Solar Conversion Kits in India

In my post yesterday, I discussed about the best solar inverters to use for rooftop installation in India which made me to think what if I already have an inverter. Can’t I use it on my rooftop solar system to save costs? Remember solar inverter constitute approximately 25-30% of the total system’s cost, so a decision needs to be made wisely. The answer to the question is yes! I can use a normal traditional inverter on my rooftop by using a conversion kit. The main difference between a solar inverter and a normal inverter is the presence of solar charge controller and some switching circuits in a solar inverter. However I will need another component that will convert my traditional inverter into a solar inverter.

The different leading solutions available in the Indian market are:

1) SuKam Solarcon conversion device – Sukam’s Solarcon has been designed to serve this purpose. It is a smart device that can convert any ordinary inverter into solar power system. This device can easily be connected to the ordinary inverter and battery system in one’s home.

Once sunlight fall on solar panels, DC power is generated and charges the batteries. This power is converted into AC electricity through inverter and the house is supplied with power during the day time. It intelligently switches to the main supply, when the sun is down without any manual intervention.

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This is how the energy flows

Solarcon also regulates the charge in the battery, by disconnecting solar power when the batteries get fully charged. Solarcon comes with solar panels and has an LCD which displays important data like if the mains is on or if solar is working, and how much money you are saving.

Read more about Sukam Inverters here.

2) Tata Solar Sunjeevni – Very apt for small business or your home or 600W of load. Can run the load upto 3 hours once charged. Very compatible with any battery and inverter and comes with a standard warranty of 2 years. It also comes with 4- 150 W solar panels. This product is available in four versions, with different supportive battery capacity 40-60Ah, 75-120 Ah (x2), 120-200 Ah and number of solar panels.

3) Luminous Solar Retrofit Solution – also converts conventional inverter to solar system. It can be used in conjunction with a wide variety of PV modules and can be upgraded to a higher version too. It comes with an LCD display, Four operational mode selection – auto, manual, charger or fully solar. It comes with different system rating – 12Volt/20Amp, 48V/50Am, 96V/50Am and 120V/50Am.

Cost of Conversion kits

Important to note here is there is not much relief either you buy a solar inverter or a solar conversion kit. A typical solar inverter from Sukam costs around INR 14000. You can buy it on significant discounts from online sellers. A Solarcon package can cost anywhere from INR 10,000 to Rs. 50,000, depending on the capacity and size of solar panels. Remember in case of Sukam, you will also have to buy panels alongwith the kits. However conversion kits give you an option not to buy an additional unit and grants you the flexibilty of using your traditional inverters.