When it comes to solar power products – quality matters
We’ve handpicked our preferred solar products based on performance, reliability and manufacturers who will stand behind us
Solar Panels
We choose Trina Solar because they are a true stalwart of the solar industry founded in 1997.
Trina has 24 world records under their belt for efficiency and output power and have sold more than 100GW of solar panels globally. Trina’s experience and results speak for themselves.
Crucially, Trina Solar have also maintained an office in Australia since 2011 demonstrating a long-term commitment to supporting the Australian solar market. Trina Solar was Australia’s number one brand of solar panel in 2021, by market share, according to data compiled by Sunwiz, an independent Australian market research company that specialises in data and analysis of the Australian solar market. According to the recent Sunwiz report, Australian PV Panel MarketView, Trina Solar ranked number one in 2021 with a market share of 14 percent.
Not only are they hugely popular in residential applications, Trina have also provided solar panels for some of the largest solar projects in Australia, including the 5.7MW Brisbane Airport, 5.6MW Peterborough Solar Farm and the 1.2MW University of Queensland solar system.
REC Group is another solar industry pioneer, founded in Norway in 1996 and has manufactured more than 43,000,000 solar panels.
REC’s foundations were in the manufacturing of solar cells and wafers giving them incredible expertise in the physics behind great solar panels. In 2021 REC group was acquired by Reliance Industries Ltd and is now part of their multinational group of companies.
REC has also demonstrated its commitment to environmental stewardship, announcing that the lead-free1 REC Alpha Pure solar panel has received CERTISOLIS certification for low carbon footprint (LCF). The REC Code of Conduct also underlines their commitment to doing business the right way.
REC manufactures its solar panels at a state of the art factory in Singapore, which opened in 2010 and includes a solar system capable of generating around 2.6 million kWh annually into Singapore’s electricity grid.
Inverters
Fronius is one of the most popular and longest running solar inverter brands in Australia.
Made in Austria, Fronius Inverters are renowned for their clever construction which makes them simple and cheap to service if anything goes wrong. Their inverters include many innovative features to help deliver more energy from your solar system.
Fronius was founded in 1945 and continues to be a family-owned enterprise, qualifying them as one of the oldest technology companies specialising in solar in the world. Fronius founded their Australian office in 2010 and are a long-standing employer and supporter of many industry groups committed to quality and service.
Fronius has also developed its own monitoring solution called SolarWeb which allows hassle free Wi-Fi system monitoring and integration with its EV charging and Hot Water diversion products, creating a full suite of capabilities for modern solar homes. Fronius has also partnered with Australian software company Solar Analytics, for users who want to take advantage of their advanced capabilities including Plan Optimiser, True Performance, and their Battery Calculator as just a few examples.
We recommend Fronius inverters in applications where high quality, high reliability string inverters are the perfect choice.
SMA is another hugely successful and popular European made solar inverter who also have a prestigious 40 year history in the industry.
At many times over the company’s history, SMA has been ranked as the world’s largest manufacturer of inverters with a vast array of products to suit every application from smart homes to multi Megawatt solar farms.
The company has a long track record in Australia with more than 750,000 SMA inverters already installed across Australia alone, producing more than 35% of all solar electricity in the country. They have a prestigious track record of projects in Australia, including the Sydney Olympic Village and Olympic Boulevard Lighting projects installed in 2000 and still operating today.
We recommend SMA inverters in higher power string applications and where German innovation and quality are the preferred choice.
Although a relative newcomer being founded in 2006, NASDAQ listed SolarEdge successfully reinvented solar inverters with their DC optimisation technology and have more than 400 Patents in place for their unique technology.
Founded in Israel, SolarEdge has offices across the world. They were the supplier for Tesla energy systems for some years and have a long-standing manufacturing agreement with Flex Ltd, who are the third largest manufacturer of electronics in the world.
SolarEdge have been a pioneer in DC optimisation which allows their system to generate more energy from each solar panel on complex rooftops. They have also acquired battery technology company Kokam and recently launched their own home storage solution in addition to several other unique EV charging products.
SolarEdge has become an extremely popular inverter in Australia where a combination of high performance and affordable price is crucial.
We recommend SolarEdge in applications with complex roofs and shading or, where solar owners want to maximise output and take advantage of their other products for a complete solution.
Enphase Energy is another example of a solar inverter manufacturer who successfully set out to re-invent solar inverter technology. Founded in Silicon Valley California in 2006, NADAQ listed Enphase Energy has exclusively focused on miniaturising solar inverters and is the world’s leading manufacturer of micro inverters.
Enphase has shipped more than 49 million micro inverters around the world and proven that with careful attention to engineering, micro inverters can be a reliable and efficient alternative to string inverters. They have also launched several in house designed micro battery solutions, following the same design philosophy as their micro inverters.
Enphase micro inverters are mounted directly onto each solar panel and convert the DC energy to AC energy right on the rooftop. This can provide several advantages and is arguably one of the best choices for heavily shaded sites where each solar panel needs to be individually optimised.
This architecture also provides an extremely flexible solution allowing systems to be easily connected and modified over time and has the advantage of avoiding the use of high voltage DC cabling on the roof top.
We recommend Enphase micro inverters in applications where modularity, simplicity and shading optimisation are paramount.
Solar Batteries
Tesla Motors is a name that almost everyone knows, run by entrepreneur and technology genius Elon Musk and is now one of the world’s most valuable automakers. The group includes Tesla Energy which produces batteries and solar solutions in addition to its EV manufacturing.
Tesla Energy has undoubtedly developed one of the most advanced, sophisticated, and popular solar batteries in the world. The Megapack, designed for very large-scale applications has been installed in Australia at numerous sites, demonstrating the potential and success of large-scale storage.
For residential applications, Tesla’s Powerwall product has been the top selling home battery in Australia for many years due to its simple and elegant all-in-one design combined with its incredible software capabilities. Tesla software can be used for detailed whole-system monitoring and to provide forecast enabled storm protection in case of blackouts. It can also enable their use in Virtual Private Powerplants, where thousands of batteries can be remotely synchronised together.
We recommend Tesla Powerwall as the perfect solar storage product for virtually any application due to its inherent flexibility, safety, and advanced software.
Solar Mounting Systems
Solar mounting hardware is often understated and overlooked, but is a crucial element to long lasting, elegant, and robust solar solutions.
Solarbank exclusively uses mounting hardware from Australian founded company Clenergy. Clenergy has grown from being a boutique solar solutions provider founded in Melbourne in 2007, into a passionate, globally renowned renewable energy company with nearly 500 employees and 6 offices around 3 continents.
Their solutions have been used in 15GW of solar installations globally and they specialise in time-clever mounting systems that reduce installation time and can be adapted to virtually any application.
They have been selected for a huge number of prestigious commercial projects including the iconic Queen Victoria Markets in Melbourne. They are also one of the most popular residential systems due to their intense focus on efficiency, aesthetics, and quality.
We recommend Clenergy mounting systems for all applications because of their engineering support program, flexibility and elegant, good looks.
