Powerguard Off-Grid Mains Power Solution: The Saviour of the Spanish Holiday Villa

“It was going to cost €40,000 to install the mains to my new holiday home and it was going to take a very, very long time, it was simple – we needed another reliable solution”.

The solution chosen to provide 24hrs of reliable electrical power was the Powerguard PS System which was installed by the Powerguard service team within 2 days. The PS System is fundamentally a small power station for the home providing a very stable and reliable 230V electrical supply. The integrated PS System comprises of an electrical diesel generator and the PS System including battery bank and an inverter.  Unlike normal generators which would run all of 24hrs, the PS system only needs to turn on the generator during periods when the electrical demand is high e.g. for a power shower, cooker or heating. This high demand period usually equates to less than 8hrs per day and if these periods are regular, the PS System can be programmed to turn on the generator automatically. For all other times when the demand is low, the system feeds the home using its revolutionary battery pack & inverter concept. Sandy explains,

“Our system typically operates the generator for less than six hours a day with two set periods; one period between 7am and 10am and the second between 5pm and 7pm. The morning run simply recharges the batteries from any overnight use but because we all get up at this time, any appliances can be turned on without any use of the batteries – we time it so this happens. In the evening, we time the generator so we can have dinner using the cooker and perhaps have showers – again without using the batteries.”

The clever part of the PS System is that during periods when the demand is high, any unused power is used to recharge the batteries. This stored energy then provides AC mains power to the villa for the remainder of the day and night i.e. when the demand is low. During the day, if more power is required than what can be provided by the batteries, the PS Controller automatically turns on the generator and subsequently switches it off after the load has reduced. The payback on an integrated PS System over a stand-alone generator is usually around 3 years. For even more fuel savings, the system can also handle imports from renewable generation sources to recharge the batteries such as solar panels, and the CHP option (also installed in holiday homes in southern Spain) can provide free hot water for mains and heating - with over 80% efficiency. Sandy comments,

“The system is very economical and reliable, I have no issues with recommending this system to similar people to myself who require a mains electricity supply for their holiday home but are not able to secure a utility mains connection.”