How to Connect Your Solar Power System to the Grid?

Australia is one of the biggest adopters of renewable solar energy with over 3M homes using solar panels to power everyday appliances. The benefits of going solar are indeed attractive, especially with the expected price hikes in the coming years. 

For one, the financial advantages are evident in those monthly energy bills plus solar incentives depending on where you're residing. This is an eco-friendly way to power your home and increase its value as well. Pair it with a high-quality battery and you can even enjoy complete grid independence for continuous electricity even during a power outage!

Let's go back to on-grid solar power. How does it work, anyway? Basically, the main components here would be your solar panels and a grid-interactive inverter that connects to your house's switchboard and electricity meter. This way, you can power your home effectively during the day and save money on the bills, while being able to switch back to the grid during off-peak sunlight hours.

Any excess electricity produced by your solar system that's not needed by your house is fed into the mains grid, with a feed-in tariff paid to you. How awesome is that?

How To Connect Solar Panels To the Grid: A Step-By-Step Process

Step 1: Setting Up Your Solar Panels

First of all, you must ensure your solar panels are properly mounted on the roof. There are a couple of ways to do this, both requiring prior knowledge of solar panel installation. 

The first one is stringing groups of solar panels in series, which means running a single line through every panel. You can also try parallel stringing, wherein the line would be divided into 3 parts and reconnected into a single line on the other side of the solar panels. 

Both methods require a good background in electrical connections, so if you're not sure how to do this correctly, it's always better (and safer) to ask for help from a professional. 

Step 2: Connecting Solar Panels To Inverter

One thing to keep in mind is that the energy generated by your solar panels cannot be used as is to power your home appliances. This is direct current (DC) energy, and what you need to run your electronics is an alternating current (AC). 

To convert DC energy to AC energy, you need a grid-interactive inverter. You also have the option to connect this inverter to a battery pack—this way, you can store energy for use during cloudy days instead of relying heavily on grid connection. It's a great way to save for the long term too!

Step 3: Wiring the Inverter To the Circuit Breaker

After successfully connecting your panels to the inverter, it's time to wire the inverter to your circuit breaker either directly or through a battery.

Just take the wires from the battery/inverter and connect them to the corresponding spots in each circuit breaker. After this, your solar power can now reach every electrical zone of your home. 

Another thing to keep in mind is that when you stay connected to the power grid, any solar power you generate that you're not using can be transferred to the city power grid. This process is called "net metering" which actually results in your electric meter moving backwards, crediting you for power that you're contributing & charging you with reduced monthly fees.

Step 4: Connecting the Inverter To the Fuse Box

To complete the process of converting DC energy to AC for running your appliances, you need to wire your inverter to a fuse box. This is also a crucial step in distributing the generated power through your home. 

What About Grid Connection Approval?

Before anything else, the first thing you need to secure before connecting your solar power system to the grid is pre-approval from your Distribution Network Service Provider (DNSP). 

DNSP is the business that owns and operates the electricity networks in your area. Their scope of responsibility includes the physical connections of your system and house to the electricity grid. 

Getting pre-approval from the DNSP will ensure a smooth process of connecting solar to the grid. Other important things to consider beforehand would be the technical specifications of your system, as well as connection agreements and charges. 

Typically, the technical requirements of distributors for grid connection are more rigid than grid-connected energy systems via inverters. Your installer should be aware of these, including the guidelines and processes you need to go through depending on your distributor. 

If you’re thinking of connecting solar power to the grid, get a quote from a reputable installer first. You want to ensure everything is well set from the wirings down to your expected returns to make the most out of your system. For best results, try to add a battery storage system to your setup—it’s worth every penny, we promise!