In this article, I am going to discuss what each piece of a solar power system does, and what role the part plays in the system. Each component handles a specific job, though you don’t have to include every component in every solar project. A typical solar power system generates electricity, stores the electricity in batteries to be used later and then changes the Direct Current electricity from the batteries to the same type of Alternating Current electricity that comes from the wall sockets in your home.
Solar Panels
The first part of a solar power system is the solar panels, which generate electricity using energy from the sun. Electrons are knocked loose from a layer of silicon after being hit by photons from sunlight. These electrons are electricity and are sent through wires. A solar panel is composed of many solar cells, each of which generates about 1/2 volt. By putting together the correct number of solar cells, any voltage you need can be generated. Building your own solar panel and producing your own free electricity is actually relatively cheap and easy. To read more about how to build your own solar panel, take a look at Building Your Own DIY Solar Panel
Charge Controller
This part charges the batteries using the electricity generated by the solar panels. The electricity going to the batteries is regulated by the charge controller. As the batteries get close to fully charged, it slowly reduces the power sent to the batteries to make sure the batteries don’t overcharge. After the batteries are fully charged, it will also “top off” the batteries if the batteries fall below full charge to make sure the batteries remain fully charged. For more information about charge controllers, see All About Solar Charge Controllers
Batteries
The majority of solar power systems use 12 volt batteries like you find in your car. The most common type are sealed lead acid. This type of battery is rugged, easy to find and cheap. Weight is the only real downside, but since you aren’t going to be moving the batteries around, it isn’t really much of a problem. You can often get surplus batteries from places like computer UPS systems for very cheap or even free.
Power Inverter
A power inverter transforms the 12v Direct Current (DC) power from the batteries into 120v Alternating Current (AC) power like what comes out of your wall sockets. There are two different kinds of power inverter called Modified Sine Wave (MSW) and True Sine Wave (TSW). There are two kinds: Modified Sine Wave (MSW) and True Sine Wave (TSW). Of the two, TSW is the better one because it exactly matches the electricity that comes from the sockets in your house. MSW is cheaper than TSW, but it is generally worth it in the long run to pay more for a TSW inverter.
Complete Solar Power System
Now we will put all the pieces together into a complete system. The roof is where the solar panels are generally mounted. Wires are used to connect the solar panels together and then send the electricity to the charge controller. The charge controller charges the batteries using the power coming from the solar panels. The power from the charge controller is stored in the batteries all day while sunlight is striking the solar panels. The DC electricity from the batteries is converted into the standard 120v AC electricity that your appliances are used to by the power inverter. This type of solar system can be small enough to power just a single device or big enough to power your whole house.
If you’re interested in how much it would cost for enough solar panels to power your entire house, check out this guide to Cost of Home Solar Panels
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