As a 100% off grid solar user since 2011, I have nothing but praise for the technology. One needs to plan realistically around any such off grid installation.
Know your energy requirements and factor cloudy days and night time. It is best to combine with wind power to achieve better results if the conditons allow.
Be ready to replace batteries every three years and they are not cheap. Good news though that there is now battery refurbrishing and recycling available so you can refurbrish when they die out.
A good installer is important as this can be a one time job if well planned.
Solar ni poa tu large scale grid tied array power plants in the desert with good clear skies most days of the year if not all. Just dispatching power to grid bila battery storage. Kama ni ya mtaa just keep it small for entertainment (TV, net, phone), lights and MAYBE ONE FRIDGE. Panels are cheap, oversize the system with slightly more panel wattage than you need even for stormy season weather. Get a good MPPT charge controller and an efficient inverter. Battery weka mbili za 12V/100Ah in series. Kafungie hapo. Those are the most important things in the household that need to be on. Zingine ni superfluous and expensive bure. But also a fairly cheap and well made solar water heater.
I for example spend around 360k per year on power bills. That is slightly over 1M in 3 years. In my opinion, replacing the batteries for 1M after 3 years is cost effective since I’ll have saved that same amount in power bills and won’t have to endure constant power blackouts that are so common with kenya power.
Judging from those inverters which are more than 1kva each, he could be a supplying 6 houses with power, again judging by the type of houses surrounding him
Depends on the system that you have. Solar gel batteries have a 8 year lifetime, which in my opinion is worth it. I have a system that I bought used from someone and the gel batteries are a little over 8 years and they serve the whole house very well. I realized there is a big difference in quality when I was buying solar panels.
I watched a review video on YouTube where a guy actually tested the mono and poly and the results showed that the poly was better. However, I have been told that the difference is seen in very large systems where the Mono shows a greater efficiency. If you are using solar panels for your home then there is no much difference.
By wind power do you mean the small wind turbines? I have always seen their reviews but wondered if they are actually practical in Kenya. Any insights?
He may have used 1m for complete installation, but you be lying to say he will use 1m to replace batteries, by my count he has 24 (200Ah 12v deep cycle) batteries costing 20k-30k max each. Which is about 480,000 to 720,000 k max. Plus solar gel batteries last about 8-10 years