What You Should Know About Your Solar Panel

One of the cleanest renewable energy sources throughout the world is that of the Solar panel!

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If you have already joined the trend of millions who have invested in getting them installed in your home or office, then good for you. If you haven’t, however, there is no better time than now.

There are many advantages to this idea and we look at a few of these, as well as other important information you may need to know when you have these. When it comes to installing them, never do this on your own. It is highly recommended to hire help, and there are a variety of different services offered by companies that can help you do this.

Always make sure you ask for a warranty, as mentioned on this website so that in the event they break due to extreme weather conditions, you can have the panels replaced. The fitting can be done in a matter of weeks and finding the right service locally will help you in the long run when you want to add more panels or need anything upgraded.

Advantages of Solar Panels

A list of all the various advantages to these innovations have been included below for your perusal:

One of the main benefits is to the environment. It is pollution-free and does not emit any greenhouse gases once it is installed. This in turn reduces the need for other options such as fossil fuels and foreign oils. Unlike continuously paying for utility bills throughout the year which can be expensive, there is no need to do that here.

The good thing about these panels is that once they are installed, there is barely any maintenance needed unless they need cleaning once a year. Even on cloudy days, they will produce power. Making them a great renewable energy source and a clean power option. It can be used for various reasons throughout the household, such as to power you are home, to heat water up, and even to power your car if it is an electric vehicle.

The convenience of these panels being able to be placed anywhere and on the majority of surfaces, is highly sought after. From fields to buildings and more, these ingenious self-contained units are highly versatile. You can even use batteries with them, which stores power during the day so you can switch this option on at night.

This natural power source has been considered much safer than traditional electricity with fossil fuels being the dirtiest and unsafe of all forms of energy.

There are ideally two types of Solar Panels – Active and Passive. The Passive systems are designed and placed to optimize the use of direct sunlight, while the Active systems convert the suns energy into reusable forms such as electricity and water.

Different Materials Used in Solar Panel Manufacturing

There are various materials that these can be manufactured from, and we touch base on them below.

Crystalline Silicon Cells

Made from Silicon, these cells are a popular choice amongst a lot of homeowners and come in two main categories:

Multicrystalline Silicon or Polycrystalline

One of the most common options. It has molten silicon panels and is often the least expensive of any others.

Monocrystalline Silicon is one of the high-end panel’s materials, which are usually made of a premium grade.  Even though these may be more expensive than their predecessors, they have a higher efficiency of power output. They are distinctive in their pattern which contains small white diamonds.

Anodized Aluminum Frames

When considering the best material to get for a panel, this Anodized Aluminum option is one of the best ones to consider. The main reason for use of this specific one is in its ability to absorb and reflect more heat, which positively impacts the conversion and efficiency of using the cells.

Another reason for using this particular material is that it is low-maintenance and can periodically be cleaned and can withstand scratches. The only limited aspect to this is they, at the moment, only come in one colour – silver. So, if you are looking to create a more blended effect, this should be taken into consideration when thinking about aesthetics.

Thin-Film Cells

The lesser common ones are these thin-film solar panel cells, which are a cheaper alternative. As you may have guessed they aren’t as resourceful as the others. However, they are more flexible and durable in the long run.

The most popular materials that have been used in these thin-film solar cells include:

• Cadmium Telluride: which is the only product that rivals that of the monocrystalline silicon cells performance. The point to note is that due to lack of technology, it remains a highly toxic material in terms of where to dispose of the cells off once they reach their expiry.
• Amorphous Silicon: this is a more favoured material and used in most thin-film cells, and are considerably cheaper. They use only 1% of silicon as opposed to other traditional cells.
• Copper Indium Gallium Selenide (CIGS): another option used in a thin film is the Copper Indium Gallium Selenide, and are almost 150 times thinner than crystalline silicon cells for example.

All of the above types of panels are usually installed in the right space to absorb the sunlight to its full extent, which is then used to provide homes with power for water and electricity. According to the Solar Energy Industry Association (SEIA), the growth of these innovations has only been skyrocketing throughout the globe, and at a rate of 50% annually.