Savvy solar enthusiasts and vaguely interested punters alike may have noticed an influx of solar calculators popping up on websites throughout New Zealand recently. Eager to find out more, I did a little research and came back with some surprising results. Some solar calculator websites offer the public genuine help, while others, not so much. In this article, I explore various solar calculators and attempt to find out how accurate they are, if accurate at all.
Let’s begin;(...)
Mars rover Opportunity, the little engine that could, has surpassed its original mission (which was 3 Earth months!) and is continuing its rovering to this day, a mere 12 years and 9 months past its used by date.
Opportunity’s identical twin, Spirit, touched down on the other side of Mars two weeks prior, but six years into its mission Spirit stopped all communications with Earth.
What Mountains had to be fracked, ground drilled, or oceans pillaged to fuel the Rover to keep(...)
Depending on which solar power system size you install, you will see your power bill reduced, if not eliminated, straight away.
Protect yourself from the rising cost of powerInstalling a grid-connected solar power system means protecting yourself from the rising rates of the retail electricity market. As well as using your own power, you will be exporting power to the grid. Your system will be earning credits that help pay for(...)
Ever increasing power bills are pushing many New Zealanders to re-think how they want to use electricity, and who they want to pay for it. Like a Trojan horse at the gate, Solar Power is quickly proving itself to be the better alternative. The last thing the New Zealand population needs is yet another power price hike. True to form, lines companies around New Zealand reviewed their prices on the 1st of April, 2017, and now many New Zealand homes are going to see a significant increase in(...)
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New Zealand’s first on-road, solar-powered electric vehicle (EV) charger - the ‘Electric Station’ - is now open to the public thanks to the collaborative and community-focused effort of local project partners.
Located on The Strand, Tauranga, the EV charger has two allocated car parks and draws energy from 18 solar panels. When insufficient solar-power is generated, the grid provides back-up power, with any excess solar power(...)
Tesla’s solar roof tile concepts have been rather hyped in the solar industry in recent times. We can’t wait to see them in action, however, Tesla products always take some time to reach New Zealand, realistically it will be close to 2 years before they hit our shores. Who can wait that long?
Solar roofing, or building-integrated photovoltaics (BIPV), are tried and true and have been around for years, and they are available (in limited quantities) on the New Zealand(...)
Power Genius, a smart appliance controller and monitoring system, is a brilliant kiwi innovation that helps to utilise roof top solar power that would otherwise be sent directly to the grid.
A typical kiwi solar power system will produce most of its power during the 9am to 5pm bracket. For a lot of New Zealand households, a significant amount of solar power isn’t being used as the solar power is being generated.
Because most people are not at home to make use of solar power(...)
On the 28th of October (in Universal Studios, Hollywood) a presentation took place with everyone’s favourite awkward billionaire Elon Musk, at the helm. The big reveal was that the Tesla Powerwall 2 was on its way to market. Musk delivered the news in his casual and seemingly un-rehearsed style, and like always, the Tesla presentation received a lot of fan-fare and media hype.
The Powerwall 2 has many a mind-blowing spec that we think is worth getting excited about. It was(...)
