How Electricity Works When You Have a Solar Power System

Solar panels harness the power of the sun.  With the help of inverters the power generated from the solar panels is modified to match the grid and the electricity in your home.

How Solar Energy Works

What happens when solar panels are installed at your home? Here is a quick overview of how solar energy works to supply electricity for your family:

1. Sunlight Shines on the Panels: The sun’s rays shine on the solar cells. Strategic placement of the solar panels maximizes the amount of sunlight you can access each day. Whenever the sun is shining, these solar cells can convert sunlight into electricity.
2. Electrical Current is Created: The sunlight hitting the cells sets electrons in motion, creating a current that runs through the semiconductor silicon wafers within the solar panels.
3. Conversion of Energy: The enegy generated by solar panels is in the form of direct current (DC) power. This type of energy can not power your home, so it’s necessary to use inverters to convert the DC current into AC current and to match the sine wave from the utility. Most homes are powered using alternating current (AC) electricity.
4. Electricity in the Home: Now that the electricity has been converted, it can be distributed in your home. This energy can be used to turn on the lights, run your appliances, and power anything else that runs on electricity within your home, including an electric car. It works in the same way as the power that comes from the electric utility company.
5. Grid Connection and Net Metering: Even though your solar system is generating electricity during the day, you still need access to electricity at night. Unless you have battery back up with your solar system, your solar will turn on in the morning when the sun shines on the solar panels and goes off at dusk.  Even though your solar is off for the night, your home will remain connected to the power company, giving you the option to draw power when needed. The excess electricity that your solar system produced during the day will be sent back to the grid. This surplus power gives you credits that you can use when you need to tap into the grid for power at night or when you are using more power than your solar system is producing. This is called net metering with your utility company.  Net metering measures electricity flowing in both directions.

Even if you don’t understand the technology of solar power, it’s easy to see the benefits your family will enjoy: lower utility costs, eco-friendly power, and a lower carbon footprint. If you’d like to learn more about solar, New Day Solar is here to help! Call for a no obligation consultation at: (855) 444-6329 or you can visit us online at:  www.newdaysolar.com.  We have been installing solar in this area since 1988 and will design and install a custom system that will meet you and your family’s energy needs!