A solar energy system will perform automatically, with no maintenance needs expected. A photovoltaic inverter will have some kind of screen for viewing both current and historical electricity production. Any time the solar electric system is in operation, you will be able to look at the inverter window to see its operation.

Some people prefer to have this inverter information available on their computer, rather than having to go to where the inverter is located. Others want to be able to view their inverter’s performance via an internet connection, so they can pull it up at the office and show their friends. Even more interesting is to have not only your solar energy performance available, but also your energy consumption data. This way you can monitor your energy use, and manage that behavior in order to maximize the effect of your solar energy production. Knowledge is powerful! Sometimes seeing how your habits affect energy consumption provides valuable information that in turn, impacts your habits. For example, my Toyota Prius has an energy monitor easily visible as we drive. When I see what it does to my gas mileage to pass a car, I sometimes choose not to pass a car. The more information I have available as an energy consumer, the more in control I can be about my impact on the planet I inhabit. Being a more active participant is rewarding, and also has financial benefits as I learn to curtail my energy costs.

Powerfully Green will discuss a variety of performance monitoring options available for your solar energy system. Some of the primary options include the following:

Kill-A-Watt meter
This point of use meter helps identify phantom loads and where electricity is being consumed in your home or office. Energy conservation is a first step when considering a solar energy system.The less energy that your home or office consumes, the less solar power it will take to run it.

Inverter hardware components
Many string inverters can be outfitted with a card specific to that inverter that communicates to a gateway, which can bring your inverter's information to a web page on your computer. This component allows you to see more detailed information about your inverter's production, but does not interface with your whole house energy consumption.

Enphase micro-inverters

Enphase is a micro-inverter which transforms DC to AC power at each module, instead of as a combined string of modules in a typical string inverter. A micro-inverter can be a little more expensive than a string inverter, but it may be recommended to help mitigate shading issues at your site, or if module level monitoring is desired. This system captures that data and transmits it to a gateway called the Envoy, which then communicates up to a web site. The customer can view live performance of each module individually, as well as hourly, daily and monthly history. Click here to see a live Enphase system.

TED unit (The Energy Detective)
This unit has clamp-on meters that measure the power at the breaker level. That data is transmitted to a gateway and to a web page. This unit can give you basic information about your solar production, your whole house electricity consumption, and two other devices if desired. This unit is currently only available for residential system voltages. Click here to see a live Energy Detective.

E-Gauge

Similar to the TED unit, clamp on meters measure amperage and voltage and transmit the data to a web page. This will include solar monitoring and whole building monitoring and up to ten other devices. This unit can work on either a residential or commercial scale. The user interface is in an easy to read line-graph format. Click here to see a live E-Gauge system.