Solar systems do not produce energy evenly due to weather conditions, panel orientation and tilt angle, or potential shading — and we don't consume electricity evenly either. A smart meter can help monitor this.
If we want to know when our production covers our consumption, when we need to draw electricity from the grid (e.g. definitely at night), and when we have surplus production fed back into the grid, it's worth tracking this with a smart consumption meter.
When designing solar systems, understanding existing or expected consumption is also key. For production (yield) forecast-based quotes, it's recommended to consider not only the annual total kWh but also the monthly breakdown.
In traditional and off-grid solar systems, the Smart Meter can help us understand and even shape our consumption habits. With the help of a real-time production monitoring unit, we can track not only our solar system's production but also our electricity consumption, specifically:
Based on the graph displaying these data—or even through automation—it's worth operating electrical devices such as boilers, heaters, air conditioners, heat pumps, electric vehicle charging, etc. locally using the electricity produced by the solar system, as this is the most environmentally friendly solution.
In practice, this means that once we understand our system's production, we can align the use of our household appliances with it, turning them on when the system produces enough energy to cover their consumption. This way, we can immediately and locally consume as much self-generated energy as possible.
With our proprietary smart meters, we integrate power plants feeding into the grid into a virtual power plant, ensuring reliable energy supply.