Plugin solar kit City 800

In short: the type of solar panels and the balcony railing you can mount them onto.

Plugin solar kits are often also called "balcony kits". Installing solar panels on a balcony railing is a popular way to generate clean, solar energy at home in apartments, and save big on power bills.

Since not all balconies are alike, we have 2 different solutions for balcony railings.

Balcony kits - high performance solar panels for robust balcony railings

To maximize production, our high performance solar panels are the best option. They are of the highest quality, have long warranties, and are very cost effective. But they are heavy (usually 20-25 kg each) and quite big (approx 176 x 113 cm). To mount such panels on a balcony railing, we have a specially designed balcony mount, that allows you to install the panels with an angle of up to 30°. The balcony version of our solar kits is available as a

• Eco 500 Balcony (1 solar panel, 500 W output)
• Performance 800 Balcony (2 solar panels, 800 W output)
• Plus 2000 Balcony (4 solar panels, 2.000 W output)

See how easy it is to install a Balcony kit in this video.

City 800 kit - top performance with lightweight solar panels

If your balcony railing can't hold the weight of a conventional solar panel, our City 800 plugin solar kit is a great alternative. It uses 4 ultra-light solar panels (3,3 kg each) that measure about 114 x 95 cm. The panels can be fixed to your balcony railing with cable binders.

See how easy it is to install a City kit in this video.

In short: yes it has to.

A balcony railing must be designed to hold the weight of a person, preventing it from falling off a balcony. That’s what all building codes in Europe mandate in one way or the other. A plugin solar kit weighs between 15 kg (City 800) and 60 kg (Performance 800). In any case this is less than the weight of an adult person, and your balcony railing must be able to hold it.

If you have doubts about the solidity of your balcony railing, consider replacing it. Your building code might require you to do so anyway.

See how easy it is to install a Performance Balcony or a City 800 plugin solar kit.

In short: a Performance 800 plugin solar kit with 2 solar panels produces up to 1.600 kWh/year in southern Europe.

Kits with just 1 panel produce up to 800 kWh/year, kits with 4 panels about 3.200 kWh/year. Total production depends on several factors, like

• location
• orientation
• angle (or azimuth)
• the type of kit you choose

Our Savings Calculator helps you find the exact answer for your installation.

When considering the installation of a plugin solar kit, look for the place in your household with the most unimpeded sunshine hours. This can be your terrace or balcony, or a pergola, or a wall. We also have solutions for tile roofs or metal roofs.

In short: depending on your consumption, potentially all of it.

A plugin solar kit produces solar energy for self consumption at home. The energy it produces is used directly by your household appliances. This avoids you having to buy that energy from your power company, lowering your power bills.

Your savings are therefore determined by

• how much energy your kit produces
• how much you pay your power company per kWh, with all extra costs and taxes included

For example, if your kit produces 1.600 kWh per year and you pay €0,25/kWh to your power company, you save €400 per year (1.600 kWh x €0,25/kWh = €400). You can calculate how much you can save at your home address with our Savings Calculator or check the European Commission’s PV GIS.

How much the savings are on your overall electricity bill depends on how much you consume in total.

• If your yearly consumption is 1.500 kWh, then you’ll save over 100% of your power consumption.
• If you use 5.000 kWh, it will be just 32%.

The average household in Southern Europe consumes about 3.200 kWh/year. A 800 W plugin solar kit can save half of that.

In any case, some savings are better than no savings at all. Every kWh you can produce yourself is a kWh you don’t have to buy from the grid, saving you money every day.

In short: probably most of the time, yes.

Your solar kit’s production of electricity is almost never the exact same as the consumption of your household.

If you consume more than you produce, then 100% of your production is used on the spot, maximizing the economic profitability of your kit as you take full advantage of the savings.

If you produce more than you consume, you have several options:

• Add storage with a smart meter, and store all excess energy during sunshine hours, to use it when the sun doesn't shine. Our Smart kits include battery storage.
• Feed the surplus energy into the power grid. In Spain you can certify your kit with us, and get compensated for your surplus by your power company.
• Install a “zero discharge” device or “smart meter” on your distribution panel, that lowers your kit’s production and avoids any spillover of excess electricity to the power grid. This is the least attractive option, since you incur the cost of the smart meter and installation, and get no benefit from it.

If you feed a lot of energy to the power network, for example because you’re not at home during the day or use your home only sporadically, a storage system is probably the smartest solution. Most storage systems are modular, so you can start small and upgrade as you see the need for it.