Inverters

You’re already convinced that making the switch to solar power will save your family money and our environment – so what’s next? Before installing your new solar panels, we need to identify the inverter that is best suited to the energy needs of your household. Solar panels generate direct current (DC) electricity, but most household appliances function on alternating current (AC). An inverter converts the DC output by solar panels, into AC. At Queensland Solar Solutions, we source inverters from the most technologically advanced and respected providers in the industry, worldwide.

Fronius

Founded in Austria, during 1945, Fronius came to fruition due to Gunter Fronius’ desire to make the practice of charging car batteries commonplace. The company quickly expanded and by 1992 had a dedicated Solar Energy division. Now with a presence in over 60 countries; Fronius continues to innovate, ensuring a sustainable future. Fronius is a global leader in solar energy, having produced over 900,000 inverters. Fronius inverters are efficient and versatile, with features including inbuilt DC isolators. Being reliable and easy to use, Fronius is the first choice for many of our installers. Fronius also offers a Solar.web App in conjunction with a smart meter enabling home owners to monitor their residential power use. The ability to receive notifications, identify patterns and optimise energy consumption is the foundation of a smart home. Fronius boasts a high success rate and their Australian office provides excellent support. Experience peace of mind with a 10 year Fronius warranty.

Sungrow

University Professor, Renxian Cao, founded Sungrow in China, back in 1997. The company lives by its motto of ‘clean energy for all,’ with inverters installed around the world reaching a combined capacity of over 68 million kilowatts! Sungrow is the leading Chinese manufacturer of inverters, with a global market share in solar power of 15%. Their efforts reduce the globe’s CO2 emissions by 62.4 tons, annually. Sungrow employs over 2500 people, 40% of whom are involved with ongoing research and development. The company has developed a SolarInfo Bank app, which provides real time system performance monitoring on any device.

Sungrow has received several awards recognising their innovations, including Top 30 New Energy Enterprises in China and National Key New Product. Forbes has even listed Sungrow as one of the Most Potential Enterprises in China!

Sungrow has a subsidiary company which has been based in Australia for the past six years. As a result, Sungrow Australia has one of the largest solar inverter manufacturer teams in the country; so matters are dealt with promptly and efficiently. Furthermore, Sungrow has produced high quality inverters that are suited to Australia’s unique conditions. Collaboration has ensured the Sungrow Hybrid is compatible with the majority of batteries available on the market. So it is the best option if you plan to add batteries to your system, at a later date. The Hybrid also boasts export limiting features, making it the ideal fit for existing systems. Sungrow’s standard 5 year warranty is complementary, but can be increased to 20 years!

Solar Edge

SolarEdge are the third largest manufacturer of inverters in the world. With a head office based in Israel, SolarEdge operates in Asia, Europe, Africa, the Middle East, USA and UK. SolarEdge is different to most grid tied inverters because it utilises power optimisers. These power optimisers operate each panel independently, which ensures substandard performance from one panel does not negatively impact the effectiveness of the entire string. Panel shading is the most common cause of underperforming panels.

The energy production of most string inverters is reduced across the entire system, even if only panel is shaded! Fortunately, the SolarEdge design ensures this decreased capacity is limited to the shade affected panel. This allows a more flexible design and means more panels can potentially be installed on your roof, saving you more on your power bill.

SolarEdge has a safety mechanism in the event an inverter shuts down. The direct current (DC) is reduced to 1 volt per panel, from the average string inverter rate of 300-600 volts! SolarEdge comes with a standard 12 year warranty on the inverter, in addition to a 25 year warranty on the optimiser. Their high success rate makes SolarEdge an excellent choice for customers looking for hassle-free solar system operation.

ABB

The numerous heritage brands which have amalgamated to evolve into ABB today, date back to 1883 – resulting in 135 years of acquired knowledge in innovative technologies! Historical moments include being the first company to transmit high voltage power and high voltage direct current. ABB boasts 40 years of power conversion experience and 25 years in solar energy.

The conglomerate has a proven track record in solar energy on a global scale, and expertise in solar systems and grid connections. To stay on top of technological advances, ABB spends $1.5 billion on research and development, annually. Their dedicated Solar Laboratory in Helsinki, Finland has ensured ABB inverters continue to work day in, day out. Their extensive range of inverters spans from 1.5kW to 4.6 MW turnkey power stations. In 2013, ABB undertook the acquisition of Power One to enhance their well regarded Uno DM inverter. Not only did ABB make the Uno DM more efficient, they added built-in wireless communication with an integrated web server.

Their Over The Air (OTA) firmware upgrade for inverters, plus dynamic feed-in control have future-proofed the inverter. They have also produced the next generation of PV plant monitoring and management software called Aurora Vision. This platform enables users to keep track of their harvested solar power, in real-time. An ABB inverter is a secure investment, as it is backed by a multinational company, with a dedicated research and development team. ABB is an industry leader in efficiency with the added security of a particularly high success rate and the security of an extended 10 year warranty!

Inverters

Fronius

Sungrow

Solar Edge

ABB

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