Simple Explanation of Solar Power Inverter

Solar Power Inverter performs several tasks, the most important ones are:

1. Regulating the solar panel output.
2. Converting solar panel DC (Direct Current) to AC (Alternate Current).
3. Monitoring and feedback.

In the next 3 paragraphs we would explain the basics of these tasks. More information can found on Solar Panel Review blog site.

Solar cells act as current source. The more intensive the sun is the more current you get out of it. The open voltage measured across a solar panel does not change a lot by the amount of sun rays on the panel. However the amount of current a solar panel can supply is directly proportional to the amount of sun rays. A Solar Power Inverter should be able to regulate this varying output current.

All of our home appliances or even commercial equipments work with Alternate current (AC). Since PV output is of DC type, the inverter’s function is to convert solar panel output to AC type suitable for our home appliances or machineries. The alternating current is of sinusoidal type cycling 60 times per seconds (In European countries it cycles 50 times per second).

For the batteries to be charged properly, a circuit should monitor the state of the batteries. If there is any fault in the system, the inverter would detect the problem and provides a feedback. This feedback signal can be used to shutdown certain components to avoid failure or can be utilized towards improving performance and power management. Solar Charge Controller also plays a role in this scenario.

When dealing with most kind of Inverters, we hear the term Pulse Width Modulation. PWM is a technique used widely to regulate the output power in a DC to AC conversion. A house power demand keeps changing for example when we turn on our drier. You might see lights go dim specially if the home wiring is old or not rated properly. A solar power inverter should have a way of sensing the change in power demand and adjust itself so the load does not experience a reduction in voltage. This autosensing and compensating is called voltage regulation. One of the factors causing premature failure in electrical equipment, in particular electronic devices like computers, TVs, and audio systems are fluctuating power source.

One point to keep in mind when shopping for an inverter is the quality of its output voltage. Some less expensive models simulate a sine wave by generating modified square waves. While a hair blow dryer does not care about source of voltage being sinusoidal or ramped square wave, a laptop or a TV on the other hand do care.

Best wishes and good luck in your research.
Jay Eld
April 17, 2010

Solar Panel Review - Example and Statistic

When intending to study solar panel review, an important point is having a look at it from all different perspectives.

Statistics are valuable because it gives us a sense of comparison. For example I was reading in an article that installing a solar hot water system can save half of the energy used for a household hot water demand. OK, let’s think about this. I know that our topic in this blog is solar photovoltaic panels; however, I like to make a point here.

How much is the total energy usage of a residential home in Canada? I know that in a 4000 square feet 2-story home with 5 members in the province of British Columbia, you pay about $180 for Electrical consumption. You also pay about $200 for natural gas bill. House furnace is a new high efficiency one, and hot water tank is an electrical type. The total energy usage per month in the month of January is $380.

The amount of energy needed to provide heating of water in a home is about 30% of the total energy. So 30 percent of $380 is $114. Basically each month the household pays $114 to heat up the water for bathing/showers, dishwasher, washing machine, etc.

Now let’s refer back to the subject of “solar hot water system can save half of the household heating water energy consumption”. In our example, that would be half of $114 per month or saving of $57 monthly. That corresponds to a 12 x 57 or $684 saving annually.

I have seen in other literatures that solar system for heating water can save about $500 per year. So our calculations based on a real example are very close to what has been claimed. That gives me a sense of trust, and also sheds more lights into the subject.

Dollar figure saving is only one aspect of the matter and as we all know, the environmental benefit is even greater.

In today’s life, most of our household energy requirement is furnished by the power of electricity. As we saw, heating water is also one of the main demands. I believe that having a system to supply our energy hungry homes, one has to consider a modular approach. An arrangement that will employ solar panels, as well as other systems plus the obvious house insulation and windows coatings will benefits us the best.

Of course the economics of the overall system is also a limiting factor. That is why we need to take a very educated decision when considering a green energy home. Solar Panel Review should be consulted as a very practical resource. Each company will support its line of products, but to find out “which one is the most reasonable one” requires reviewing other people’s experience.


If you like to share YOUR solar panel review story with us, we like to hear your opinion. Please leave us a comment on www.solar-panelreview.com, let's help others to make the right decision.

Jay Eld at www.solar-panelreview.com on March 15, 2010