So, you have solar panels and want to see how they are performing? That’s a great idea and you came to the right place!
Before we get started, have you collected your electricity meter data? If not, start here to make sure you didn’t forget anything.
Once you have collected you electricity meter data, note the start and end dates. You’ll want to collect the solar data in the same range. Also note what format the data is in (hourly, 15min, 10min). If possible, collect the solar data in this same format. If it is not possible, that’s okay! I have workarounds for that.
Types of Solar Ownership
There are several possibilities where you can collect solar data from.
If you own your panels, you may already have access to a monitoring system which you can download data from. It may be as simple as contacting your solar provider to get your login to get access to this data.
Are you part of a Power Purchasing Agreement (PPA)? You may be able to collect your data from your utility company.
It also may be possible that a third party is monitoring the production data. To name a few popular ones: Solar City, Tesla, SunPower, or Also Energy. These companies provide an online login where you can access and download your solar panel data.
Next Steps
Once collected, you will be able to begin analyzing how your system is performing compared against how much energy your home or building is consuming.
Did I miss any steps? Leave a comment below if you still have questions on how to collect your solar data.