Off-grid Solar Panels vs. a Conservation Area – Who wins?
Getting approval for adding solar panels to your off-grid home in a heritage conservation area is only hard if you want to put them on your front (street-facing) roof.
On the solar page on my website, I outlined my thinking about solar at the planning stage. Now I’m in demolition mode and I thought it was time for an update, with this latest info supplied by my solar panel guru, Roland Lawrence. We’ve made great strides with the reno, but in terms of solar power – unfortunately not as much as I’d like.
Roland runs Roland Lawrence Electrical, and he is a specialist in tricky, bespoke solar panel installation in my area. He custom designs everything from solar panel layout to solar powered battery systems, based on available roof space, customers’ requirements, budgets, aesthetics – all of those important things.
You see, I have one big fat hurdle. My house is small, my roof is small. In the plan Roland drew up to try and meet my energy needs, the solar panels on the main street frontage constitute almost half of the total system. (Even with those solar panels, Roland says it’s touch and go whether I’ll actually be able to have a completely off-grid home, however frugal I am with energy consumption.)
But the real bummer is, it looks like my local council WILL NOT LET ME put solar panels on the roof that faces the street, which cuts my energy production by almost half. And kills my energy dream for my off-grid home.
Solar panel design of The ImPossible House
Why can’t I have solar panels on my street-facing roof?
The Inner West Council’s issue.
Environmental planning policy in New South Wales says if you’re in a heritage conservation area, you can’t have solar panels on the main street frontage of your house. Though the policy says, you can submit a further DA to get around it, in theory.
Given I do want to put those front solar panels in so I can have an off-grid home, I will need to put in a separate DA for that and the council will review it at that time. Which they’re allowed to do, for whatever reasons they say, usually because they’re concerned it will destroy the heritage integrity of the property. I’ve been talking to the council about this for a while, and there still doesn’t seem to be an acknowledgement that the climate emergency is kinda a big thing relative to what the front of my roof looks like. And if my house burns down because a climate-induced bushfire comes my way, then isn’t the heritage conservation also at risk?
This just doesn’t seem very progressive to me.
Speaking of… I’d be really chuffed if you could sign my letter to the council about allowing solar panels on front roofs.
But change is afoot…
My Solar Panel Solution
Roland and I are hopeful that things will change. I’m not the only person asking to install street-frontage solar panels. Roland knows of lots of other like-minded homeowners. People-power and publicity drive change!
Roland also tells me that in City of Sydney Council, they’re providing a set of design guidelines, and if you follow them, they’ll allow you to install panels on your main street frontage. They’re trying to be progressive without detracting from the heritage feels. You can read more about it here. But basically, you can apply for a DA exemption if your front roof shape is deemed to be “simple” as compared to “complex”, and they provide images as a guide for you to compare your roof to. There is also consideration of whether the house is heritage listed as a single house or a group. If it’s listed as a group, you can’t get the exemption. In which case, I *think* you would then put in a full DA for the panels.
The problem is, though, that change probably isn’t going to happen fast enough in Inner West Council for me to have the system approved before I move back in. But Roland is going to set it up so he can retrofit the solar panels easily when I do get them approved in the DA. (Thinking positive.)
The solar panel system I’m getting
I will have:
1. Solar panels on the roof.
2. A solar power inverter that generates electricity during the day.
3. A solar-powered battery set with a battery inverter to seize that excess solar power production over and above what I use to charge the batteries.
As the sun goes down, and the loads increase through the afternoon and evening, the batteries will cover those loads. Next morning, the sun comes up and replenishes the batteries.
Roland designed me a 7.2kW solar array with 18kW hours’ worth of battery storage. And that provides some redundancy too. The batteries will get me through a few grey days before the sun comes out and completely replenishes the battery bank. (I’m lucky to have Roland onboard!)
What sized solar panel system do you need?
When we were figuring out what I’d need, I discovered it’s not as easy as just counting how many people will live in the house. As Roland says:
It’s very specific to the customer. Usage varies wildly from household to household and it’s not directly proportionate to the number of people or types of appliances. Some people like to have their air-con set to 18 degrees in summer and other people don’t use the air-con at all.
So we had a discussion around what appliances I use and he tried to gauge what’s called the “duty cycle” based on questions like how many lights I leave on, how often and how many loads of washing I do, etc. The duty cycle is the ratio of time that I’d be using electricity as compared to the time I’m not. The industry also often refers to the “self consumption ratio”.
What is it, and how do I figure out my ‘duty cycle’ or ‘consumption ratio’?
1. What is the consumption ratio in solar power systems?
The consumption ratio in solar power refers to the percentage of generated solar energy that is actually utilised by your system or home, compared to the total solar energy produced.
2. How is the consumption ratio calculated in a solar power setup?
The consumption ratio is calculated by dividing the actual electricity consumed by your home or system powered by solar energy by the total solar energy produced.
The formula is:
3. What factors can influence the consumption ratio in solar power systems?
Several factors impact the consumption ratio, including the efficiency of solar panels, the orientation and tilt of panels, shading, weather conditions, and the energy storage system’s efficiency. Additionally, the energy consumption patterns of the facility play a significant role.
4. How can a higher consumption ratio be achieved in solar power installations?
To achieve a higher consumption ratio, optimizing the solar panel placement for maximum sunlight exposure, minimizing shading, using high-efficiency solar panels, and incorporating energy storage solutions are essential. Additionally, managing energy consumption by implementing energy-efficient practices can contribute to a higher ratio.
5. Why is monitoring the consumption ratio important in solar power systems?
Monitoring the consumption ratio is crucial for evaluating the effectiveness of a solar power system. It helps identify areas for improvement in energy production and consumption efficiency, allowing for adjustments to maximize the utilisation of solar energy resources and enhance the overall sustainability of the system.
Because I have such a small house, Roland made maximum use of the roof and chose the most efficient solar panels to get the highest yield out of the available roof space.
How can you save as much energy as possible?
According to Roland, the more I can do in the middle of the day, when the solar systems are running, the better. Which is true for anyone, even if you’re connected to the grid – you’ve got a resource of free power in the middle of the day, so that’s when you use your washing machine, dryer, dishwasher – the appliances that consume a relatively large amount of electricity.
New appliances quite often have a delayed start function so you set it before you leave the house in the morning. And if you’ve got an older appliance, you can buy a timer that you plug into a power point and attach to the appliance.
Solar Power feed-in tariffs
Tariffs vary from around 5c/kW hour to 13c/kW hour. The electricity companies make it very, very hard to compare plans. There’s also a thing Roland calls the loyalty penalty that means if you stay with one of the big electricity companies for a long time, they’ll keep jacking up your prices year on year.
So that’s another piece of golden advice: the best way to get a good rate is to change provider every year, or at least investigate what other rates are available.
How to avoid dodgy solar panel suppliers and bad systems
As Roland has explained to me, the solar panels and inverters on the market today range in quality from good to bad. And there are all kinds of Facebook Groups and forums out there that can help with advice. Roland says, get referrals from friends and family, look at Google or other review services online (but don’t get sucked into the fake reviews).
For him, the best piece of advice is check the customer service and level of installation quality and support your company provides. If they have an in-house installation team, that’s a big tick. If they have people locally, that’s also a plus. (Something to ask about if you are looking at a national supplier.)
Just be sure if something goes wrong, they’ll be able to investigate and start warranty claims if necessary. Don’t rely on the salesperson – they won’t be around if things go wrong.
And one final word from Roland:
“People in our industry have a bit of a reputation for being cowboys, because it’s a younger field compared to the overall electrical industry. But there’s a lot of good change happening in the industry driven by informed customers. For example, more customers are asking, why should I put in the top of the range panels? And justifiably so, they need to know how long the system will last and if there is additional performance over its lifecycle.”