One
of the most striking features of the urban lifestyle
today include colorful rooftops that sparkle in a
thousand brilliant hues as sunrays hit them with a
dazzling glare. However, as one must know, these are not
part of any decorative ornamentation meant for
highlighting the splendor of the home but are very
practical solar panels that provide electricity for the
home owner. A recent survey conducted in the United
States indicate that more than 10,000 homes in most
major cities in the US have a home solar power
system installed in them while around 200,000
residential blocks are provided with photovoltaic solar
power facilities as routine source of pure sine-wave AC
power. And the best news is that, this trend of going
solar is not just restricted to the United States alone
as it is being seen in other parts of the world as well.
It also seems that the rate of people opting for solar
power systems is going up
too.
Understanding
the solar power system
A
solar power system consist of a solar panel that may
come with or without battery backup, an inverter that
can transform the DC power that is generated through the
panel into usable 120 volt AC current, necessary wirings
for connecting the components and non-conductor clamps
and fixtures to install the panel on rooftops or any
other convenient area that gets sunlight most of the
daylight hours. As a matter of fact, the PVs or
Photovoltaic cells are usually combined together to make
a module while several modules are assembled to make a
solar panel.
Who
are the people who use such systems and why do they do
this? Let us now take a look at this. Although a solar
power system is mostly used for electrification in
non-grid areas (where utility power is not available),
people living in grid areas also opt for solar power
system for two primary reasons.
Firstly,
a solar power system can function only during the
daylight hours, the power generation coming to a halt as
soon as the sun goes down. This was one major technical
challenge this technology faced and it severely
restricted the use of solar power in the earlier years.
But all that has now changed as the power that is
generated can even be stored for retrieval and use
during the night time. And also what happens if the sky
remains overcast on a particular day? The stored solar
power becomes handy then – a modern day solar system
makes this possible.
There
are other options too that we will now discuss. People
who have opted for a Grid-tied solar power system can
draw the necessary power from the grid all through the
night. It just needs to be connected to the Grid. The
other reason for linking the solar power system with the
grid is for trading the surplus power that is generated
through the day with the grid. You might be surprised to
know that many people who are using solar power these
days are doing this – that is making their own power and
selling off any excess that they do not need. One of the
finest examples of such arrangement in busy metropolitan
areas includes Google’s headquarters in
To
be honest about it, a solar power system actually proves
economical in home sites where power grids are located
at a distance, say a couple of miles away. The cost of
erecting power poles and drawing power lines through
them to the site can be very dear, as compared to
installation of the SPS (solar power system) at the
structure itself. And once the installation becomes
effective, one need not have to worry about monthly
billing for the power consumed since the raw material
for the generation is practically nil as one has already
inherited the Sun. The government and the local
authorities are also offering many incentives to make
people use solar power systems. Such incentives are in
the form of various rebates, discounts and financial
assistances that are currently linked up to the
installation of SPS at home or workplaces by several
bodies and local authorities.
Save
power and cut your electricity bill with solar power.
You can also earn some extra money by selling your
surplus power and of course this is an eco-friendly
alternative as well. So are you ready to install a
system in your home? Get a guide that shows you where to
install it, how to set up the solar power
system, where to get the parts and batteries
from cheaply, how to wire the system and also the safety
precautions. With this information you can do it quite
easily and of course safely.
