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Solar panels are a long term investment. So it’s important to do a bit of your own research before making your purchase. Luckily, we’ve prepared an easy-to-follow guide including all the important info, tips and considerations to think about when choosing solar panels. Solar Panel Shopping – What To Consider Cost Not all solar panels are equal. Prices vary depending on size, brand reputation, quality of materials, durability, warranty and any certifications the panels might have. Choosing solar panels on price alone isn’t always a great idea. Go for the biggest and the best panels, and they

There’s no doubting it. Renewable energy is one of the hot topics of 2015. And whilst the debate around the state of solar rages on in Government and the media, it’s not always easy to gain a crystal clear idea of the incentives that come with making the switch. Whilst the misinformation regarding solar can sometimes muddy the waters, you can rest assured that solar is here to stay and there’s still plenty of reasons to get on board. Up-Front Savings - STCs Most residential solar owners can continue to take advantage of a rebate (or STCs – Small Scale Technology Certificates) when purchasing

Welcome to the age of apps. Smart phone apps that is. Where pretty much every part of your day can be enhanced, simplified, tracked and recorded by a little square thumbnail that sits on your phone’s background. Incredible isn’t it? OK, so maybe not all apps are that life enriching… Luckily for you, we’ve sorted through the sea of apps out there to bring you five ‘greeny’ favourites that will help you to make a positive impact on our environment. CarbonTrack If you tracked your business’ carbon footprint, would you like what you saw? CarbonTrack is an app designed to give businesses an idea of

Here at Solargain we’re excited to announce our soon-to-be-released Hybrid Inverters which will have the option for battery storage – that is, batteries that store excess solar energy to use during peak times! Whilst conventional inverters require additional accessories to be retrofitted in order to make them solar battery compatible, hybrid inverters are ‘storage-ready’, which means you’re able to install batteries right away. For current customers with traditional inverters installed, most of Solargain’s inverter models will soon offer retrofit equipment to make them battery compatible. By

Starbucks is leading the green charge one bean at a time. Rotate your body 360 degrees just about anywhere in downtown Manhattan and you’re almost guaranteed to spot a Starbucks cafe. They’re everywhere! The Starbucks phenomenon isn’t just limited to the States, either. Starbucks is well and truly a global organisation with over 21,000 stores in 65 countries (including 24 cafes across Australia). That means a lot of milk (over 90 million gallons a year), a stack of cups (well over two billion to be precise), huge energy consumption and the collective pupil dilations of millions around the

New and exciting sustainable technologies are popping up every day – and that’s great! So, what can you expect to be making the headlines in the not too distant future? Join us in taking a glimpse into our mystical eight ball as we shed some light on two of planet earth’s most promising upcoming gizmos. Plug and Play PV system The clever bunch at The Fraunhofer Center for Sustainable Energy Systems (CSE) have come up with this one and it’s sure to change the way solar panels are installed going forward. Funded by the U.S. Department of Energy SunShot Initiative, the Plug and Play System is

In partnership with Carbon Neutral, Solargain is proud to have contributed to the establishment of 360 native trees and shrubs through the Turn Emissions Into Trees Program. To help drive a reduction in the planet’s carbon emissions, Solargain planted one tree for every 100kW of solar installed across their entire Australian network during 2013-14. So, who are Carbon Neutral? They’re a carbon solutions provider that assists organisations and individuals across Australia to minimise their impact on the environment. Working with organisations of all sizes, they measure, reduce and offset

If you’re wondering how to choose a hot water system for your home, then this blog is for you! Whilst it’s hard to imagine your bathroom, laundry and kitchen without heated water, actually deciding on what type of system to install can be a little tough. So, what are your options? There are three main types of hot water systems available – powered either by Gas, Electricity or Solar. Here are the pros and cons of each to help you choose which is best for you. Gas Hot Water Gas hot water systems are generally cheaper to run than their electric equivalents, and there are two main types of units

It seems to be a trademark of so many films set in the future to include beautifully minimal cityscapes, filled with people dressed in polyester and of course, the inevitable whooshing sound of electric vehicles effortlessly passing by. This classic futuristic scene usually assumes that electricity is the energy of choice, and sourced completely from renewables thank you very much. Whilst some of today’s nations are well on the road to revolutionising the way renewable energy powers their cities and people, others (like our own) are a little behind – nevertheless Australia has plenty of

The Clean Energy Council (CEC) recently released a paper outlining five innovative ideas that could help generate more than 2000 jobs in Victoria. Titled, Quick Clean Energy Jobs For Victoria – the paper explores how a raft of jobs in clean energy sectors like solar power and solar hot water could be added quickly by making a number of simple tweaks to policy. These measures, according to the CEC, are particularly important to Victoria which has felt the impact of decisions by several major Victorian-based manufacturers to exit the Australian market. The CEC paper contends that ‘the state

James Cameron, it seems, doesn’t do anything by halves. This is reflected not only in his impressive career, but in his personal pursuits as well. From directing the two biggest box office films of all time, to holding the record as the first person to reach the bottom of the Mariana Trench – the deepest part of the ocean – on his own, Cameron lives life on a large scale. But back to his role in Hollywood. You’ve probably heard of the two films he’s directed which we touched on earlier; Titanic and Avatar. The original version of the latter not only took an incredible 10 years to create, but

Can you imagine a solar power iPhone capable of sustaining itself purely using the energy from the sun? It’s a concept that’s not as far-fetched as you may think. By the way, when we say solar power iPhone, we don’t mean a regular iPhone with roof panels stuck on the back. Instead, teams of scientists around the world are experiencing breakthroughs in ‘invisible’ solar power technology and Apple is reportedly very interested. The release of the new iPhone 6 has been met with a flood of positive reviews, not to mention pre-order sales which indicate that this may very well become the most