Most Frequently Asked Questions(FAQ) About Solar
FAQ Table of Contents
Solar Energy System Basics
What is solar energy?
What’s better? Solar or wind power?
What are the different types of solar energy systems?
Do I have to go off the grid when I switch to solar energy?
How does solar energy benefit the environment?
How long will my solar energy system last?
Why should I go solar now? Aren’t innovative new technologies on the way?
Why should I install a solar energy system on my home or business?
I want to go off-grid, would you recommend this?
What are the different types of solar inverters?
About Solar Panels
Will my solar panels withstand extreme weather conditions?
Monocrystalline and Polycrystalline, what’s the difference and which one should I pick?
What is solar panel efficiency and do I need a solar panel with high efficiency?
What are the different types of solar panels?
Do solar panels work in a blackout?
Will I ever need to replace my solar panels?
How do solar panels actually work?
Energy Production
Will solar panels produce the same amount of electricity all year long?
What is net metering?
Will my solar panels generate electricity during cloudy or rainy days? What about at night?
Is solar energy reliable and powerful enough for my home or business?
Financials
Will solar pay for itself?
How Much Does a Solar Energy System Cost?
Will solar panels raise my home or business’ property value?
How soon will I notice a difference in my electricity bills after switching to solar energy?
How much will I really save on my electricity bills every month?
How will switching to solar energy help me budget better?
Installation
What is the best option for installing solar panels with my budget?
Will installing solar panels damage my roof?
How long do solar panels take to install? Do you have to rewire my house?
How will I know if my property is a good candidate for solar panels?
What size solar energy system should I get?
Do I need to replace my roof before installing solar?
What happens during the solar installation process?
How much roof space will I need for a solar energy system?
Can I install solar panels on my property myself?
What should I do now if I want to increase my system size later?
Operations and Maintenance
How much will solar panel maintenance cost?
Are solar panels difficult to operate and maintain?
How will I know if a solar energy system is working?
Is a solar energy system noisy?
How do I check my solar energy system’s performance and kW generation?
Is my solar system covered by a warranty?
Do I need to clean my panels?
Solar Energy System Basics
1. What is solar energy?
Solar energy simply refers to the energy from the sun. It is one of the most prominent renewable energy technologies today along with wind energy and has the biggest potential of being the energy of the future. Since the sun shines every day, solar energy is renewable, which means that it will never run out of fuel. It also doesn’t emit any greenhouse gases during its operation, making it a cleaner alternative to traditional fossil fuel energy sources. Lastly, solar energy has become the cheapest energy source today, beating wind, hydroelectric, coal, gas, and nuclear energy.
2. What’s better? Solar or wind power?
Solar and wind energy are actually the 2 cheapest energy sources today, beating hydro, coal, gas and nuclear and are currently looking to be the best replacements for dirty fossil fuels as an energy source. In fact, did you know that it is now very common to have negative electricity prices in Germany because of their abundance of solar and wind energy?
In terms of what is better, it is hard to objectively comment about this since we are a solar company, but what we can say is that solar energy is the only energy source among all others that has the advantage of being modular, which means that it can be implemented as a form of distributed energy generation.
All the other energy sources, including wind, produce energy on large power plants. This is what we call a centralized energy generation. In contrast, solar energy can be installed virtually anywhere and power individual homes, which is what we mean by distributed energy generation. An advantage of distributed energy generation is the potential for individual homeowners to be independent power producers themselves. This can easily be achieved by installing solar panels on your roof.
3. What are the different types of solar energy systems?
There are 2 types of solar energy systems, on-grid and off-grid systems. The on-grid system is the most commonly installed because they don’t have batteries and are therefore cheaper, simpler, easier to operate, and maintain, and more cost-effective. Its disadvantages, however, is that you are still connected to the grid and you will still be affected by power interruptions and brownouts. On-grid systems also require the use of a net meter, which will allow you to sell the excess energy from it to the grid. On the other hand, with an off-grid system, you will then be disconnected from the grid and will just rely on your solar panels and batteries for your electricity supply. During the morning, your solar panels are oversized to produce more energy than your daytime consumption. The excess energy is then used to charge your batteries to be used at night.
We at Andal Solar always recommend our clients to have an on-grid solar energy system instead especially if their house already has an existing utility connection because it is just much, much cheaper. In fact, for the same system size, the cost of off-grid systems can be twice as much. Also, off-grid systems must be able to supply for your total consumption, so you will need a bigger system size (and of course, a bigger investment) of an off-grid system. This is in contrast to on-grid systems, where you can adjust your desired system size based on your budget or the amount of savings that you would want to have.<