Components of Solar Power for Homes

Solar panels are the most visible component of a solar power system for your home.  These are typically placed on the south facing section of roof on your house.  Homes that are north of the equator face their solar panels to the south to capture as much sunlight as possible from the sun.  You can choose to place the solar panels on the ground if your roof has many obstacles that will shade your roof.

Solar shingles are another possibility for someone contemplating solar power for their home.  Solar shingles are dual purpose in that they capture the energy from the sun while also serving the same purpose as a traditional shingle, protecting your roof.

Inverters can be thought of as the brains and heart of a solar power system. The basic function of an inverter is to convert the direct current that is output from the solar panels/shingles into use-able alternating current to power your household appliances and lights. Some information you will have to decide on before purchasing an inverter will be whether or not you want to tie your system into the existing power grid, do you want a stand alone system, what size inverter your system will require and remote monitoring of your inverter.

Grid tie converters allow your solar system to be tied in to the local power grid and you can sell back power to the power company in many cases. These inverters monitor output from your system and if your batteries are charged it will then feed power back onto the power grid and you can get paid from your power company.

If you are just creating a system to only power items in your house then you will not require a grid tie converter, which can save you a couple of hundred dollars depending on the size of the inverter.

Sizing your inverter properly will also be one of the details that will be required prior to purchasing. You will have to consult your power bill and figure out what size solar power system you need or want. Solar inverters range from just a few hundred watts to many thousands of watts.

Another solar power system question you will have to ask yourself is if you want to spend the money to store excess power that you don't use during the peak power output of your system during the day.  Batteries can be expensive and require venting and some safety precautions when installing these in your house or nearby outbuildings. 

Batteries will also require maintenance and replacement.  We are all familiar with having the replace the battery in our vehicles and the same idea applies to solar batteries, also known as deep cycle batteries.

If you choose to install a system that includes batteries then you will require a charge controller for those batteries.  A charge controller monitors the status of the batteries and adjusts the current to them as appropriate.  If the batteries are very low then a charge controller will divert a large amount of power from the solar panels to the batteries so they are recharged in a quicker amount of time. 

When the batteries are fully charged the charge controller acts like a regulator.  The charge controller will check the charge of the batteries and supply a trickle charge when required.  Batteries loose power over time and require a trickle charge now and then to maintain them at peak power.

As you can see there are several different components that may or not be installed with a solar power system. The components that will be required will depend on your unique system and what you expect the system to do.

To learn a little more why converting to solar power will have to happen at an individual level visit Individual Homes and Solar Energy.

To learn more free information about these different components please visit the Home Solar Site.

Update:  Solar equipment and installation prices continue to decline.  We are now looking at roughly $8 per watt installed, 2010 estimates, compared $11 per watt a few years ago.  I wonder in which year we will see the prices of solar drop below or equal the price of fossil fuel based electrical prices?

Please leave any comments you might have. I am always interested in learning new ideas or thoughts on solar power, which I believe is the most wasted energy source we have available.