How To Choose Solar Panels For Homes
† Monday, August 16th, 2010Our sun is a source of renewable energy called solar energy. To convert solar energy right into electricity, a solar cell is employed. Solar cell is also known as photovoltaic cell or PV for short. Only a small amount of elecrticity is generated by a signle solar cell, so solar cells are organized and packaged into panels. Nowadays one can purchase both solar panels for commercial purposes and solar panels for homes.
As a rule, solar cells are made of crystalline silicon. When open to sun, wafer-based crystalline silicon cells make electricity. An average of 13% of solar power is converted to electrical power. Presently, 18% is achieved, but 30% is a targeted figure by researchers.
If you are thinking to install a solar system for your home, solar panels for homes are the primary equipment you should buy. In general, manufacturing methods and materials used differ for each kind of panels available in the market, so you should know the parameters of your application to be able to pick the appropriate home solar panel.
One thing to consider is whether your system will be stand-alone or connected to the grid. Keep in mind also your geographical area and pick the correct solar panel for your area. If you reside in a place where much sunlight is available, get the concentrating solar collectors. These kinds of panels are angled to absorb direct sunlight. Otherwise, make a choice of the non-concentrating solar collectors, because they are able to absorb reflected sunlight as well.
Solar panels that can be installed on your house are available in various power output ratings, in the range of 60 to 190 watts. If you need greater output than 190 watts, you need to buy more panels and set them up in an array.
Depending on the brand, one solar panel costs around $1,000. Mitsubishi, Sharp, Evergreen, Kyocera, Sanyo and Uni-Solar are popular brands. These products carry a 20-year warranty. In you can, find brands that have low manufacturing impact on nature.
You have to keep in mind the efficiency of different brands as panels with higher efficiency will pay for themselves in less period of time. Efficiency of 16 to 18% is already good, and expect around 10-year payback period. This will be reduced to 4 years when panels with 25% efficiency would be available in the future.
With new panels priced at about $1,000 a piece, the entire system for your home can cost you $20,000, if a contractor does the installation for you. If you can do it yourself, the cost will be reduced to less than 50%. You can save more if you buy broken panels and repair them yourself.
The market trend for solar panels slants towards more affordable panels. Besides, the federal and state governments offer incentives that help reduce the total cost of a solar energy system. With these factors in mind, many homeowners are considering installing home solar energy systems.
$20,000 for the cost of a system that could power a medium-size house is still ouside of the price range for the majority of people. The way out of this then is to get a solar energy system that only partially covers the energy requirements. Solar panels for homes could be installed for $5,000 and are enough to take 30% of the energy requirements. The number of residences powered by solar panels for homes is expected to grow in the future, thus contributing to a greener planet.