How Do Solar Panels Work?

In the beginning of the solar industry, there were central solar inverters, and since their introduction, they have pretty much dominated the industry. However, the introduction of power optimizers and microinverters created a big technology shift in the solar industry. Power optimizers and microinverters optimize production for each solar panel while central inverters optimize for the entire system. By optimizing for each panel, every panel performs at its maximum potential. In the long, run, this “smart” technology makes your entire solar panel system more efficient.

POWERHOME uses power optimizers with its solar panel installations because of their superior scalability. The power optimizers condition the DC energy and then send it to your central inverter to finish the conversion to AC electricity. Power optimizers allow your solar panels to communicate with each other and deliver as much power as possible under all conditions. If one solar panel is having an issue with shade or dirtiness, the rest of the panels still perform at maximum efficiency.

That’s a lot of technical information about how solar panels work, so let’s look at how a solar panel array would work on your home. First, sunlight in the form of photons hit the solar panels on your roof or ground mount. The panels convert the energy from freed electrons to DC current, which then flows to an inverter and is converted from DC electricity to AC electricity. This electricity is then used to power your home. It’s simple and clean, and it's becoming more efficient and affordable.

However, what if you are not home? You may not be using the electricity your solar panels generate. What happens at night, when there is no sunlight and your system is not generating power? Not to worry, you still can use the energy your system has created. This is where net metering comes in.

A typical grid-tied solar panel array produces more energy that you can use during peak sunlight hours. That excess energy goes back into the grid and can be used by you or someone else. You are credited for the excess energy your system produces. When needed, you can draw on that credit to get power from the grid during the night. A two-way meter keeps track of the energy sent to the grid along with the energy received from it.

Although most people understand that solar panels help them generate their own power so that they don’t have to depend solely on the power company, there is still confusion about the role the grid plays in home solar energy systems.

Homes that are connected to the electrical grid have a utility meter that measures how much electricity you use. If you have net metering, when your solar power system is overproducing, you send the excess power to the grid in exchange for credits on your bill. Then, during hours of low production, such as the nighttime, you use your credits to meet your home’s energy needs. Net metering gives you a way to store your energy and use it when you need it. This significantly improves the economics of solar power.