So you’re thinking about getting a renewable energy system? I have designed this informative section to guide you through the process of determining which type of system would suite your needs best. Let us start off by stating types of systems.
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| “OFF GRID†| vs. | “GRID TIE†|
In terms of electrical systems, you can have either a “grid-tie†system or an “off-grid†Solar Panels Birmingham system. The grid, in this circumstance, is the power line that comes into your house. A grid-tie system is one that interfaces with the power lines in a way that it feeds excess power produced by your renewable energy system back into the power lines. This results in the spinning your power meter backwards. When your system is not producing power, grid power is used to energize your appliances in its absence. The result is called net metering. It’s a sharing of electricity between energy you produce and energy the utility produces.
You will either get charged for the difference between energy you’ve used versus what you’ve produced, or get paid at an avoided cost rate should you produce more power than you use. Utilities vary from state to state on terms of net metering systems. In New York, most utilities will pay you for excess power produced at their avoided cost rate per KwHR on an annual basis.
Grid-tie Solar Panels Bromsgrove system owners do not need to monitor their power usage as much as off-grid system owners, because they can not run out of power as long as the grid is supplying electricity. An off-grid system is one that independently produces power without electricity from the utility grid. Off-grid homes are usually located in remote areas, where power lines are not located and would be very expensive to extend. An off-grid system must be sized more carefully because it does not the have luxury of a power line to supplement any potential low power time periods. It takes more consideration from owners of an off-grid system to manage power usage versus power production as compared to a grid-tie system owner, who can rely on utility power lines to provide them with power during a potential shortfall in power production.
Battery based systems are a great idea for backup power in the event of power outages, which can occur at any time for multiple reasons. Systems can have large batteries that are used to provide power for different amounts of time during outages. They are rechargeable from different pieces of these renewable systems. Backup power, in the form of batteries, are an absolutely necessary in an off-grid system, however they are optional in a grid-tie system. If grid-tie system owners want to have electricity in the event of a utility power line failure, then they could have batteries incorporated into their system. This will ensure them power when no utility power is available.
Battery storage banks can be sized differently to suit the owner’s needs. They are rated in amp-hours. Depending on how much energy a home consumes, results in how long a fully charged battery bank can provide power for the owners, without being recharged. Often, homeowners select certain important appliances to be powered during a utility outage and keep only those selected appliances powered.
There are several components of renewable energy systems that can be mixed and matched to produce power from a Solar Panel Birmingham. One of these components is the photovoltaic (PV) panel, or better known as solar panels. These panels produce electricity when the sun shines on them. They can be mounted on roofs, poles, or the ground. Solar panels can be installed in a variety of combinations to match an expected power output. Naturally, the more panels in a system, the more the power they will produce.
Another component is the wind turbine. Wind turbines produce electricity when the wind is blowing and have varying power outputs depending on wind speeds. They can be used in both grid tie and off grid applications. Generally, wind is increased and less disrupted as you rise off the ground. This is why the wind turbines are mounted on tall towers. Winds tend to blow more in New York during the winter rather than in the summer. For this reason, a hybrid wind/solar system will give a more steady annual power production as opposed to each one by itself.
Another system one can opt for is a solar hot water system. This type of system provides hot water for domestic use or for space heating. Water is circulated through a hot water panel, which is different from a PV panel. A solar hot water panel contains piping which allows fluid to flow through it. The piping is heated by direct sunlight which passes the heat onto the fluid. As I am sure you have put your arm on your car door after the sun has been beating down on it, so you can understand how the sun can be a viable heat source. Many solar hot water systems have insulated tanks, which can keep water hot for a longer period of time. Most hot water systems also have some type of auxiliary heat source in order to heat water in times of insufficient sunshine. Solar hot water systems are usually the least costly and give the quickest payback.