Save on your energy bills all year round with an optimised battery
Installing solar panels
As the UN’s Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change recently stated, we are reaching the tipping point in the fight against climate change. Recent flooding and wildfires across Europe make it clear that we need to act now to decrease fossil fuel usage and support the transition to renewable energy.
People are increasingly aware of the situation, and many have started looking for more ways to be energy smart with renewable energy sources that help protect the environment and reduce carbon emissions.
Among the most common renewable sources of energy are solar panels. Known as photovoltaics (PV), solar panels capture the sun’s energy using photovoltaic cells. The PV cells convert sunlight into electricity, which you can use for your household appliances and lighting. The main advantage of solar panels is that solar energy is 100% green and doesn’t release greenhouse gases.
However, purchasing solar panels is a long-term investment, and you might have a few questions before deciding to go ahead and install solar panels in your home. A question we often encounter is regarding the possible limitations on solar energy generation, namely, do solar panels work when it’s cloudy or in winter, or can they only generate energy when the sun is out?
Will solar panels work all year round?
Yes, solar panels also work in winter or on cloudy days, though they may not generate energy quite as efficiently as they would in the summer months with longer, sunnier days. In fact, solar systems work best when the sun is shining.
As the strength and angle of the sun vary throughout the day and seasons, so too does the sun’s radiation, which affects the amount of electricity your solar power system will generate. Therefore, shorter daylight hours and overcast conditions mean they will often produce proportionately less energy than in summer or in general when it is sunny.
However, if you are thinking of switching to solar energy, do not let the idea of winter and cloudy days discourage you. In fact, one effective way to gain more value from your investment is by adding battery storage to your solar PV system.
Adding battery storage to your solar panels
Battery storage offers several benefits, but the most notable one is the possibility to slash your energy bill while reducing your carbon footprint.
Instead of switching back to traditional energy suppliers for all of your energy needs, when the sun goes down, you can use the energy built up during the day within the solar battery.
The excess energy your home is not currently using goes into charging your Moixa battery, so instead of sending the electricity back to the grid, you can store it for when the sun goes down, powering your home with clean and self generated energy.
Smart Optimisation: make the most of your energy storage all year round
In addition to simply storing the excess energy your home is not currently using, your battery’s behaviour is also optimised by Moixa’s GridShare software. This AI-driven platform identifies your home’s solar generation and consumption patterns alongside weather forecast data and your import and export tariffs. Based on all these inputs, GridShare generates a personalised daily charging plan for each customer, which is optimised to cover a household’s electricity needs using the greatest amount of solar and low-cost grid energy available.
Moreover, for homes with time-of-use tariffs, our GridShare software will set your battery to ensure your home is powered by the greatest amount of clean solar as well as low-cost grid energy.
Combining Moixa’s GridShare software with time-of-use tariffs
If you are on a time-of-use tariff, GridShare is especially beneficial over cloudy days and winter months – when less solar is available. GridShare will combine your time-of-use tariff with solar generation and consumption predictions to create an optimal charging plan for your battery, getting maximum benefits from your self generated energy.
This will enable you to store energy from the grid when the wholesale prices and carbon intensity are low, so you can use it at peak times to maximise your monetary savings (you can double your savings compared to having the battery in its default mode) and still support more renewables on the grid.
If you already own a smart battery and are on a time-of-use tariff, you can read more about how you can get the most out of your tariff in our blog post.
View your battery’s smart behaviour on your Moixa Dashboard and App
Every customer who buys a Moixa Optimised Battery receives access to the Moixa Dashboard and App, where you can check your home energy generation and usage data and view your battery’s smart behaviour.
You will be able to track your battery status, performance, and charging behaviour, as well as the predicted solar and household consumption for the next day. By quickly accessing this data, you will have more control over your household energy consumption, and you will be able to see the benefits of GridShare’s optimisation.