How Do Solar Batteries Work?

While solar power hasn't quite yet taken off yet, in the future it may very well be another power option, replacing electricity, fossil fuels and gas. Plus, it will significantly lower power bills. But in order for solar power to work, solar batteries must be used. It is the solar panels that absorb the energy from the sun, and the solar batteries which store the power to be used as needed.

Standard batteries operate differently from solar batteries. A car battery, for instance, needs to put out a large current for a short period of time to get the car running. The battery can then be charged by the car itself and therefore run for a longer period of time. Solar batteries, however, are deep cycle batteries. These types of batteries give off a smaller current at the start, but must maintain that power for a much longer period of time. Although the battery receives it power from the sun, it must be able to function at night or on cloudy days, and cannot store the previously received energy like typical batteries.

The power collected from the solar panels is a direct current. However, this current will need to be converted into an alternating current in order for the battery to power the facility. A converter is needed to ensure that the direct current will be sent to where it can be used, while the rest of the current is channeled through the inverter to create alternating current.