Solar panels innovation gives round-the-clock power without pricey battery storage

Imagine if energy from your solar panels could give you hot water around the clock without buying an expensive battery. Well, it’s already possible.

That concept is already a reality, with cost-cutting energy devices which leverage the power of “big data” helping households get more out of their solar panels by effectively using their hot water system as a battery.

One of the biggest gripes for solar panel owners is that they typically only use around half of the energy they produce before it is exported back to the electricity grid.

Households are paid a tariff for the power they export to the grid — but that fee has been dramatically scaled back in recent years, providing further incentive for householders to want to use as much of the power they generate themselves as possible.

Expensive battery systems were touted as the only option to secure more power, but high-tech monitoring devices can provide households with a cheaper option.

The devices utilise “big data”, which is the collection of extremely large data sets that are computer-analysed to reveal patterns and trends.

It is what allows people to do things like stream music, look up GPS directions and post pictures online. But it is also helping consumers cut their power bills.

“Big data allows households to optimise their energy use and allows people to have more control of what electricity they use from the solar panels,” Curtin University sustainability expert Dev Tayal said.

“As electricity prices rise and as some of the more generous rebates and feed-in tariffs wind back, we’re only going to see an increased uptake of smart intelligent devices.”

Source: Solar panels innovation gives round-the-clock power without pricey battery storage – ABC News (Australian Broadcasting Corporation)