When it comes to going solar, the biggest challenge is often finding a way to power your home when the sun isn’t shining. This is where an inverter comes in. An inverter takes alternating current (AC) from your panels and converts it into a DC current that can be used by your home’s main power supply. In essence, an inverter makes sure that you don’t waste energy when the sun isn’t out.
With most new solar systems, you’ll need to get an inverter to power anything inside of your home with electricity. If you haven’t upgraded your system in a while or are unsure what type of inverter you need right now, this guide will help you understand what they are and whether or not one is right for you.
What is a solar inverter?
An inverter is essentially a device that converts the energy from your solar panels into something that can be used with your home’s electrical system. This is different from a pure battery system, which stores energy and then produces it whenever needed. This is why it’s important to make sure you’re getting the best solar system for your home that fits your needs.
With a solar power system, you’re generating electricity that can be used anytime of day. Once it’s generated, it travels through your electrical system to your appliances, water heater, or any other device that uses electricity.
How does a solar inverter work?
It’s important to understand how an inverter works if you want to make sure that your system is running as efficiently as possible. An inverter first connects to your solar panels and converts the energy from sunlight into direct current (DC) electricity. From there, it then connects to your main electrical panel and transfers the power from the panel to your home.
Finally, the inverter converts the DC power back into AC power and sends it through your electrical system. Basically, an inverter makes sure that you don’t waste any energy generated by the sun during night or cloudy days. It converts DC electricity from your solar panels into AC power that can be used by your home’s appliances. Once it’s in your home, your inverter transfers the power back into DC to be used by your panels again.
When you need a solar inverter
The first question you’ll need to answer is whether you even need an inverter. With most solar power systems today, you don’t need to get an inverter until you want to use electricity in your home. This is when you’ll need an inverter to turn the power from your solar panels into electricity for your appliances.
An inverter won’t power anything outside of your home, like your water heater or a work space. If you want to use your solar energy for something like this, you’ll need to add a step and use a battery system instead.
Choosing the right solar inverter for your home
Now that you know what a solar inverter is and how it works, it’s time to choose the right one for your home. One of the most important factors to look at when choosing an inverter is the efficiency rating. This rating tells you how much energy your inverter is able to convert from your solar panels.
While efficiency isn’t the only factor in how an inverter performs, it’s one of the most important. Efficiency also plays a part in determining the cost of your system. Higher-efficiency inverters can be more expensive to purchase, but they’ll cost you less each month in power bills.
Smart versus standard: Which is better?
The initial cost of a solar system is definitely one of the more expensive parts of going solar. This is why it’s important to make sure you’re getting the best system that fits your needs. The good news is that this can be done by looking at your needs and your budget.
If you know that you’ll only need a basic solar system, you can save some cash by looking at standard systems. These systems are cheaper, but they’ll still get you the power you need. If you want the benefits that come with a smarter system, however, you’ll want to look at smarter systems. Say you are doing lots of remote work at home now, post pandemic. You may be better with one of these smarter systems. These systems are more expensive, but they’ll save you money on your energy bills each month.
Conclusion
If you’re ready to go solar, your first step is to find a reputable installer. Next, you’ll want to make sure you have the right equipment. If you’re ready to find the technology that works best for you, take a look at how you can reduce your energy usage and power your home with solar energy.
An inverter is a vital part of powering your home with solar energy, and with the right one, you can use your panels when they are generating the most energy. With the right inverter, you can even use your solar power system during cloudy or rainy days.