Did you know that solar for homes is more affordable and achievable than you might think? You can reduce your carbon footprint and increase your home’s value with residential solar. $0 down financing options, and rock-solid warranties.

The smartest way to understand how solar works is by learning the basics of solar technology.  To see a description of the individual parts see the diagram below. This will show you the Photovoltaic (PV) Panels, Inverters, AC Combiner Box, Main Service Panel and Utility Meter.

SOLAR 101

Did you know that the amount of sunlight that strikes the earth’s surface in an hour and a half is actually enough to handle the entire world’s energy consumption for a full year? Solar technologies convert sunlight into electrical energy either through photovoltaic (PV) panels or through mirrors that concentrate solar radiation. Then this energy can be used to generate electricity or even be stored in batteries and/or thermal storage.

Solar power generation starts when solar panels absorb sunlight with photovoltaic cells, generating direct current (DC) energy and then converting it to usable alternating current (AC) energy with the help of inverter technology. AC energy then flows through the home’s electrical panel and is distributed accordingly. Here are the main steps for how solar panels work for your home:

  1. Photovoltaic cells absorb the sun’s energy and convert it to DC electricity
  2. The solar inverter converts DC electricity from your solar modules to AC electricity, which is used by most home appliances
  3. Electricity flows through your home, powering electronic devices
  4. Excess electricity produced by solar panels is fed to the electric grid

How do solar panels generate electricity?

Within a standard solar panel is a layer of silicon cells, a metal frame, a glass casing, and various wiring to allow current to flow from the silicon cells. Silicon is a nonmetal with conductive properties that allow it to absorb and convert sunlight into electricity. When light interacts with the silicon cell, then it will cause electrons to be set into motion. This will initiate a flow of electric current which is known as the “photovoltaic effect”. This is what you would describe as the general functionality of solar panel technology.

The Photovoltaic Effect:

The science of generating electricity with solar panels all comes down to the photovoltaic effect. Edmond Becquerel first discovered it in 1839. The photovoltaic effect can be generally thought of as a characteristic of certain materials that allows them to generate an electric current when exposed to sunlight.

The photovoltaic process works through the following simplified steps:

  1. The silicon photovoltaic solar cell absorbs solar radiation
  2. When the sun’s rays interact with the silicon cell, electrons begin to move, creating a flow of electric current
  3. Wires capture and feed this direct current (DC) electricity to a solar inverter to be converted to alternating current (AC) electricity

SAVING THE PLANET

We know that the majority of Love Solar Solar’s homeowners choose to go solar because it makes good sense from a financial point of view. We can’t forget to mention that the positive impact on our earth is astounding for decades to come. Solar energy provides a clean and renewable source of energy for your home or business, and Love Solar Energy Services has contributed to supplying clean energy for thousands of homeowners all over the country.

Planting

Trees

Consuming

Gal. of gas

Reducing

Miles of Driving

3 EASY STEPS