Solar energy is environmentally friendly and a good way to save money when it comes to providing energy. But you need to have an understanding of what a solar power system is made of.

Solar energy is still based on an electric platform, but have components unique to it that utilize the sun’s power. Here’s some of the jargon you are going to need to be familiar with before buying.

What Is A Photovoltaic Cell? This is the key piece of any solar platform. Known as a PV cell, it is typically a small cell containing a silicon substance under glass. When the sun hits the cell, the silicon undergoes an electrical reaction that creates a charge. The charge will be converted to energy by small wires. Most PV cells are capable of producing about half a volt’s worth of energy.

The Solar Panel One solar panel typically wouldn’t produce the required energy to supply significant power to your home.

What Is A Solar System (In Solar Energy Terms When several solar panels are connected to each other, this would make up a solar, or photovoltaic system. This is what you see on the roofs of home or other areas around homes and buildings. If you’re going solar, what you would need would not be a singular solar panel, but several panels grouped together as a solar system.

Orientation. This is simply the concept of placing your solar panel system in the right place. You need to have a good understanding of how and where the sun reflects its rays. To maximize the energy production, the panels have to be oriented to receive the maximum amount of sunlight. This, of course, results in the maximum amount of electricity.

DC, or Direct Current You get DC, or direct current, when the electricity only goes one way. Solar energy, when converted into electricity, is a form of DC.

Alternating Current. AC, or alternating current is electric power that moves both left and right. AC power is used by utilities and in practically all appliances and machines in a home.

Why You Need An Inverter A key component in a solar panel system. The inverter converts the direct current produced by the solar panels into AC power that can be used in the home or fed back into a utility power grid system.

Obviously, there are a wide variety of systems for converting sunlight into power. Knowing the jargon is half the battle when it comes to understanding how solar power works and how you could get it to work in your home.

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