Bigger Solar Systems Have Better Value For Money. Here's Why.
Why do large residential solar installations cost less than smaller ones?
Australian solar costs less per watt the bigger you go! This is because:
- Most of the install labour remains the same, whether the installation is big or small.
- The STCs also known as ‘solar rebates’, is based on per panel and pays most of the actual panels’ wholesale cost.
- Most solar inverters cost less per watt the larger you buy
It's a win win situation.
The best reason for having as many solar panels as you can on your roof (given your budget) is – the money you save. If you have an unshaded roof, we recommend taking full advantage of this and buying a larger system for cheaper.
And what if your system produces more energy than your house uses? Thanks to the solar feed-in tariff, you don’t have to worry about this – your excess energy will be automatically sent back to the grid and you will receive money from your electricity retailer for the excess energy your system produced. You will see all these details in your electricity bill.
In saying this, you might as well invest in a larger system for cheaper and be able to accomodate for special situations like a power outage plus your money back from your electricity retailer for excess energy produced by your system. Larger systems are a win-win situation for you.
A Bigger Solar System Requires A Little Extra Labour
When you ask for a bigger solar system, there may be only a little additional cost for extra labour. This is because of the number of panels of a roof. Installing solar panels on a roof are not easy and putting on 20 panels is a lot harder than 10. Apart from this, almost all other labour costs remain the same such as:
- Sales
- System design
- Getting to and from the site
- Setting up and carting away any required safety gear
- Solar inverter and cabling installation
- Switchboard wiring
- After-sales support
- Marketing
Bigger Is Better!
The reason we advice bigger solar systems is because of the amount that good quality solar systems have fallen in recent years with the help of government incentives.
In the past when solar systems were expensive, it was probably right for people to find the right size of solar for their house. However, things are not the same anymore. We recommend taking advantage of government incentives to maximise your solar benefits. In addition to this, let your large solar system account for all types of situations such as night time, power outage etc. while receiving money back for any excess energy produced.