Bicity Solar Energy Suppliers

Solar Calculator

Size your system one part at a time, or run the full estimate.

Free Solar Estimate

How Much Will Solar Cost You?

Answer 4 quick questions and get a personalised solar system recommendation with pricing, in under 60 seconds.

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Property
Bill
Appliances
Goal
Results
What type of property is this for?
We will tailor the recommendation based on your property type.
🏠
Home or Residential
Apartment, bungalow, maisonette
🏢
Business or Office
Shop, office, warehouse
🌾
Farm or Agricultural
Farm, greenhouse, irrigation
🏫
Institution
School, hospital, church
What is your monthly electricity bill?
Drag the slider to your approximate monthly electricity bill amount.
KSh 8,000
per month
KSh 1,000KSh 25,000KSh 50,000+
kWh

Sets the sun hours we size the panels on.

Which appliances do you want to power?
Select everything you could run at the same time. The total is your peak load.
Everyday electronics
✓
💡
LED bulbs, 6 (small home)
~54W
✓
💡
LED bulbs, 12 (medium home)
~108W
✓
💡
LED bulbs, 20 (large home)
~180W
✓
📱
Phone and tablet charger
~25W
✓
📶
WiFi router or fibre ONT
~20W
✓
📺
Decoder
~30W
✓
📺
TV, 32 to 55 inch
~120W
✓
🔊
Sound system or woofer
~150W
✓
💻
Laptop
~90W
✓
🌀
Fan, standing or ceiling
~80W starts at 1.5x
✓
🖨️
Printer or scanner
~180W
✓
📷
Security or CCTV
~500W
Refrigeration and cooling
✓
🧊
Refrigerator, single door
~150W starts at 4x
✓
🧊
Refrigerator, double door or inverter
~250W starts at 2x
✓
❄️
Chest freezer
~300W starts at 4x
✓
🌬️
Air conditioner, 12,000 BTU
~1,800W starts at 2.5x
✓
🏪
Commercial fridge or chiller
~1,200W starts at 4x
Kitchen and household
✓
🥤
Blender or food processor
~600W starts at 2x
✓
🍽️
Microwave
~1,400W starts at 1.2x
✓
👕
Washing machine, twin tub
~500W starts at 2x
✓
👕
Washing machine, front load
~2,200W starts at 1.2x
✓
👔
Iron box
~2,000W
Heating and pumps
✓
☕
Electric kettle
~2,200W
✓
🥫
Water dispenser, hot and cold
~600W starts at 1.5x
✓
💧
Water pump, 0.5 to 2HP
~1,500W starts at 3.5x
✓
🚰
Instant shower head
~4,500W
✓
🍳
Hotplate or induction cooker
~2,000W
✓
🔥
Cooker or oven
~3,000W
✓
🚿
Water heater, storage
~3,000W
Business and workshop
✓
💇
Hair dryer or clippers
~600W
✓
💅
Salon equipment
~500W starts at 1.5x
✓
🔨
Power tools
~1,500W starts at 2.5x
✓
⚙️
Welding machine
~4,000W starts at 3x
✓
🌽
Posho mill or grinder
~5,500W starts at 3.5x
Peak load selected: 0 W
What is your primary goal?
This determines how we design your system.
📉
Reduce My Electricity Bill
Grid tied hybrid: use solar during the day, grid at night. Save 60 to 80 percent.
🔌
Go Fully Off Grid
Complete energy independence, no electricity bills. More batteries needed.
🔋
Backup Power Only
Keep essentials running during blackouts: lights, fridge, router.

Your Recommended Solar System

How your system was sized
Peak load selected
Safety headroom, 25 percentx 1.25
Start up surge
Minimum inverter capacity
Daily energy use
Storage required
Array required
💰

System components

Estimated total
🤝
Labour cost is negotiable. We work with you to find a fair price based on your location, system size, and site conditions.
💳
Payment plans available. Ask about instalment options. Pay as little as over 24 months.
Estimates based on current stock. Actual costs may vary. Labour is negotiable. Solar equipment is VAT exempt (Finance Act 2021).

What size inverter do you need?

Add up everything you could switch on at the same time. That total is your peak load.

Safety headroom

We add 25 percent so the inverter is never asked to run flat out all day. Running at full rating shortens its life and trips it when a motor starts.

x 1.25

You need an inverter of

9kW

Minimum capacity8.75 kW
Peak load7,000 W

What size battery bank do you need?

Start with the energy you use in a day, then decide how long the bank should carry you without sun.

How many units (kWh) you get through in a day. Your electricity bill or meter shows this.

kWh per day

How many days the bank should run the place with no charging at all. One day suits most homes. Two or three suits areas with long cloudy spells or critical loads.

days
Usable capacity

We size on 85 percent of the rated capacity, because draining a battery to empty shortens its life badly.

÷ 0.85

You need

3batteries

Storage required47 kWh
Each battery16 kWh
Bank installed48 kWh

How many solar panels do you need?

The array is sized on the energy you use in a day and the sun your site actually gets.

How many units (kWh) you get through in a day. Your electricity bill or meter shows this.

kWh per day

Pick the county and we will use the sun hours for that area. You can still adjust the figure below.

Hours of full strength sun on an average day. Most of Kenya sits between 4.5 and 6.

hours

System losses

Panels never give their full rating on a roof. Orientation, tilt, heat, dust, cable and inverter losses all take a share, so we size on 75 percent of those sun hours.

x 0.75 = 3.375 effective hours

You need

24panels

Array size12 kW
Each panel500 W
Array installed12 kW

What size AC breaker does the inverter need?

The breaker protects the cable between the inverter and the board. Size it on the inverter's maximum continuous output.

Pick one we stock, or enter the output below.

The inverter's rated output, not the load on it.

Single phase is the usual household supply. Three phase applies to larger commercial inverters.

Safety margin

We add 25 percent so the breaker is not sitting at its trip point whenever the inverter runs at full output.

x 1.25

Fit a breaker of

40A

Inverter current26.1 A
With safety margin32.6 A
Supply230V single phase