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You may export to the grid if our system installed as part of the solarZero energy service generates more electricity than if can use and store. This will depend on the size of the system as well as the daily use of electricity in home.

You may generate surplus solar in the summer months as system sizing is based on average annual power usage, not for summer peaks.

We will work closely with you to ensure that our whole system is working in the most effective way. One of the benefits of the solarZero service is the solar export credit that ensures that when you sell solar power you're paid the same rate it costs you to buy energy, excluding network charges and GST.

For customers who select Ecotricity as their grid power provider: The solar system and solarZero battery that are installed as part of the solarZero service will cover up to two-thirds of your home’s electricity use. The extra power you need will come from Ecotricity and is 100% renewable, so you'll always be powering your home on clean energy.

Consumer NZ warns that if you buy a solar system it could take years to pay for itself and that the payback time for a battery is far longer than its lifespan. That’s not an issue with our solarZero energy service as there are no upfront costs and no additional costs for hardware, ownership or battery maintenance. You just pay a low, fixed monthly service fee, no matter where you live. We guarantee savings from Year One and have designed solarZero to halve your power bills.

The solarZero battery comes in a cabinet that also contains the inverter, isolators and energy management computer (most other battery systems have additional boxes and enclosures). The cabinet measures 1250 high, 1200 wide, 362mm deep and has a total weight of about 120kg.

The solarZero battery has a nominal capacity of 5.4 kWh (4.3 kWh usable capacity) with a standard charge rate of 2.5 kWh and a standard discharge rate of 2.5 kWh. During a power cut, it can discharge up to 2.5 kW of power for short periods.

Once you have provided a power bill to us, we look at the units of power that use, as well as the lines charges to calculate the number of solar panels that your home would benefit from installing. We use this power bill to estimate the savings both in year one and over the 20 year period. The savings calculation takes into account the lower retail rates for energy that you will have access to that has no margin added, as well as the reduction of grid energy needed by the home (because of the solar energy generated and used) and the use of the battery to ensure that most grid energy is purchased at low pricing periods.

No, a solar-only system will shut down automatically during a power cut. However, all the systems we now install as part of our solarZero energy service include a battery and hybrid inverter. This means the panels can continue to generate electricity during a power cut. That electricity will power selected circuits in your home and charge the battery.

As part of checking your suitability for solarZero, we do a visual inspection of your house where the panels will be situated, and the wall where the solarZero cabinet will be mounted. If you’re unsure if your house is suitable, please contact us and we can assess your property.

We can install solar panels on the following types of roof materials and conditions:

• Metal tile
• Decramastic tile if house built or re-roofed after 1990
• Concrete tile (excluding Terracotta tile)
• Long run metal sheet cladding, including: corrugated metal, trapezoidal and standing seam. Standing seam long run if the roof has a 6 degree pitch or greater.

We can’t install on the following types of roof:

Standing seam if the roof pitch is 5 degrees or lower, as the structure often won’t support the required tilt kit.

• Any roof in a poor structural condition that would be a health and safety risk to our installers and to you.
• Roofs with a drop/access of more than two storeys high
  Roofs with an extremely high pitch angle 45 deg or more (there are exceptions to this rule)
• Any kind of membrane or bitumen roof (typically flat roofs)
• Asphalt shingle roofs
• Terracotta tiles
• Any asbestos containing roof cladding (e.g. Decramastic tile roofs pre 1990) or roofs with an asbestos containing ceiling insulation
• Concrete tile roofs that are old and have become brittle
• Double layer roofs (for example, new roof cladding put over old roof cladding without prior removal of the old layer)
• Timber or stone shingle roofs

The solarZero cabinet is normally installed outdoors, but in some circumstances can be installed indoors. If mounting to a wall, we can install on:

• Brick
• Weatherboard (may require a backboard)
• Concrete block
• Plasterboard / MDF (to be fixed to studs and nogs)
• Plywood (minimum 12mm)
• Rendered brick if render is in good condition
• Zincalume & Coloursteel
• Board and batten

The solarZero cabinet cannot be installed on the following types of walls:

• Rendered polystyrene
• Fibrolite
• Stone cladding
• Stone
• Shingle

Regardless of if installed on a wall or the ground, the solarZero cabinet always needs solid ground below. If there’s soft soil underneath the solarZero cabinet, we will put it on pavers.

If you have any questions about our installation requirements, please contact us.