Auckland
The abundance of information on the internet about solar can be overwhelming, so we’re here to try and simplify it for you. It’s easy for you to work out how many panels you need to suit your individual needs.
Before we get into the calculation, there are a few things you need to consider.
- While the wattage on your panel tells you what your solar panel is capable of producing under ideal conditions, the efficiency tells you how much sunlight your solar panel is capable of converting into electricity.
- In the peak of summer most places of New Zealand get between 6-8 sunlight hours. In winter you get less sunlight hours, normally between 3-4.
- he area around your rooftop solar panel can change your efficiency numbers. The most common environmental causes for lower efficiency are shading from trees or buildings, cloud coverage, and excess dust and dirt on your panel.
How to calculate your solar panel output
Here’s a simple formula for calculating your solar panel’s power output:
Solar panel watts x average hours of sunlight = daily watt-hours
Most places in New Zealand get on average 5.5 sunlight hours per day. If you have one of our Jinko 330 watt panels, your solar panel’s power output would be:
330 watts x 5.5 hours = 1,815 daily watt-hours
How to calculate what you can run
What appliances you can run depends on the wattage of the appliance. For example, an efficient mini-fridge may have an average power consumption of 30W. That means, to run the fridge for 24 hours, it will use 720 watt-hours. Simply deduct this from your daily watt-hours, to see what other appliances you can run. We estimate that 60 watts is the average power consumption for a laptop when plugged in. If you need to charge your laptop for 2 hours, that is 120 watt-hours.
