While it is likely you have heard about the benefits of having a solar system if you want to make your home greener, you might not know how many solar panels you need to satisfy all your energy needs. The first step in determining how many panels you will need is assessing your goals. While your main aim is to make your home greener, do you also want to recoup your investment quickly, save as much money as possible, or stop relying on the grid entirely? Once you have determined your goals, here are some additional factors to consider to know how many panels you need for your home.
Amount of Power You Need
The first step is determining your energy requirements. You can do this easily by checking your past electricity bills. Once you know how much power you use in a given period, you can calculate the amount of energy you consume in an hour. You then multiply this number by the number of peak sunlight hours you get and then divide that by the wattage of a single solar panel, usually 150-400kw.
How Large Is Your Home?
Larger homes have higher energy requirements due to a higher number of appliances, lights and the use of air conditioning in the summer. For smaller homes, you will need enough solar panels to produce about 200 kWh (kilowatt-hours) per month. For larger homes, you might need a system that produces about 2000kwh per month. Because solar panels do not operate at 100% efficiency, add a 25% cushion to ensure you get enough power.
Hours of Sunlight
If you live in an area that gets a lot of sunlight, such as Perth, your panels will generate more power so you will need less of them. The converse is also true.
Your Roof Size
For larger roofs, you can opt for larger panels that produce more power but are less efficient than smaller panels. For smaller roofs, opt for smaller, high-efficiency solar panels to make the best use of the area you have while getting enough power for your use. Do note that high-efficiency panels are more expensive per watt-hour produced but they will produce enough power in the long-term while allowing you to make the best use of your roof size.
Talk to a Professional
If you want to save some time and save yourself from doing all the calculations, you can always talk to a professional. The consultants at Renew Energy can discuss your solar requirements with you. They can also come to your home to assess your needs and ensure you end up with the right solar panels Perth. They will also repair and service your solar panels once they have them installed to ensure you extract maximum benefit from your solar panels.
There are a lot of different factors that will determine the number of solar panels as well as the energy output you need for your home. Once you learn what these are, you can talk to a professional installer to get you the solar panels and associated accessories you need.
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