RPS Solar

One of the best things you can do is invest in solar power for your home. Not only does it put less strain on the environment, but the sun is not going to send you a bill for the energy you use. So, while the equipment to harvest solar energy is going to require an initial investment. You will never have to put down money for the sun, or at least not for the next 5 billion years.

But this article is not going to focus on the benefits of using solar power in your home, seeing as these are pretty obvious. Instead, it will look at how to use solar power in your home. For those who are just learning about solar power, all the rumors and information can be a little overwhelming. So, let’s break it down to basics and help you get your solar array installed.

Decide How Much Solar Energy You Want

The first thing you want to think about is how much solar energy you plan on using. This is a crucial question because it speaks to the type of array you ultimately get installed. Here are some basics about the two common systems homeowners typically choose between.

• Grid-Tied:

With a grid-tied system, your home remains connected with the power grid. However, you also have a solar array that provides a degree of energy depending on capability. For example, homeowners like to use solar power throughout the day. Then they switch to grid power at night, or if cloudy days hinder solar energy harvesting. You can consider a grid-tied system as having the best of both worlds.

• Off-The-Grid

When you go off the grid, your solar array is powerful enough to cover your maximum energy needs. You will also have a battery bank for storing energy that is not used throughout the day. The stored energy can be used during the night. And while you can’t tap into grid power, you are not vulnerable to blackouts.

How To Choose?

Solar arrays are incredibly versatile in terms of choosing one for your particular situation. In this case, you first decide if you want to depend on solar entirely, or do you want to supplement the energy you use from the grid. Once you decide, it is a matter of purchasing enough panels and a strong enough inverter.

What Does The Inverter Do?

Energy collected by solar panels needs to be converted from DC to AC. Otherwise, you will not be able to use this renewable energy inside your home. Hence the reason for installing an inverter. The inverter is responsible for making this conversion happen.

Buy Quality Equipment

For the most part, solar panels can harvest solar energy for up to twenty years or more. But they lose efficiency over time. Just like the battery bank and the inverter. If you want to get the most out of your investment, buy quality equipment that will stay effective for longer.

Consider Adding A Battery Bank

It is not mandatory to have a battery bank when you install a solar array. But it can be very useful if you like the idea of using solar at night as well. There are many different types to choose from and they typically last several years.

Do Not Worry Too Much About Maintenance

Finally, don’t worry too much about maintenance. Solar panels do not have any moving parts. So, it’s a matter of keeping the panels clean and checking the health of the inverter. Other than that, you can just enjoy the free energy you get.

And this concludes this basic guide on how to use solar power in your home. See? it’s not as complex as you thought.

Solar energy is a form of sustainable energy obtained from the sun’s radiation. This type of energy can be converted to heat or electricity using solar panels. Based on the issue of climate change, finding sustainable resources is more important than ever. This article will provide information to the different advantages of solar power.

1: A Positive Impact On The Environment

Similar to wind power, solar energy has a positive impact on the environment as compared to fossil fuels. Solar power does not produce any greenhouse gasses and will not pollute lakes or oceans. It requires a minimal amount of water for maintenance, unlike nuclear power plants who need at least times more water. The production of solar energy does not produce any noise; therefore, this can maintain quiet in any urban areas.

2: Reducing The Energy Bill

By generating electricity using self-sustainable sources, you will use less energy from the utility supplier. This reduction can translate to savings on energy expenses. Moreover, you can earn money by selling any unused energy you have generated through your solar installation back to the grid. Solar panel grants are also available to make this green investment far more beneficial. Basically, the more energy produced by the solar panels, the less you will require from an expensive energy provider.

3: Producing Energy During The Peak Hours

According to research, energy demand is often higher during the late morning/afternoon timeframe as compared to early evening or early morning. Consequentially, energy usage will increase between the hours of 10 am and 5 pm. Solar power is able to reach maximum production capacity during these hours. Any electricity produced during this peak period has higher value than that generated at night. The additional electricity provided by solar energy ensures that the price in peak periods can be reduced dramatically.

4: Solar Power Is Applicable In Any Setting

As long as you have access to sunshine, solar energy can be utilized. This is especially benefit for people living in remote rural areas without any access to energy providers. Research shows that a vast number of people across the globe live without any access to electricity. Using independent solar panels can help residents in these areas with access to electricity and improving the lives of millions.

5: Less Energy Is Lost During Long-Distance Travelling

Approximately 4% of energy is lost during long-distance travel and power distribution. The longer the distances to be traveled, the more energy is lost between production and supply. The losses may not seem important; however, they can impact the performance of installation in the areas with high population density. Using solar panels, it is possible to reduce the travel distance and increase the effectiveness of energy production.

6: Improving Grid Security

An energy grid is less susceptible to blackouts if power plants are formed over a large distance. Grids with high penetration of solar power works using thousands of energy production facilities over a wide range. This increases the security of the energy grid when looking at energy overload.

7: Increased Job Creation

Another benefit to using solar energy is the issue of job creation. A large part of the expenses associated with solar energy comes from the installation of solar panels. It is necessary to use trained workers to install the panels; thereby, creation of jobs in a certain region. Moreover, using these solar panels will increase the economy and positively influence the local communities.

Final Words On The Matter

As can be seen there are various advantages to using solar panels for solar power production. Ranging from job creation and grid security to improved efficiency and accessibility of electricity, one can see the benefits involved when using this sustainable resource.

A revolution is sweeping the world. It is one that sees mindsets changing. More and more consumers are becoming aware that the way that fossil fuels are being used is doing untold damage to the environment. These are energy sources that humanity must move away from. At the same time technology related to renewable energy is developing at breakneck speed. So fast in fact that it may be difficult to grasp the trends in this type of energy that will be shaping our world in years to come. However, here are some developments that are worth noting.

The first trend is that renewable energy is continuing to capture the minds of not only consumers – but of governments as well. In fact if current trends continue it is entirely possible that the U.S. alone will be producing around 80% of its energy through the use of renewable technology by 2050. This may seem like a long wait for renewable to supply that large a percentage. However, if technology continues to be refined that goal is well within grasp. Although global warming may be ignored by certain governments it has become abundantly clear that renewable are an important part of limiting the effects of Greenhouse Gases on the planet – and that is one of the factors that is increasing its attractiveness.

Wind Power is swiftly becoming the energy generation technology of choice. The advances in this technology mean that it is now more efficient than ever before. China is currently the leader when it comes to power generation of this type. however, consumers in other developed nations can expect a more intensive roll-out of wind generation installations. The U’S. is second on the list of countries turning towards wind power, with Germany third and Spain in fourth place. The geographical spread of wind generation plants should give an idea of how this technology is spreading – and innovation is the name of the game. Discussions about the use of drones, for instance, to harness the power of the wind make it an extremely exciting technology.

One of the most exciting potential developments is in harnessing the power of tides and waves in order to generate energy. It is now a simple cost issue. Scientists have grasped the theory of tidal power generation – but further study is required in order to balance cost with benefit. We are not there yet – but it holds enormous promise. Countries such as Canada, France and the United Kingdom have already installed tidal power generation plants – these initial installations are providing valuable input that will allow the technology to be perfected.

Solar power has long been a mainstay of renewable energy generation – but there is still much more that can be done to more efficiently harness the power of the sun. A new mineral coating known as a ‘perovskite layer‘ holds enormous promise in boosting the efficiency of solar panels.

Other technologies such as utilizing biomass (sometimes from waste) are now becoming more widespread – especially in those areas where energy infrastructure may not reach the standards that those in the developed world enjoy. By burning waste, energy can become much more freely available. Even gas generated by cattle can be harnessed – as is happening in South Africa where an automobile manufacturing plant now powers up to a third of production thanks to the gases generated at a nearby farm.

The future of renewable energy is looking bright. We have the theory – and to a large extent the technology. The challenge is now to increase the effectiveness of the technology so that the cost-benefit analysis makes renewable even more acceptable.

If you’ve finally gotten your hands on an all-new solar panel without the polarity labels, you’re going to need to figure some things out before you can get to using it. One of the main ones is the positive and negative terminals because you’re going to either damage the panel or even cause injury to yourself if you get them wrong during connection. Our article features some important information on how you can easily determine the negative and positive terminals.

In order to determine the positive and negative of your solar panel is to examine the diode. You’re going to need to open your junction box in order to find the diode located inside. If you didn’t already know, diodes are used in order to aid with power loss. In this case, power loss easily occurs when the electricity within your solar panel has been shaded.

In essence, the diode goes on to create an alternative route for the potentially generated electricity whenever your panel experiences shading. However, this is done at a relatively higher resistance. Some panels have only one diode which essentially bypasses the entire panel while others have more than just one. When multiple diodes are present, they also easily bypass your panel as they come into operations.

After you’ve opened the junction box, you’re going to observe that the diode’s cathode is pointing to your positive side. This, therefore, means that the other side is obviously going to be negative. Additionally, if you’re still unsure you can easily measure the polarities with a voltmeter.

Commonly, the polarities of your solar panel can be successfully measured with a voltmeter. Voltmeters produce a relatively simple reading which goes on to indicate your panels’ polarity. In order to measure you’re going to need to measure across the wires or terminals. You’ll need to place the positive (red) lead on the meter on one side and the negative to the other.

Your negative lead is going to be black. Then you’ll need to ensure that you’ve set the meter to take DC readings. If for some reason you see a number with a negative, it simply means that you’ve placed your leads in the wrong direction. This can then be easily corrected by replacing each with the other.

After you’ve done this, you’ll then observe that the negative number has changed into a positive number, this now signifies that you’ve gotten the positive and negative side correctly. As we’ve mentioned before, when you’re inside the junction box, you’re going to observe the bypass diode. The striped side of the diode is usually on the red or rather positive lead. Hence, this method of using the meter is correct in determining both positive and negative.

Additionally, you’re only going to observe 3 volts being outputted. This is simply an indication of the solar panel being upside down within a building. Hence, only a small amount of light is getting to make contact with the panels. While it may be just a small amount, it is enough to successfully indicate the polarity readings.

However, if you attempted to measure the current within the panel at this time as well, there should be none since there is barely any light making contact. Voltages, on the other hand, are less likely to be affected in this way when it comes to light intensity.

As we conclude, we’ve just looked at how to successfully determine the positive and negative terminals on a solar panel. So, remember, you can check the diode as mentioned above, or you can easily use a voltmeter to determine them. Be sure to keep in mind that if you don’t determine positive and negative and the panels are set up, you can damage them pretty badly!