How To Create A Solar + Battery + Inverter Scenario
Use the solar-hybrid scenario when the system must support loads and also benefit from solar production during the period you are modelling.
When to use this scenario
This scenario is ideal when solar is expected to support daytime loads, partially recharge the battery, or reduce the amount of grid or shore-power charging needed.
It is often the better fit when the system is meant to do more than survive a short outage. If the goal is a more complete solar-assisted setup, this is usually the scenario that gives the more realistic planning picture.
Set up the scenario
Create the scenario from the Scenario editor after the version's appliance list is already in place. New users will usually get the clearest start from the guided route. Choose Solar + battery hybrid, let the page create the load groups, enter the usage hours, and then use Complete Guided Setup so GridGap can prepare a practical starting set of scenario inputs.
If you already know the scenario inputs you want to enter, use Start with blank scenario settings instead. That opens the solar-hybrid editor directly without the guided seeding step.
This opens the wider set of battery, inverter, charging, and solar inputs. The battery side still matters fully, but now the app also needs enough solar detail to estimate array size, panel count, and solar-controller requirements.
Solar fields
In addition to the battery and inverter inputs, pay close attention to Panel profile, Preferred panel size, Panel voltage (Vmp), Panel voltage (Voc), and Average daily sunshine hours.
These fields shape the basic solar production side of the result. They affect the required solar wattage, the raw minimum panel count, the final installed panel count, and the later string and MPPT guidance.
You should also review the loss and weather assumptions carefully. That means Installation efficiency profile, custom installation efficiency where relevant, cloud-related settings, and MPPT controls in Technical mode.
Battery recharge behaviour
One of the most important solar-hybrid decisions is whether solar only needs to support daytime loads, or whether it must also help recharge the battery after night-time use.
The Include extra solar to recharge batteries setting controls that choice. If it is enabled, Night battery recharge target (%) tells GridGap how much of the previous night's battery usage you want solar to put back.
If a user still has help from the grid or from shore power to charge batteries, solar may only need to cover a supplement rather than the full recharge burden. This setting can change the final panel requirement quite sharply, so it deserves careful thought.
Simple and Technical mode
In Simple mode, the workflow stays more guided and easier to follow. In Technical mode, more detailed solar assumptions become visible, including MPPT efficiency, cloud behaviour, and override-style controls.
Technical mode is useful when you need a closer fit to known panel, controller, or operating assumptions. If you are still finding the baseline shape of the system, start simple and move into technical comparisons only after the broad direction makes sense.
Installation & Protection
If you enable Installation & Protection, the solar-hybrid scenario also picks up the wider planning inputs for the battery, PV, and AC sides of the installation.
This includes fields that feed the later installation guidance layer. They are useful when you want more practical indicative output around cable runs, environments, and protection preferences. They are not required if your main aim is still the core battery, inverter, charging, and solar calculations.
What to review after calculating
After calculation, review the Solar tab, the Solar Controller tab, the Warnings tab, and the cloud-sensitivity part of the result carefully.
That is where you will see whether the clean installed panel count, the string guidance, the MPPT requirements, and the solar surplus or shortfall make practical sense for the assumptions you entered.
If the solar result looks much heavier than expected, do not jump straight to changing panel size alone. First check whether the load, duty cycle, sunshine, recharge, and loss assumptions are all realistic.