Jinko vs Suntech vs Phono Twin Far South Coast NSW

Solar Quote Reviews
1

Would love your opinion on the quotes below.

We live on the far south coast of NSW. No shading issues, single phase, corrugated iron roof.

Daily usage avg: Peak – 20kwhrs/day. Controlled Load 1 – 19.33kwhrs/day (includes floor heating in Winter).

We’ll be going with a Fronius inverter, Traditional DC String System and Hot Water Diverter for heating hot water tank with excess solar production.

We are looking at 3 different local companies who have great feedback from the community. Given we have decided on the inverter, which all 3 have quoted on, it will come down to the brand of panels, as they all specialise in different brands. All 3 companies were given our last 12 months’ electrical bills, have measured our roof, but have suggested differing sizes in solar system and inverter.

The panels we are deciding between are Jinko, Suntech and Phono Twin Plus. Given we can’t find much about Phono Twin Plus, we’re leaning towards either Jinko or Suntech. From what I’ve read, they are very similar, so we’re finding it hard to decide between the 2. We’ve received quotes on LG and Qcell, but they are a bit too pricey for us. We’d rather spend the money on getting a quality installer and a premium inverter. We’ve asked for a quote on Sunpower, but am expecting a high quote on that one too (rough estimate is $90/panel more than the Suntech quote, so about $1800 more).

The Jinko quote has a bigger Fronius inverter and a bigger system, but we’d love to get some feedback on whether Jinko or Suntech are better, and if the bigger inverter is warranted. I’m gathering if we ask for a larger Suntech solar system, then the inverter would need to be larger?

Prices are for far south coast of NSW, are after the STC rebate, and exclude hot water diverter.

COMPANY 1
System: 8.51kw
Panels: 23 x Jinko Cheetah (mono perc, half cell) 370 watt
Inverter: Fronius Primo 8.2kW + Fronius Smart Meter
Cost: $9,350

COMPANY 2
System: 7.4kw
Panels: 20x Suntech 370W mono half cut panels
Inverter: Fronius Primo 6.0KW + Fronius Smart Meter
Cost: $8,720

COMPANY 3
System: 9.24kw
Panels: 28 x Phono Twin Plus 330kw
Inverter: Fronius Primo 8.2kW + Fronius Smart Meter
Cost: $11,965

OTHER QUOTES (for premium panels - for comparison purposes – they are probably a bit out of reach for us):

System: 8.1kw
Panels: 23 x Qcell 350w Peak Due G6 350 watt
Inverter: Fronius Primo 8.2kW + Fronius Smart Meter
Cost: $12,630

System: 8.3kw
Panels: 24 x LG NeON-2 350 watt
Inverter: Fronius Primo 8.2kW + Fronius Smart Meter
Cost: $13,250

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Hi @kerrie

Looks like you’ve made a great start.

Yeah, I think this makes sense.

Like you’ve researched, I think they are pretty comparable. It would be hard to split the difference. I probably have a slight preference for Jinko over the two, but it’s not based on much. Jinko are the biggest solar company today, and fast catching up to the premium players in terms of their tech, Suntech have been through some ups and downs over the years, but have been very solid over the last few years.

Yeah, 7.4kW nearly maxes out a 6kW inverter. They might be able to get one more panel on it, but I’m not sure. I believe you can go 30% over the rated DC input, which I think would be about 7.8kW.

If the company’s are pretty comparable, to me COMPANY 1’s quote does look like the best value.

Hope that helps.

Cheers
Marty

1 Like
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That certainly does help Marty - thanks.

My gut was saying company 1, but without anything to point to as to why. I’m certainly a newbie when it comes to solar, so I figured going with my gut feeling wasn’t the way to decide this one!
I keep seeing Jinko’s name pop up as a good performer for the price bracket we’re looking at, so I’m glad I was on the right track.
Do you have any thoughts re the size of system given our usage?

4

Hi @kerrie

I think the bigger the better considering your floor heating - if you use your solar for the floor heating.

You’ll generate about 4kWh per day, per kW installed. So an 8kW system will generate about 30-35kWh a day on average, and less in winter of course.

I’m not sure how the controlled load works, does it mean you get a low rate because it’s only on in the middle of the night or something? It would make sense to use your solar for the heating too, so to have it on when the sun is shining.

Marty

1 Like
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Yeah, the control load is night time usage.
Our plan is to change things around once the solar is installed so we make the best use of it we can. So the underfloor heating, dishwasher, washing machine, reverse cycle etc all being used during the day, so instead of 20kw during the day, it will be higher than that, and lower at night. Sounds like 8kw will be a good size for us in that case

6

Do you get salt mist in your area. if so look deeply into the salt level warranty from the panels. Q cells have level5 warranty which is the best

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Not sure that I’d call it sea mist. We’re about 2klms from the beach as the crow flies.

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2 k. I reckon your pretty safe then. We are 180 mtrs so for us the warranty is important. Have you tried solar quotes for information re
Panels. Good choice on the fronius, make sure the installers sign you up for the extra 5 yrs warranty on installation for the inverter