The costs of small photovoltaic systems with a current input of up to 600 watts are amortized after about two to three years – and the prices for the systems continue to fall. At the beginning of the year, a 600-watt system without brackets easily cost 600 euros, but there are now complete sets with 800-watt inverters and accessories for less than 450 euros (price comparison).
An important point when planning a solar system, whether large or small, is the best possible placement of the photovoltaic panels. The location should receive as much sun as possible and allow for secure attachment. And in practice, unfortunately, this is often less easy than expected. Although balcony railings and roof surfaces are perfect, not everyone has access to them. If you live in an apartment without a balcony and cannot install panels on the roof, you need an alternative. So where should the solar modules go?
Classic alternatives
Although the term balcony power plant has become established, the systems are so-called plug-in solar devices and they can be attached or set up in a wide variety of places.
Specialist retailers such as Priwatt, Yuma & Co. therefore also offer their bundles of solar panels and inverters with different accessories. The sets are usually available without additional accessories or with brackets for balconies, facades, roofs or gardens. Specific differences are also covered. In addition to simple stands for flat roofs, there are brackets for bitumen roofs, tin roofs, tile roofs or even plain roofs. Balcony and facade brackets are available in angled and flat versions.
Installation in the garden and on the flat roof
In practice, however, the panels require a lot of space if they are properly aligned. In addition, lawn space is lost in the garden. When installing on a flat roof, you should consider the weight of the panels plus weighting. However, standard panels are often too heavy for rickety roofs on outdated garden sheds. Here you can save weight with light, flexible panels. Examples of this are, for example, this Balcony power plant set from Lanpwr (test report) or the Prilight series from Priwatt. The effort involved in setting up is manageable here. However, a bit of time and work is required to ensure proper and as inconspicuous cabling as possible. In addition, you should always put enough weight on the support so that the panels stay in place even in a storm.
Installation on the house facade
In addition to installation in the garden, the house wall can also be used to mount the panels. The basic requirements are a sufficiently large area that gets as many hours of sunshine as possible. Corresponding positions and complete bundles for mounting on the house wall are available from specialist retailers. Whether mounting on the facade actually makes sense depends on the property and its location. Facade installation is particularly less suitable for old houses with wide roof edges and heavy vegetation in the garden than for free-standing modern houses. In order to work as effectively as possible, the use of a stand would be recommended here too – but this would be at the expense of the optics.
Panels mounted flat on the house wall are still relatively inconspicuous, which cannot be said about the angled modules on the facade. Added to this is the clearly visible cabling. If you find a suitable place, you will get more power than with flat panels. A clear example of this is the system Yuma Front 420+ (Reader test), which reader Nina tested in practice.
In addition to these still fairly common alternatives for attaching to the balcony, there are also some lesser-known ways to accommodate the PV panels.
PV carport and solar roofing
It starts with a photovoltaic carport and solar roofing. Since any surface is suitable for attaching the panels, it is space-saving and logical to also equip carports and roofs, for example near the entrance door or on the terrace, with photovoltaic modules. There are plenty of offers, but finished systems are often expensive.
In addition, models like the Huskys Solar-Carport Sin-Luxe with a total of ten solar panels with 410 Wp each, far too powerful for a plug-in solar device with a maximum feed-in of currently 600 watts. Anyone who wants to buy a large solar system has an exciting alternative to large systems on the roof. The set consisting of a carport and ten panels with a total of 4100 Wp is currently available for 3000 Euro instead of the regular 6999 euros.
To feed a small system, smaller areas such as an entrance canopy, pergola or patio canopy are more suitable. For a better look and daylight even under the panels, the PV modules should be transparent. Bifacial solar panels, such as those in the balcony power plant set, are also suitable here Yuma Flat Bifacial Pro (test report) are included. However, if you want to save money, you have to do it yourself. Ready-made kits of roofing plus panels are usually expensive, but are also perfectly coordinated. Depending on the existing roofing, it is also worth taking a look at the particularly light, flexible and semi-flexible solar panels. These save weight and do not require a flat surface. Examples of such flexible panels include: 100-Watt-Module von Ecoflow (price comparison) and the 210 watt modules from Zendure.
PV paving stones and solar tiles
The courtyard entrance can also be used to generate electricity. Solar panels in the form of paving stones make it possible. However, if you look at the prices, you will quickly notice that this form is currently only for enthusiasts. With prices of over 2500 euros for 4.2 square meters of PV area, consisting of 34 individual modules with 22 Wp each, the systems are significantly more expensive than classic panels. For a better understanding, even without an inverter, this system produces at best just under 750 Wp and still costs four to five times more than a balcony power plant with 800 Wp and more. Solar tiles, a much more inconspicuous form of panel, are also currently very expensive. Here you can only get offers upon request.
In addition to the high acquisition costs, both systems have another disadvantage. Ultimately, the solar surface here consists of countless individual modules, which firstly have to be wired and, secondly, significantly increase the possible error rate. In practice, PV paving stones and solar tiles currently make little sense.
Solar flower pot with privacy screen
If you have a garden but don’t want to cover it with photovoltaic panels, you should Solarblumenkübel with integrated privacy screen from Feueranker. Ultimately, it is a planter with a vertically positioned solar module. So that the 370 Wp panel can work as efficiently as possible, a two-sided, bifacial panel is used here. However, together with a 300-watt inverter, the solar flower pot costs a whopping 1,402 euros – and is therefore significantly more expensive than a classic balcony power plant with more than twice as much output.
Solar table
If you like it to be space-saving and inconspicuous, you can also use a solar table. The idea behind it is simple and ingenious: If the table is not needed on the terrace or balcony, you set up the table top and use it to generate electricity. An example of this is this Solar table power station Technaxx TX-250 for around 640 Euro at Mediamarkt and Saturn, which will be delivered from the end of April. The small complete system has an output of 400 Wp and comes with a 400 watt inverter including WiFi. This alternative is therefore more expensive than attaching it to a balcony, house wall, etc., but the price difference compared to solar flower pots and PV tiles is still manageable.
Solartracker
Another special form are so-called solar trackers, which are available with one or two movable axes. The idea behind it is brilliant: thanks to the light sensor and motorized holder, the panel attached in this way is always perfectly aligned with the sun. Unlike permanently installed panels, more sun can be captured, which increases yield.
The main problem with trackers is their significantly higher price compared to fixed mounts, which is why they are only worthwhile in a few cases. Here we go 399 Euro (Price comparison) for the single-axis solar tracker from Ecoflow. This is suitable for mounting on facades and balcony railings and promises up to 60 percent higher efficiency of the standard panel attached to it. The angle of the solar module can be easily adjusted between 0 and 80 degrees using the app. The light and rain sensors also automatically align the panel or fold it down in bad weather.
Two-axis trackers that are installed free-standing enable even higher yields. The manufacturer Eco-Worthy offers such a tracker for regular use 499 Euro at. The tracker is currently available for six 170 Wp panels 399 Euro (Activate 100 euro coupon!) reduced. Together with the matching panels (total 1200 Wp), the system currently costs 1000 Euro (Activate coupon!) instead of 1200 euros.
Ecoflow’s dual-axis system accommodates just one panel with a maximum size of 240 cm x 110 cm and a maximum weight of 25 kg. Here too, efficiency is increased through tracking. With a price starting 999 Euro (Price comparison), however, this tracker is even more expensive.
Solar fence
Fences are also suitable for attaching PV modules without reducing the usable area. Although there are also providers of complete solar fences, the systems are usually intended to be attached to existing fences, which is why the focus here is primarily on suitable attachment options for standard panels. The price of the solar fence power plant is comparable to the classic balcony power plant. Bracket sets for rod mesh and wooden fences cost approximately 60 to 80 euros pro Panel.
If you have a wall around your property instead of a classic fence, it’s easy because you can use the ready-made balcony power plant for facades. An example of this is the Priwall Duo 90 Degree bundle from Priwatt for 500 Euro. In addition to two bifacial solar panels with 440 Wp each, the scope of delivery includes an 800 watt inverter and the module holders for mounting on walls or facades.
Conclusion
If you don’t have a balcony or free roof space for photovoltaic panels, you still don’t have to do without cheap, self-produced electricity and therefore lower energy costs.
Solar flower pots, trackers, solar paving stones, etc. work, but the purchase costs are so high that the investment is only worthwhile in rare exceptional cases. However, classic plug-in solar systems with panel brackets for wall, wall or fence mounting and installation in the garden or on a flat roof are recommended. Solar tables are also slightly more expensive than standard panels, but the additional costs are still manageable compared to trackers and flower pots.