019-12-27T19:18:11 by 39 Comments
Poor solar panel performance? What you should check

If you suspect your solar power system has poor performance – here’s what you need to check.

Although I personally can’t think of anything in life more exciting than getting a new solar power system installed, I sincerely hope you can – otherwise you’d be as weird as me.  Having said that, even those who score 10 out of 10 on the Voight-Kampff normal human test should feel excited when they get their first solar system.  Unfortunately, this excitement sometimes gives way to confusion and heartbreak if they erroneously come to the conclusion that their new solar panels are not performing as well as they should. [Read more…]

Filed Under: Solar Installation

The ACCC Wants To Lower Electricity Prices Even If It Kills You

July 17, 2018 2018-07-17T20:18:28 by 15 Comments
ACCC and Australia's Solar Subsidy

Ending the “Solar Rebate” will save households $18 per year and kill people. Nice one ACCC.

The Australian Competition & Consumer Commission, or ACCC, published a report last Wednesday titled Restoring electricity affordability and Australia’s competitive advantage.  Michael alerted people about it here and wrote more here.  The opening lines of the report don’t pull any punches and begins with: [Read more…]

Filed Under: Solar Policy

Queensland’s Interest Free Solar Loan Scheme Is Kind Of Sad

July 10, 2018 2024-08-20T11:21:51 by 10 Comments

qld interest free loans

The Queensland Government recently confirmed the details of their interest free loan scheme for rooftop solar.  Michael — the guy who does the real writing work on this blog instead of mostly just stringing together old jokes as I do — wrote about this and the conditions that have to be met to qualify for a loan in this article here. [Read more…]

Filed Under: Solar Policy

Victoria’s New Time Varying Solar Feed-In Tariff Is Worth Getting

July 2, 2018 2023-12-01T15:48:06 by 41 Comments
Victoria Time Varying Solar Feed-In Tariff

As of 1 July 2018 there is a new, optional, feed-in-tariff in Victoria that changes through the day.

A new type of solar feed-in tariff is now available in Victoria.  It’s called a time varying tariff and the amount of money it pays for solar electricity depends on the time of day it’s sent into the grid.  It is worth less during off-peak periods, more during shoulder periods, and the most during peak periods. [Read more…]

Filed Under: Electricity Prices

Bad News: Your Solar Panel Performance Warranty Is Probably Crap

June 27, 2018 2018-06-28T10:24:47 by 11 Comments
Solar panel performance warranties are crap

I’ve actually read the solar panel warranties for most of the major solar panel brands. They are almost universally full of crap clauses. Thankfully you are protected by Australian Consumer Law no matter what the warranty says.

SALESMAN:  Hi everybody!  I’m Ronald Brakels and have I got a deal for you!  Right now, for a limited time only, I am selling Brakels LED lights.  And let me tell you, they’re the best.  We have all the best LEDs here at Brakels Incorporated.  If you install these LED lights you will cut your electricity use, protect the environment, and reduce your electricity bills.  And what’s more, we have such faith in Brakels LED lights, they come with a 25 year performance warranty.  Buy a pack of 10 today!  Don’t Delay!

LITTLE OLD LADY:  Excuse me young man, but I bought 10 of your LEDs and 2 of them have stopped working.  I’d like them replaced under their 25 year warranty.

SALESMAN:  I’d like to help you, I really would, but it’s a 25 year performance warranty and bulbs that don’t work at all have no performance and so aren’t covered. [Read more…]

Filed Under: Solar Panels

DNV-GL’s 2018 Scorecard Results — Longi, REC, & Suntech Only Residential Solar Panels To Pass All Tests

June 25, 2018 2024-01-25T10:33:59 by 4 Comments
DNV-GL solar panel reliability scorecard 2018

Those nice people at DNV-GL have done another year’s worth of panel torture testing. Here is a summary of the results.

Over the past 4 years the Norwegian company, DNV-GL, has performed annual tests on solar panels and released a report on their performance.  Their latest one, the 2018 PV Module Reliability Scorecard is now available.  The good news is solar panel reliability looks as though it is continuing to improve.  If you buy now you are more likely than ever to get panels that will last for decades without failing and with only minimal deterioration in output. [Read more…]

Filed Under: Solar Panels

How Norwegian are REC Solar Panels? And Does It Matter?

June 20, 2018 2018-06-20T14:21:57 by 9 Comments
REC solar panels

Some people are getting their knickers in a twist over whether REC solar panels are European or Asian.

I’ve had a request to clear up the question of whether REC is a European or Asian company. The confusion arises because although the company was founded in Norway and has its headquarters there, it manufactures REC solar panels in Singapore and is owned by a Chinese corporation.

I have looked into this topic exhaustively and I can state the answer to the question of whether REC is European or Asian is — Yes.

Yes — it is European or Asian. [Read more…]

Filed Under: Solar Panels

Worrisome Results From Canberra’s Battery Test Centre

June 13, 2018 2018-08-08T17:58:23 by 31 Comments
Lithium-ion Battery Test Centre

Canberra’s Battery Test Centre has been going a couple of years now. What do the results so far tell us about the state of the home battery market?

I am very happy.  I just found out there is a battery testing centre in Canberra.  Who would have thought there would be something useful in Canberra?  Besides, of course, for the Federal Government and the bureaucracy that’s necessary for the functioning of a modern representative democracy.1 [Read more…]

Filed Under: Battery Storage
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