How to Switch Your Home to Solar Power

Video Transcript

"So, for people who are interested in switching their home to solar power. Really, what we do at energy options most commonly is to install photovoltaic panels and an inverter that switches the DC power of the panels into AC for use in the home. Now, one misconception is that those panels powers some device in the home but that's really not how it works. The energy produced by the solar panels go into the main breaker panel and then if there's enough energy to service a home then that energy goes straight into the home. As the panels make more energy than the home needs then that energy goes back out to the utility company, speeding the meter backwards and kind of like using the utility company as a bank. Depending on the state that you live in and how, what type of system you install, therefore utility companies treat the energy differently when you buy and sell it. Some states it's a one to one ration, other states only buy your energy in half its value so you want to design a system that gets you to a zero bill. A good energy company will not just design a system based on how many kilowatt hours you use but the value of those kilowatt hours as you buy and sell them from the utility company. That's a good point, Scott! Thanks. Most utilities do not guarantee that you're on the right rate for the way you use energy and there's usually rate choices available. So, in predicting the financial effect of solar you need to compare rates and then based on the financial effect choose how big a system you need. Not just kilowatt hours in versus kilowatt hours out. The other thing people that need to understand is that not all panels and inverters are the same. There are benefits in string sizing , different panels maybe be great or less expensive panels may take up more room. So, if they only have a little bit of real estate on their roof, they may want to use a more expensive panel because the investment will pay off better. So, you gotta look at solar energy not only as the energy that's created but also as the investment that you make in your home."