[LEFT]Component of Solar Panel Energy System
A Solar Power energy system can be used by anyone to supply all their electrical needs, provide back-up power, or even just as a supplement to the normal electrical grid connection to a utility company. It is ideal for remote locations where power is unavailable or too expensive to hook-up to.
1_Solar Panels make FREE electricity from the sun, have no moving parts to fail, and last over 25 years. They can be mounted on fixed, adjustable, or tracking type mounting systems. Getting power from the sun’s energy is not only Free, but it’s
Fun to setup a solar energy system and be your own utility company!
2_A Charge Controller is necessary to protect the batteries from over charging and supply them with the proper amount of energy to promote long battery life. The popular 3 stage charging cycle of PWM charge controllers is fully explained and shown visually on a multi-color chart. Also covered are the newer MPPT (maximum power point tracking) controllers.
3_Power Inverters are available in 3 basic designs. The pros & cons of all 3 are explained so you can decide which one is right for you. The power inverter converts your storage battery power into the 120 volts AC that runs your appliances. It is the heart of your solar energy system. Unless you only run 12 volt DC appliances you will need a power inverter to supply your AC.
4_Without Storage Batteries to store energy you would only have power when the sun was shining or the generator was running. Here we discuss 4 major categories of batteries for solar power systems. The batteries in your system are very important. The care & feeding section of this tutorial is a must read to ensure long battery life and good performance.
5_Even the largest Solar Energy System would not have enough power for many consecutive days of no sun. The AC Generator tutorial will tell you what size generator you’ll need and the best techniques to use when charging your batteries and/or supplying power to extra large appliances.
6_ To prevent dangerous overheating or inefficient tranfer of power, the wires and cables in a solar power system must be correctly sized. This tutorial provides a convenient chart to determine wire size based on solar panel power output and the distance between the solar panels and the batteries. For safety and good performance of your solar power system you will have to use the appropriate size wires when connecting the components of your system. [/left]