Since the last month of October 2018 was approved in the Council of Ministers self-consumption with solar panels without “sun tax”, there are many questions and questions you may have about the use of solar panels for home and also the advantages .
SOLAR HOME PANELS
In this article we try to address precisely that second point that refers to the pros and cons of solar energy for your home, your business … etc.
Solar panels for home, how do they differ from the rest ?:
In case you are not very knowledgeable about the photovoltaic sector, the first thing you should know is that there is no difference between solar panels for a home than those used in large solar installations. The same types of photovoltaic plates are used.
Although it is true that there are models of solar panels designed for homes that are what we call “Black”.
That is, many homes, for an aesthetic theme (no one likes our house to look “ugly”), install solar energy systems for homes with panels that are totally black. An example of a solar panel designed for a house would be the following:
As you can see, they are totally black panels, which give an aspect of excellence to the roof of your house as well as having a solar system for above average house, because we speak of a panel manufactured by SunPower, the most efficient and of the best performance in the world.
Therefore, the types of solar panels used in homes are the same as the rest of the facilities, with the exception of that type of all-black model that is manufactured specifically for homes and for photovoltaic installations that require architectural integration.
Solar plates for a house and its prices:
If there is something that is used as a rule to compare solar panels for a house, it is, above all, its price. What is a major mistake . Long-term performance and return on investment are much more important.
If the solar panel that we use for a home is not of good quality, the low price will end up being, in reality, very expensive.
These are some aspects more important than the price, which must be taken into account before asking for prices for solar panels for homes:
Efficiency of the solar panel that we want to install:
The efficiency will be worth to us, the more efficient the solar panel of your house, obtain more kilowatt-hours of production with less occupied surface.
And as you’ll be imagining, the most efficient panels, that is, those that allow you to “squeeze” the maximum surface of the roof of your house, are the best quality and also the most expensive.
Because roofing limitations are often a barrier to meeting the growing energy demands of homeowners, the efficiency of solar panels is key to maximizing the space available in your cottage, for example.
That is, the most efficient panels produce more kilowatt-hours, with a higher return on investment.
In addition to this, an added advantage for installers of solar panels: the use of modules with greater efficiency and performance implies that fewer modules are needed in general, thus reducing labor costs.
Another key factor – The temperature coefficient
The nominal power, which is in its technical sheet, of a solar panel is measured at 25ºC and the power begins to decrease as the temperature of the cell exceeds that 25ºC.
As the amount of power lost above 25 ° C is directly related to the temperature coefficient of the module. The higher the temperature of the panel rises from those 25ºC, the less that solar panel will produce.
This is why the temperature coefficient of a solar panel is so important:
The lower the temperature coefficient, the better the module’s performance as the temperature increases.
This is important in all regions, not only in hot climates, but especially in countries such as Spain and Portugal. The reason is that when the sun shines, the roof temperatures of your home can easily exceed 25ºC, even with ambient temperatures below 15ºC.
Imagine almost anywhere in Spain, where it is easy to reach 25-35ºC of ambient temperature almost 6 months a year … the temperature of the solar panel can go perfectly to 50ºC or more in central hours.
The guarantee is essential if you want to have solar panels in your house without worries:
Sometimes it is difficult to quantify the value of the guarantee of a solar panel. The fact that a company offers a product warranty for 25 years does not guarantee that it will be here to fulfill it, that is something obvious.
But for an investment that we know that, at least, should last 25 years, an installer or a homeowner, they must choose a manufacturer that is financially sound, stable and has a long reputation for the quality of its products and service. to the client.
The guarantee of performance is also important, almost more than the product. Think that the difference of a guarantee of production at 25 years of 80% (which is what usually give almost all manufacturers) and 90% (only manufacturers such as Panasonic or SunPower offer), can be thousands of euros of difference in savings.
Price of SOLAR PANELS FOR HOUSE
It’s the million dollar question. Everyone wants to know how much solar panels cost to see if they are interested.
The problem is that they ask at random, like someone who asks you how you are going to Madrid. Before considering this issue you have to define what you want to achieve with your solar photovoltaic solar energy installation, since it is not the same to supply the needs of a house, an isolated house without a network connection or our usual home.
Nor can it be compared to serve as support with being the main source of energy.
Even so the question is very valid, because before making an investment you have to calculate the expense and see if it compensates you. I advance you it’s worth it.
How much do Solar Panels cost? Making numbers:
If you are looking for panels for a regular home, it is difficult to say exactly how much they can cost. It will depend to a large extent on your average energy expenditure. For example:
- Gas cookers, hob or induction hobs?
- What type of heating do you have?
- Do you often use air conditioning?
- How many times do you use the washing machine every week?
- Dryer?
- …
The list could follow. Actually you will need more or less plates of greater or lesser power depending on how many you are at home, and energy habits.
But in general the purchase of solar panels (prices) is usually amortized in a few years and the investment is profitable. The minimum expense is usually calculated so as not to be producing surplus energy that, over time, you may not even use. It would be a waste that is not worth it.
In addition, the more power the photovoltaic panels have that you buy the price will be higher. There comes a point that is not worth it.
On the other hand, if you want to operate completely independently of the electricity grid, you will have to be guided by the average cost and have a margin to avoid running out of electricity in case of bad weather several days in a row, all at the best possible price.
Let’s talk about Price, how much can a photovoltaic solar panel cost?
Budget example:
A standard detached house can have a photovoltaic equipment with a price around 1000-1200 euros.
If you also install a solar tracker (which allows you to orient the plates to the movement of the sun) increases in price. If you add other elements such as solar batteries or chargers (both modified wave and pure wave) as well.
But in any case, think even if the price of solar photovoltaic panels is an important expense at first, from the moment you have installed them in your home you start to save on electricity and gas .
On the other hand, the price of photovoltaic panels has not increased in recent years, which nowadays are reasonably affordable.
Photovoltaic Solar Panels: Its operation
Photovoltaic solar panels (also called solar panels or photovoltaic solar kits ) are made up of solar cells that convert sunlight into electricity .
The solar cells collect the solar radiation and transform it into direct current.
As the direct current is not used to use electrical appliances you need an inverter or converter (there are also on the market chargers that perform two functions in a single device) which is responsible for transforming direct current into alternating current is what we need to use the appliances.
The solar panels must receive the solar rays directly, without shadows, in order to make the most of sunlight. The best orientation to capture the most hours of sun is South orientation .
If it is not possible to place the solar panel with exactly that orientation, it must be ensured that it is at least as near as possible, southeast or southwest.
We must distinguish between photovoltaic solar panels and thermal solar panels.
- The thermal panels convert sunlight into heat and are mostly used to heat water.
- The photovoltaic plates offer more possibilities since they serve to generate electrical energy necessary for any device.
What types of photovoltaic panels are there?
Having made the previous distinction, there is a list of the different types of photovoltaic solar panels, which will be used later to assemble your own photovoltaic solar kits.
From the purity and the way to create the material used in silicon solar cells, depends the type of panel: monocrystalline or polycrystalline:
- The monocrystalline panels are those formed by a single crystal, the molten silicon is formed in a single grain. The energy efficiency is higher than in polycrystalline solar cells. If you are going to install a solar tracker they are the most suitable. This type of panels give better results in cold climates.
- The polycrystalline panels are those in which the molten silicon is allowed to form randomly and therefore, different grains are obtained (with different orientations), which necessarily means that the energy efficiency must be lower. However, polycrystalline panels are the most appropriate for warm climates as is the case in our country.
Sizes and powers of photovoltaic solar panels
There is a great variety of sizes and powers of solar panels.
We must choose the one that fits our needs. In the market we can find powers of 10W; 15W; 25W; 45W; 90W; 140W and 195W or even the 300W solar panel. .
The panels that are needed for a single-family home are not the same as those that will be necessary if it is a community facility for an entire building, or even if it is for an entire development. In this case, the power and size of the photovoltaic panels (and the price) will necessarily be higher.
The price of photovoltaic panels depends on different factors, including power or size. One of the issues that most determine the price of photovoltaic panels is their final use.
That is, you will need more panels to generate heat for the heating than if you are only going to use the panels to connect some small appliances.
The structure necessary for its placement also influences the price , especially if the plates are to be placed in a recently built building or in an old house.
The more complicated the structure necessary for the placement, the higher the price of the photovoltaic panels.
Certification of Solar Panels
Last but not least, you must ensure that the solar panels you buy have the CE certificate for solar panel and comply with the EN 61000-6-1: 2007 / 61000-6-3: 2007 Regulations and TÜV safety regulations in box connections . The equipment must be safe, think it is in your home.
The thermodynamic solar panels are in the evolution phase. In the United States, these solar panels are working very well. In the future, they could replace solar thermal energy, or its best known application, ACS. What are thermodynamic solar panels? On what are they based? What performance do they have?
For what values if you find an installation of this type interesting, I’ll tell you …
Solar pumping is a system for extracting water using solar energy. The pumping kit consists of a solar panel, a pump and the motor to pump the water and a regulator.
It has experienced an important growth in recent years in our country since it is a cheaper alternative to pumping with electricity. It has undoubted advantages such as high profitability, excellent reliability, increased water needs in rural areas due to drought, etc.
Prices of solar panels for houses and motorhomes
The prices of solar panels for houses and motor homes are very different because the energy demand is not the same. It is difficult to live in a house with such a small consumption.
What do you need to invest in solar energy for your home? And for the motorhome?
In a house you have two options, both related to solar self-consumption: use solar energy to reduce the bill a little, or try to reach the ‘net balance’, which is to come in Spanish legislation.
If you only want to reduce the bill, you can make a smaller investment and expand over time. You could get two 150w or 180w solar panels or even a 300w solar panel to start with. That investment would go for 800 or 1000 €.
But the net balance is another story. It consists of generating practically all the electricity that you are going to consume with your solar energy kit, that is to say, to obtain the solar self-consumption.
When you miss a little, you will take it from the general electrical network, and when you get over it, you will give it to the company that supplies you. At the end of the year a balance is made and you pay (or pay) the difference.
In this case you will need more solar panels and the investment would be greater. But remember that you will completely forget about the electric bill.
We talk about motor homes
The case of motor homes is easier. We agree that you will need much less electricity. Maybe for a couple of light bulbs and a television. To cook I imagine you will use gas, and you can have a solar or butane gas cooler.
Even so, energy expenditure is reduced. That’s why with a 150w plate it will be more than enough. I recommend that you have a couple of powerful batteries to accumulate the electricity generated, but the price does not trigger. With about € 400 you can have the entire installation.
The prices of solar panels for houses and motorhomes are going down, it may be time to take advantage.