Welcome to the complete Q.HOME solution, an all in one solar panel and Battery package from QCELLS.
This three storey Perth beachfront property presented many obstacles. By sitting down with the customer and listening to their needs and concerns. The team at Positive Energy were able to find a Positive solution.
So what were the obstacles?
Proximity to Ocean
While all solar panels on the Clean Energy Council (CEC) Approved Products List meet the relevant Australian Standards. These standards are only a minimum requirement.
In coastal locations, especially within 500m of the ocean. Salt laden wind causes issues on a range of materials, including solar systems. If the wrong equipment is chosen, materials can corrode and cause problems for the solar system and the mounting structure.
There are six levels of testing for the IEC 61701 standard for solar panels. each representing increasing levels of corrosion resistance. To receive a Level 6 rating, solar panels must survive 112 days of testing that simulates decades of exposure to a salty environment. With less than 2% decline in power output. That’s twice as long as the 56 days panels have to survive to get a Level 5 rating.
With a Level 6 corrosion resistance rating along with a 25 year Product warranty. QCELLS solar panels were the obvious choice for this particular customer. The QCELLS panels anodized aluminium frame has a black coating which not only looks great. But also provides another layer of protection against the elements.
It was also important to choose the right Balance of System (BOS) components. An area where many solar companies choose to cut corners to save on costs. At Positive Energy Solutions, no costs are cut, even on these BoS components.
The solar panels were mounted on a Clenergy Mounting System made from corrosion resistant materials. Including structural grade aluminium alloy (AL6005-T5) and stainless steel (SUS304).
High Winds
In addition to salty air, coastal homes are also exposed to high winds. Thanks to the robust design and high-quality materials, the Clenergy Mounting System can withstand wind speeds up to 316 km/hr.
As for the solar panels. QCELLS is one of the few manufacturers to have passed the James Cook University Cyclone Test. Proving they can withstand a 1-in-500-year cyclone!
Strata Approvals
Anyone that has lived in a Strata complex before understands making changes to your property is not always an easy process. Securing a permanent fitting like solar is no exception.
To gain Strata approval for this particular property, the following restrictions applied:
– Panels could not be visible from outside the property
– Panels could not be installed on the tiled roof
– No effect on the mains supplied electricity services for all other units
Limited Roof Space
Due to the Strata restrictions, Positive energy Solutions had to install on the rear pergola with limited roof space. To maximise the output of the system and ensure the battery gets a full charge. We chose the highest efficiency QCELLS panels, the 390W Q.PEAK DUO-G9 series.
Bondor SolarSpan Roof
The pergola roof, constructed from Bondor SolarSpan roofing with a Trimdek profile. With no screw lines or structural supports underneath to screw the mounting to.
This was overcome with S-5! TrapBrackets from Mak Fasteners. This engineered, structural aluminium mounting interface. Screws into the roof sheeting without having to fix into any supporting steel structure, or penetrate the internal liner sheet.
Each TrapBracket comes with factory-applied EPDM sealant on the base for a water-tight attachment. No messy sealants to apply. No chance of leaks.
3-Degree Roof Pitch
Tilt frames are often considered for low-pitch roofs. Many solar panel manufacturers have a warranty condition stipulating that the panels must be at least 10° from horizontal. Failure to do so could void the warranty. However, in this case, the use of tilt frames would have limited the size to a small 3.5kW system. Simply not big enough to meet the energy needs of a growing family.
Because of the high-quality QPEAK DUO ML-G9+ panels, the QCELLS warranty allows these panels to be mounted on roofs as low as 3-degrees.
Triple Storey Cavity
With a three-storey shared cavity wall to run cable and conduit down, it was essential that the cable was run carefully, with no damage to the property or to the adjoining neighbours property. It may seem straight forward at first however, getting cables and conduit between the interior walls and insulation can be difficult. Without proper tools or experience it would likely take hours to get through this task, plus spaces in the wall cavity are never uniform! In order to avoid any costly mistakes, it is important that the installers have the proper tools.
Cables can be damaged easily during installation if there are obstructions in the cavity wall, such as metal wall ties or mortar protrusions. The damage that occurs from this is unseen and can cause significant issues down the track, hence the importance of running all cables through conduit installed in the cavity first, allowing a safe and efficient install.
Q.Home Inverter, Battery + Backup;
The Q.VOLT inverter is the first step towards grid-independence. The 5kW hybrid inverter with Black-start capability means Q.VOLT doesn’t need the grid to start, meaning customers can stay powered in a power outage during the day. Every kilowatt over 5kW and under 6.6kW is utilised for the load or battery, unlike most battery systems which are limited to one or the other.
The battery QCELLS Q.HOME ESS HYB-G2 is a scalable storage solution, with options of 6.3, 12.6 or 18.9kWh combinations and a modular design for easy and fast installation. QCELLS chooses to use the Premium quality Samsung lithium-ion batteries.
Thanks to the integrated backup power function, even in the event of a power failure these batteries have a 3kW continuous output available.
The storage system is the ideal solution for the environmentally-friendly reduction of electricity costs for homes, ensuring a reliable long-term operation and high output.
The Q.VOLT & QCELLS Q.HOME ESS HYB-G2 are Manufactured in South Korea and come with a 10-year product and performance warranty.
SwitchDin Droplet
On their own, Droplets are powerful Distributed Energy Resource (DER) controllers. They may be used as energy management solutions for businesses and homes, battery energy storage system controllers, microgrid controllers and managed DER controllers.
Each Droplet-equipped site or device can operate autonomously or in coordination with other Droplets via Stormcloud, SwitchDin’s cloud-based management platform. Thus, future proofing the system by allowing the Q.Home battery to feed into the grid to maximise rebates.
