Most people have already answered this question by the time they come to us for installation, but if you’re newly investigating solar, the truth is that the value of solar electric systems has been comparable to other building applications for at least ten years. Not only that, but solar is among the few attainable assets that can pay back the investment multiple times in its duration.

When the public utility grid goes down in an outage, your basic grid tied solar electric system shuts down instantly and automatically. This is required by the National Electric Code which is part of the National Fire Protection Association and it is for the health and safety of the people who maintain the utility grid. For backup power, see “What is a micro grid.”

A micro grid is any electrical system that operates independently from the public utility grid. It can be a battery backup system, a gas powered generator, or a combination of batteries, solar, and generators. It can include power from any source, wind, hydro, solar, gas, etc., it just has to be designed to operate independently from the public utility grid. A micro grid can include several buildings, residential or commercial. A micro grid could include an entire village.

A grid tied solar electric system can include the option of battery backup. With battery backup and a transfer switch, a system can become part of a micro grid operating independently from the electric grid during an outage.

The main disadvantage is that there’s no chimney, which doesn’t allow for Santa Claus to enter the dwelling. We’ve been told however that the big-man is working on a PV alternative. ;)

Short answer: no. Unlike the microchip, which has been doubling the amount of data storage every eighteen months for the last twenty years, it has taken fifteen years to double the efficiency of solar panels, and it is unlikely that we will see the efficiency double again for at least twenty years, if ever.

Very! Made from tempered glass and sealed against water vapor, they can withstand high winds, ice, snow, and hail. Most module manufacturers answer this question in more detail on their websites.

Light and heat from the sun is made up of photons which bounce electrons in solar panels. This is direct current (DC) electricity. The electric grid and many motors and appliances operate on alternating current (AC) electricity. A solar inverter is designed to take the DC electric from strings of modules and simulate sine waves to match the power profile of the loads and the electric distribution grid.