When is a good time to buy and install solar

[Isetech]

How do the prices of solar compare today to last year this time or this time of year back in 2022

To give you an idea, the price I am currently paying for inverters today, are cheaper than they were back in 2022 and we were getting them at a really good price back then.

Stage 6 went into full swing and the prices just climbed literally by the order, when I asked why, I was told that it had to do with the exchange rate, if you believe that you probably take statins for high cholesterol, because the doctor told you that it is hereditary and changing your eating plan cannot cure it.

Is it a good time to buy solar right now, maybe this will help you make the decision:

1/ There has been no load for a month and only stage 2 planned for winter.

2/ The price of solar equipment is literally dropping by the day, the next project we are going to start, the equipment is going to cost around R5-8000 less than the last project we just completed. The battery prices are less now including vat than they were excluding vat a couple months ago.

3/ The market is so flooded with solar panels, that the prices have dropped by around 50%.

4/ The warehouses are full of product, which needs to move, those massive overheads for staff and rent dont pay for themselves, product has to move.

5/ 2023 was the worse time to install solar, we were selling batteries close to R40K, we now selling them well under R30k

Will the exchange rate affect the price, I doubt it.

Would stage 6 affect the prices, most certainly, and there will be a price boom once again, you would see the prices go back to 2023 prices.


Before yo go out and throw tons of cash at a system or worse take a loan or rent to own, make sure you understand why you want solar?

Something nobody is taking into account is the registration of the system and all the fees related to the registration, then you have to take the monthly fee, the feed back tariff, the restriction on the amount of power you can feed back into the grid.

In 2022 and 2023, it was critical for load shedding, many people are now sitting with backup system that can only charge the batteries using the grid, which will most certainly increase you electricity bill.

You should never have to charge your batteries using grid power, if you do, your system is incorrectly designed.

If your system cannot run form 10 pm to 8 am in the morning on the batteries, you dont have enough batteries.

If power consumption at mid day is more than your system can provide your system.

IF you plan to register your system and pay all the fees, engineer costs, replacement meter cost and ancillary network charge (based on your inverter/generator size), you better make sure your system can pump enough power back to the grid to cover these additional costs, otherwise you just going to be coughing up money for a system that is suppose to have a ROI.

It is a good time now to be looking into what you should do, without being under pressure to have to get a system installed due to load shedding.

[Isetech]

Look at the big picture:

Do you have enough roof space and is it strong enough to hold the weight? I thought I could fit 24 panels on my roof, now that we have started the process, I can barely get 10 on the east side and 6 on the west side and the north facing roof had massive trees, no they will not be getting cut down anytime soon. If you live in a complex or estate, will you get permission.

Do you have plastic or membrane between the roof tile sand rafters, it is a requirement.

Do you have spare roof tiles and are they old and brittle, dont be that customer who knows everything about their roof is bad then try make out like its the installers fault that tiles are broken and the plastic is damaged, You would be referred to as an Ahole and told to suck it up cupcake.

Where are you going to fit your lithium batteries, this is going to be very important for insurance and if you live in a complex. If you own 2 decent vehicles and cost a few bob, will your insurance cover the damage if the these highly explosion batteries, which could bust into flames at any point and burn the garage to the ground with your vehicle inside, even with mechanical protection in front of the battery because the idiot who installed them, fitted them below 1.2 m in front of the vehicle.

How much power do you use and more important, when do you use it?

Do you have wifi where you are going to install the inverter?

How far is the inverter from the mains power, that Ct cable has its max distance limits.

[Isetech]

By the way the tarrifs in our part of the world will be increases to R3.40 per kwh, something else to consider.

How does that affect me:

Currently paying R 3831.30 per month for electricity

From the 1/07/2024 it will increase to R4386.00 per month, this is without using the equipment in my garage.