Residential Solar Systems
The main component of any residential solar power system is the solar panels. They are at the heart of any solar power system and actually convert the sunlight to electricity. There are quite a few differences between solar panels, even though many panels look similar , and the homeowner must consider several things before choosing which panels to use for his or her house . A great set of plans for building your own solar panel is GreenDIYEnergy Review .
All modern solar panels are much better than older panels in both construction and efficiency. Because of these advances, any homeowner will be better off with newer panels than they would have been even a few years ago. Even though modern panels are generally better than older panels, care should still be taken when selecting a solar panel to use as there are a lot of differences between panels. Selection should be done based on how much electricity you need to produce and your budget.
The first thing to consider is the voltage level requirement of the system you are building. Residential solar panels have several standard voltage levels and you need to choose with one to use for your system. The decision about voltage will dictate which panels you select and also which power inverter you use. Higher voltage panels have some advantages as they have less power loss in the long wire runs than lower voltage panels have, but they are also more expensive. Home solar panels will usually output power at 12, 24 or 48 volts, though there are some panels that are even higher. Selecting the highest voltage your budget allows is generally the best course because of the lower power loss in the wires.
Voltage level will also affect which solar charge controller you select .
Efficiency is yet another difference between different solar panels. The efficiency difference between different panels, even ones that look alike , can be as much as 10%. This is a giant difference in the amount of electricity that will be generated with a given level of sunlight. The higher efficiency panels will produce a lot more energy over the life of the panel. Greater efficiency also means you will need fewer panels to produce the same amount of electricity and you will need less space for panels as well. It is important to look at the efficiency rating and again select the one with the highest efficiency that you can afford. If you spend a little more money now and get a better quality panel, you will get that difference back many, many times over the life of the solar panel.
Another consideration is some of the specialty panels being produced now. A single panel that combines both thermal and solar together is one such specialty panel being produced now. This type of panel can be used for both hot water and electricity.This kind of panel can produce both electricity and hot water at the same time. These panels will make the most efficient use of available space on your roof and provide double the benefit.
Something else that has become available recently are panels with built in micro inverters. A micro inverter is a power inverter that is built into the solar panel itself rather than being separate. A power inverter converts the DC electricity from a solar panel or battery into the AC power that your appliances need. Usually all the solar panels and batteries feed into a single large power inverter for the entire system. With a micro inverter in each solar panel, you can build up your system slowly rather than having to pay up-front for a larger power inverter to support all the panels you will eventually buy. With a micro inverter you can get the benefits of AC power at each step as you build up the system. The AC electricity will also be at a higher voltage and have less loss in the long runs of wire. If you’re interested in micro inverters, there is an in-depth article at Micro Inverter .