Solar Power
Solar is a great investment for your home.
We have a wide range of packages to get you started.
SolarOak Only Ever Uses CEC Accredited Installers!
We will only ever send a fully licensed electrician and accredited solar installer for any installation or service work. All regulations met and everything is installed up to code. Every time!
What is a Solar Power system and how does it work?
Solar panels (Photovoltaic or PV's) convert sunlight (solar radiation) into electricity by using semiconductors. When the sunlight hits the semiconductors in a PV cell, electrons are freed and bus bars (metallic strips) collect the electrons and the result is electricity.
When installing a solar power system on your property, the goal is to save money over time by reducing your power bills. A standard 6.6kw system (the recommended minimum) should take you approximately 3-4 years to get a return on your initial investment.
Not sure where to start?
Discuss your options with a member of our team
What do I need and what products should I get?
For any solar power system you will need an inverter (the brain of your system), some panels to generate the electricity and a few other components like mounting brackets, railing and other electrical equipment as well as an optional upgrade called a smart meter which we'll explain more down below.
There is a huge amount of products in the market, and whilst manufacturing has improved vastly it is important to consider a few key factors. Performance, warranty, cost and support.
Performance - You need something that's going to work, it has to operate day in day out in the harsh Australian sun and to get the best results it needs to be good.
Warranty - There is an acceptable industry standard of what is considered a good warranty. For panels, you want at least 12 years, and 10 years for the inverter, railing and if you're considering battery storage, then 10 years on batteries.
Cost - You do not need to spend a fortune to get a good solar power system. After considering the STC incentives reducing the total price, expect to pay between $3500-$4500 for a good solid 6.6kw system. Bare in mind, tiled roofs, two story houses and 3 phase households typically have a few additional charges.
Support - Sometimes thing's can go wrong. When it does, life is considerably easier if the companies products you have selected have Australian support.
At SolarOak, we take all these into consideration when recommending products, and will not offer or endorse anything we ourselves wouldn't want to be apart of. When you purchase a system through us, it's a journey we take together and we're fully committed to making it as trouble free as possible for you and ourselves.
A Few Brands We Trust
What is a Smart Meter? What other extras am I missing?
A smart meter is additional and optional (in most cases) device that relays additional information back and forth between the meterboard and the solar inverter.
Without it, the inverter tells the meterboard the about its owns systems production, and on your app you can see, how well it's doing in real time and check how its performed on a certain day and even the systems total production. It's cool but not really helpful.
With a smart meter you also get to see your household consumption, what you've sent back to the grid (exported) and what you've had consume from the grid. All this information can really help you maximize your systems potential and save you money knowing when you can freely use more power or reduce consumption to spend less.
Everything else that's important or relevant we'll give you the option for during quoting or include it as apart of our process.
Data Shown with Smart Meter
Standard Data With No Smart Meter
What is the process? What do I need to do?
We recommend potential customers to research products and companies. If you don't know where to start feel free to ask us, we'll happily give you some recommendations based on your own circumstances and where to learn more about them.
If you're ready to invest in a solar power system, after speaking to someone from our team, we'll send you a formal quote with some product information. We'll complete your Synergy and Western Power applications (required to be eligible for connection and STC incentives) on your behalf, you'll also receive updates regarding this process. This process can take take between 1-15 business days depending on quickly your application is processed.
We'll then work out an install date with you, install your system and set you up with an app to monitor your system. We notify the completion to Western Power who then may want to take additional action but typically will approve the installation and you're ready to start saving.
Here’s a few options if you’d like to look at a few products and packages
SolarOak's Online Monitoring
We offer online monitoring of most systems we sell as an additional after-sale-care feature.
This allows us to check the status and productivity of your system, so you know it’s working optimally.
When connected to our portal, if any issues arise requiring attention, fault reporting becomes a lot easier and results in getting problems solved faster.
Adding your system to our portal is easy, optional and free.