How to Choose the Right Solar Power System for Your Home
If you have made the choice to look at installing a solar power system for your home you need to see which one will be right for you. You need to look at the type of solar panel you will use, batteries, installation costs as well as the amount of power you want to produce. Because of the way these systems are set up you will find most companies will offer custom solutions to your needs. The most important point to look at is your power usage and be sure not to confuse this with your power costs.
Analysing Your Power Usage
Most of us would not think much of turning on a light, having the television on and the children using the computer to play games. In reality all of your household devices are using up power and this really adds up. So how do you figure out your power usage?
Start by looking at your electrical bill as it will have been charged according to your usage.
Take a good look at your appliances, especially refridgerators, televisions, heaters and computers.
Can you cut down on any of your power usage?
These three points will give you a rough guide as to what kind of solar power system will be right for your home. You will also need to ask yourself if you will be adding this to merely reduce electricity costs or to produce all of your own electricity. There are systems to suit all needs and budgets and most can be modified to suit your needs.
Zero Bills or Profit to Make?
When you choose solar panels for your home you will want to either reduce your costs or have a surplus of energy produced. This will all be dependent on the size of your solar power system which consists of:
Solar Panels – photovoltaic panels made of silicon that convert light into electricity.
Batteries – yes, you need these to store all that energy in daylight so you can use it at night.
Charge Controller – makes sure your batteries are not overloaded.
Inverter – changes the output from direct current (DC) to alternating current (AC) which is used throughout the home.
Connection to the power grid – if you plan on selling excess power you need a meter installed (usually by the power company you will be selling to).
Can You Customise?
Many of you will be looking to start off small to try it out and perhaps later looking at expanding your home based power plant. Most packages can be added to later and merely require additional solar panels and batteries to store the extra power. So even if you start out with a modest system to save some money you could increase its size to the point where you are producing excess electricity.
The main points to consider when choosing a solar power system are costs to install, possible savings and ability to expand. Not all of us want to be self sufficient so smaller systems are fine in order to reduce bills from power companies. For larger systems that will produce enough power for all of your needs make sure you get an accurate assessment of your current and future power use.
