Brooktondale, NY Home Improves Efficiency with a 8.1 kW Solar Electric System
Challenge
Not every home or solar electric system is the same. We evaluated this Brooktondale, NY home for the right system.
Solution
This 8,100 W (8.1 kW) grid-connected solar electric system was installed as a ground-mounted array of thirty-six (36) SunPower 225 W solar modules oriented due South on two (2) Direct Power and Water adjustable-tilt top-of-pole mounts. Each pole holds eighteen (18) modules arranged in landscape and has dimensions of approximately 15.4 ft x 16.5 ft x 12.9 ft (width x height x depth) at 35° tilt. The system is configured electrically as two (4) DC circuits (strings) of nine (9) series connected modules providing input through two (2) DC disconnect switches to two (2) SunPower 4000m, 4.0 kW inverters. These inverters provide grid-synchronous AC output and interface to the electric utility through a single doublepole breaker in the Client's main electrical service panel, or as existing infrastructure allows. System power production (kW) and cumulative energy (kWh) monitoring are provided by a SunPower web-based Monitoring System, as well as by a digital display on the inverters and an electromechanical meter. As designed, this system should generate an average of 24.6 kWh/day = 8,988 kWh/year, where daily energy production is both weather and seasonally dependent. This energy production corresponds to a CO2 (greenhouse gas) emissions savings of 11,673 lb per year.
