Frequent topics discussed at the office water cooler these days are whether energy prices will ever go back down and how does solar power work? A major worry of changing to solar is the expense of purchasing and installing the materials. But check out the ever increasing number of state and federal grants available to help with the purchase to help fund the project. Setting aside the initial cost factor, using solar power in the home is an attractive option.

The concept of solar power is the exact same in both residential and commercial uses with the scale of the application being the only difference. It is obvious that a factory or warehouse will require substantially a larger amount of electricity and therefore a more complicated and costly application.

In its most basic application, solar panels are a set of solar cells with a semiconductor that produces electricity when sunlight hits it. There are also solar panels that are made to heat the air and water in the building. When the solar panels produce electricity, it is transferred to the system’s controller-regulator to adjust the voltage/amperage to what your system uses, then transfers for current electricity needs or to the batteries to be stored for future use.

The essential parts of a solar power system consist of: 1. PV panels which are the solar or photovoltaic panels. 2. Current regulator which is a device for controlling the voltage or amperage of the electricity produced by the solar panel. 3 A storage system which is usually a group of batteries that will reserve for later use the power produced by the solar panels when the sun is up.

Solar panels are available in a wide range of prices according to the kind of installation you want. The typical box type of panels on the roof is adequate if the building is used for industry in an out-of-the-way spot. When installing solar panels on larger business or industrial buildings, note that not only can you mount panels on the roof you can also install solar panels on the ground. This will allow more energy to be generated

Solar panels can be mounted in a rooftop setup in addition to ground and pole mounts. The ground and pole mounts offer additional design flexibility especially when your structure is in the shade for part of the day. Solar panels can also be equipped with mechanisms that allow them to follow or “track the sun throughout the day maximizing their exposure to the suns rays. One of the largest drawbacks to solar installation is of course sunset. This is remedied by installing a battery array or storage system, or using supplemental power from the utility company power grid.

It is now possible to build the solar cells into the roof, awning and window features if you would like a hidden solar power features with a dual function. In a residential area roofing material which already has the solar cells included can be installed which function just the same as an asphalt shingle plus it has the added component of the solar cells which affords leeway in designing a house that looks like a home instead of something from outer space.

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