COVID-19 Safety Practices in Installation of Residential Solar Systems

24 November 2020

7 min read | By admin

COVID-19 has changed the process of working in industrial, institutional, government, private and all other sectors. Working remotely is the “New-Normal” since the pandemic started. With the pandemic at bay, the government of India has released the lockdown in various working sectors including the energy sector. Due to increasing time spent at home, a large number of homeowners are opting for residential rooftop solar to reduce their electricity bills and to utilize their terraces to spend time. The installation process of residential solar systems is now done with complete precaution and in a hygienic manner as recommended by various health organizations.

MAINTAINING HYGIENE WHILE INSTALLING RESIDENTIAL SOLAR PANEL:

The Initial Stage:

For installing solar panels on the roof of your home, the first step would be to conduct a complete survey of the roof. Contactless site visits are made to conduct surveys of residential solar systems. At HomeScape, digital meters are used to measure the dimensions of the rooftop instead of measuring tapes, making it a contactless site visit.

The Second Stage:

In the second stage, the residential solar system is designed remotely and the products are delivered to the site of the residential solar system installation. All the products are sanitized, safely packed and sent to the location. Till this stage, there is no physical contact and interaction with customers. HomeScape uses its own dedicated truck for delivering the items and ensures high level of safety and hygiene during transportation.

Third Stage:

After the product delivery, the engineers and technicians assigned to the installation, visit the location. All employees of HomeScape are trained to maintain social distancing and hygiene.

MAINTAINING HYGIENE DURING SOLAR INSTALLATION:

These are some guidelines that has to be followed while installing solar panels on the roof, during the installation process.

The team members have to mandatorily wear N-95 masks, throughout the installation period.
The members should wear gloves and commit to all the necessary protective gears for the installation.
The members should carry sanitizers and sanitize their hands frequently avoiding unnecessary interaction with the customers.
The equipment used in the installation process should be sanitized regularly.
All the members should go through medical tests to carry out their work.
Any member who is sick should not continue his /her work installing the residential solar system. They should home quarantine for at least 14 days to ensure safety of other crew members.
The crew members should avoid unnecessary conversations with other crew members.
The members of the team should maintain 6ft distance from each other.
The members should bring his/her own belongings (bottles, lunchbox) if needed and avoid borrowing things from other team members.
The employees should follow the basic health hygiene, as advised by the W.H.O and other Federal Health Organizations.

AFTER INSTALLATION OF RESIDENTIAL SOLAR SYSTEMS:

After installing the solar panels, the residential solar system is connected to the grid .Details of generation of energy and the import and export are monitored on HomeScape Monitoring app. The documentation process regarding the liaisoning with the DISCOMS is done completely online eliminating the fear of virus through the physical documents.

The company encourages Work-From-Home and only the necessary team members are allowed to work offline. However, there are certain situations that require human intervention while installing solar panels on the roof. Accordingly, the engineers and technicians are trained well to take precautionary measures. The customer has no chances of getting affected by the virus. The need of the hour is to follow the guidelines laid down by the government to ensure safety and protection. With all the operations resuming gradually, it is very important that we abide to the guidelines, stay in our own bubble and help in reducing the intensity of the situation.

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10 steps to installing solar on your rooftop

06 October 2020

10 min read | By admin

If you have been wondering about installing solar panels, then there’s no better time than now to do so. The price of solar panels, and hence solar PV systems has significantly decreased. Getting solar panels for house nowadays is a lot economical and convenient than before.

How can you install a solar plant on your rooftop?

Here are ten simple steps for the installation of a solar photovoltaic system on your rooftop:

1) Evaluate your options

There are a few points to remember and take account of before installing solar panels on homes.

Do you have space for installing solar panels on your rooftop? How much is it?
Will the sun shine bright on your space during hours of daylight?
Is your roof structurally strong enough to support solar panels and their structure weight?
How much of the area is covered by shade?
What type of solar panel for the house you would like to install (monocrystalline, polycrystalline, thin-film, bifacial, PERC)?

2) Load calculation and energy audit

How much energy does your home consume?

Now that you’ve weighed your choices, the next move is to determine how much electricity you would require after installing a solar plant at your home. Calculate the following with the help of our simple DIY calculation guide:

Solar System Capacity
Area requirement for Your Solar System
Payback Period for Your Solar System

Estimate how much electricity the solar panel for house needs to generate with the help of an energy audit. Energy audits, in general, helps you to:

Reduce your monthly energy bill by doing away with excessive use
Decide how much solar energy you require
Meet a crucial condition for some tax credits, rebates, and loans

3) Grid-Connected vs Off-Grid vs Hybrid

A grid-connected system is a type of installation where solar panels are linked to the electrical grid. Solar energy thus produced is used. If your solar plant does not produce enough electricity to satisfy the consumption requirements, the difference will be automatically sourced from the grid. An off-grid system is not linked to the power grid. Hence, battery storage is necessary. A hybrid system integrates solar and battery storage in one, and are now accessible in various setups and forms.

4) Estimate your budget

After calculating and determining what kind of solution suits your optimal rooftop solar design specifications, you can quickly estimate how much the process of installing a solar panel at the house would cost you with the help of solar calculators available on the MNRE website. Make sure to consider maintenance costs, warranty, and the lifetime of the system.

5) Choose your solar developer

Once you have your budget fixed, it is time to identify a trustworthy solar company. We would advise you to do your research for the solar company you want to get a solar plant from because it is a product for a lifetime, and you would not want to run everywhere in case of a breakdown. Do check product warranties. HomeScape by Amplus is a trusted brand from the house of the PETRONAS group brought to you by a creative group of solar designers and experts. HomeScape provides you 25 years performance warranty* along with the product insurance to protect you from any anomaly in the plant in the future.

6) Site Survey

The site survey is required for a solar developer to evaluate:

Best photovoltaic location
Obstacles (if any shading)
Size of the central electrical panel inside the household
Places suitable for installation of the electrical elements
State of the Rooftop (structurally sound or not)
Square footage suitable for positioning module

To assess your home, the executives from a solar company will take a note of the following points:

Overall roof size
Slope angle
Chimney and vents
Compass orientation of the rooftop slope
Roof thickness
Strong trees or other blockages in or around the residential property

7) Receive your proposal

After finishing your site survey and measuring the average kilowatt-hour consumption of the building, you will receive a proposal from your solar company. Evaluate and pick a solar plant that suits your requirements, both technically and economically.

8) Documentation and permits

Like every significant financial move, there is a lot of documentation involved with rooftop solar panels for the house. For on-grid networks, permits are needed, when you would like to opt for net metering or gross metering. Typically, permits differ from state to state and depend on the form and scale of construction of solar panels. HomeScape takes care of all the documentation processes making it hassle-free for customers. Regardless, it is still a smart thing to know and understand what is happening with your solar power plant.

9) Installation

Solar Panels: The solar developer will begin by preparing the rooftop. It would make sure that the panels are fixed correctly. Electrical Wiring: The solar company then installs electrical wiring, which would connect to your electrical panel and main power system.

10) Warranty and maintenance

Generally, solar plant for houses come with a twenty-five years warranty. The company would offer ten years for 90 percent and the following fifteen years for 80 percent performance. The inverters usually come with a five-year warranty which can be extended by AMC, if required.

our solar plant does not require that much upkeep but taking care of a few aspects is necessary. Cleaning the photovoltaic panels is crucial for an efficient generation. Periodic cleaning of the modules (once in fifteen days) with wet cloth or wiper stick is sufficient for the best performance of the system. In conclusion, when you are familiar with the steps of installing a solar photovoltaic system, the whole process becomes much easier. The installation of the solar panels for houses is not very difficult, nor is it incredibly costly.