When a series of tornados ripped through the Queensland city of Bundaberg, Australia on January 26th this year, one thing withstanding the natural disaster was a PV-ezRack SolarTerrace III solar power system from Clenergy, the solar park solutions provider. The 9kW system, installed for private generation purposes, survived a series of tornados that ran across and beyond the Bundaberg area. Damaging winds, with gusts up to 110km/hour, brought down powerlines and trees and damaged homes, shops and offices throughout the affected areas.
Bundaberg Resident and owner of the SolarTerrace III, Brad Nixon, was amazed at the damage the tornados had caused to houses, buildings and cars – yet had failed to destroy the solar system. Describing the scene as looking like “a bomb had gone off”, Mr. Nixon’s farm shed neighbouring the solar system was completely destroyed, throwing its contents as far as 30 metres away, with some debris later found on his neighbour’s property.
While 22 of the 36 panels needed replacing, the solar mounting system remained standing as installed, with the frame only needing one rail replaced. Further damage was caused by the roof bearer of the shed going through a solar panel and into the ground below. “The ground mounts and main part of the frame didn’t move a millimetre,” said Mr Nixon. “It was only one rail bent by part of the shed landing on top of the solar array”.
Mr. Nixon’s 9kW system was installed with compatible Krinner ground screws. Krinner Australia provides accredited service solutions when installing PV-ezRack SolarTerrace III.
The solar ground mount system, SolarTerrace III, consists of anodised aluminium and stainless steel, ideal for the harsh Australian conditions. The product comes with preassembled supports and smart features (such as pre-assembled positioning clamps), designed to achieve quick installation to save on labour costs while complying with the latest Australian building standards.
Like all Clenergy products, SolarTerrace III has been through a thorough testing process and comprehensive structural analysis. As a result, the product comes with a code compliant engineering certificate when installed according to Clenergy’s specifications.
Mr. Nixon’s system was offline for a month while panels were tested and re-installed. Should the complete system have needed replacing and required a full reinstallation, this down time and the associated financial loss would have been significantly larger.
“I’ve seen a lot of flimsy systems – this event has proven that Clenergy’s SolarTerrace III can withstand a serious tornado. In a long term scenario, you know it doesn’t matter what happens, it’s still going to be standing. It’s peace of mind.”
About Clenergy
Clenergy International (www.clenergy.com) is a leading Sino-Australian joint venture in the solar PV in-dustry, with its headquarters in Xiamen, China, and branch offices in Australia, the United Kingdom, Japan and the United States. Clenergy provides high quality, versatile solar PV mounting products and solutions for commercial, residential and utility-scale customers. Its inverters and power electronics equipment are supplied with full technical and service support. Clenergy is an ISO 9001 accredited company and all of its products comply with international standards. It has been through the focus on quality, innovation and service that Clenergy have been able to achieve rapid growth and build a strong international reputation. Clenergy maintains long-term strategic partnerships with many leading companies in the solar PV industry, and through its partners, provides Clenergy products and solutions in more than 19 countries around the world. For more information, please visit http://www.clenergy.com/
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