Calculating your homes solar power needs would include the following: determining your home's average power consumption and sizing the solar panels that would meet these needs. Let's take a look at the calculations below.

Calculating Your Home's Average Energy Consumption

It's estimated that an average US home consumes around 10,000 kWh of energy yearly, but every home is different. So, let's calculate your home's yearly energy consumption.

To calculate this value, you will need to put together your power bills for the last 12 months. Look for the monthly kWh values on each bill and write each of these values down on a sheet of paper. Now add these 12 numbers together to get your total yearly energy consumption value.

For the sake of simpler calculations, let's assume that your total annual use of electric is 12,000 kWh (with the average monthly consumption being around 1,000 kWh).

Calculating Your Solar Power Needs

Now that you know your total annual electric needs, you need to match them with a solar panel of an appropriate size. Note that solar panels have a peak rated output and an average rated output, and you will need to find out your panel's average yearly output.

To make it simple: a 10 kW solar array will have a 12,000 kW/h estimated yearly output; if this panel is installed in a place like Philadelphia (this area has an average of 7 daily hours of sunshine).

So, a 10 kW panel can run a home that uses 12,000 kWh of electric annually in the Philadelphia area. What would the dimensions of a 10 kW system be? Its total area would be around 700-1,000 Sq ft. The array could consist of 48 smaller solar panels by 210 watts each.

Two important notes:

1. Estimated output of a panel largely varies depending on the geographical location of the home, as well as on the orientation of the installed panels.

2. Solar panel retailers often estimate the average output of a panel for the sunniest areas in the world, such as the Mojave Desert in California. They may estimate a10 kW panel output to be as much as 30,000 kW/h annually, which exceeds the normal value by 3 times (the 30,000 kW/h value would be correct for those who live in the Mojave Desert, and incorrect for those who live in a moderate climate area like Philadelphia).

Financial Aspects – Costs and Savings

How much money could a 10 kW panel save you annually, in terms of electric? An average standard grid electric rate in the US is $0.12/kWh. If we multiply 12,000 kWh by $0.12, we will get a total of $1,440 annually.

A commercial system of this size could cost around $30,000 (after all the rebates and tax credits, such as the 30% US Tax Credit). The system would pay for itself in around 20 years, and then start generating free electric. Building this system on your own could save you many thousands of dollars, allowing your system to pay for itself much-much faster.

Jakob Jelling is the founder of http://www.solarpanelmanual.com which focuses on solar energy. Please visit his web site to learn more about calculating your solar panel power consumption.

Here are 20 exciting solar energy facts that could be of interest to those considering converting their homes into renewable solar energy (partly or entirely). These fun facts about solar energy could also be of interest to any aspiring solar energy enthusiasts.

20 Solar Energy Facts and Figures

1. Solar panel technology emerged in the 1800's.

2. The first “true” solar panels were created in the 1950s.

3. Solar cell's efficiency may be as little as 4% (organic cells) or as much as 40% (experimental multiple-junction solar cells). The higher the efficiency of the material, the more expensive it will be to manufacture it.

4. One 100W light bulb that's constantly on, costs around $100 per year.

5. One photovoltaic roof shingle can produce as much as 15W of electricity. Several solar roof shingles could run one 100W light bulb that's constantly on.

6. A solar cell with 10 percent efficiency output and a 100 sq centimeters (15.5 sq inch) surface can produce about 1W of power.

7. An average household uses about 9,000kWh of energy annually.

8. A 350 Sq foot panel that produces 15W of power per Sq foot would produce a total of about 9,000kWh of energy yearly, which could power an average household with all the energy that it needs.

9. An average homeowner that uses electricity from their utility grid could spend $50,000 in the next 25 years on their electric bills.

10. Tax incentives for buying solar can be as high as 30% of the purchased solar powered system's cost.

11. In the US, tax incentives can result in shortening the time for the panels to pay back for themselves down to as little as 6-8 years.

12. You can get solar panels for free from homeowners or businesses upgrading their systems.

13. Solar panels typically have a 20-25 year warranty and 40 year lifetime expectancy.

14. In order to achieve the most out of solar panels, they have to be facing south and be installed at 20-50 degree angles.

15. You can wire solar cells to increase the Voltage of the system (series wiring), to increase the Current of the system (parallel wiring), or to increase both, Voltage and Current (series/parallel wiring).

16. Solar powered systems with a battery can provide a homeowner with electricity even during the time of local power outages.

17. You do not have to connect a home in the woods to a power grid, if you provide it with a powerful enough solar power generator.

18. Solar energy is very safe for the environment, since it produces negligibly small amounts of elements, and only during the process of manufacturing the solar materials.

19. In the future, we may see cars and houses painted with a translucent solar paint to generate energy.

20. Solar energy won't run out until the sun ceases to shine, which is estimated to happen in about 5 billion years from now.

As you can see, there are numerous good solar energy facts. It's also a fact that the whole world is anticipating further drops in the price of solar material, so that everyone will be able to enjoy all of the solar power benefits at a reasonable cost.

Jakob Jelling is the founder of http://www.solarpanelmanual.com which focuses on solar energy. Please visit his web site to learn more about solar panel installation.

If you are just coming in to learning about solar panel technology then you might not realize what all the fuss about different solar panel technologies is. Honestly, when it comes to advancing solar power as viable and popular renewable energy sources then technology is focusing on one thing: how can we make solar energy more economically available to consumers?

Current technologies focus on two different things to achieve this goal: the first are the materials used to make solar products, the second is increasing energy efficiency in different materials in order to get a better energy output with less materials.

The typical material used in solar panels has been crystalline silicon cut into discs and polished. This method can be costly because the materials used require a lot of manufacturing equipment to procure and extract the necessary amounts. There have been two changes recently involving silicon and solar panels.

The first difference is using multicrystalline silicon as opposed to crystalline silicon. Multicrystalline silicone can be produced in a number of different ways, one of them being by pouring molten into a cast, from there a number of techniques can be used to get a single-crystal silicon material or use fewer resources to get a lower grade but still useful silicon.

When it comes to using silicon for solar energy there also is a new solar panel technology that uses amorphous silicon. Amorphous solids are materials that have atoms that are not in any particular order. They are not formed in crystalline structures, and have structure and bonding issues, but economically they are less expensive.

The advantage of amorphous silicon is that it absorbs solar energy much more efficiently than single crystalline silicon. This means that a micrometer thick layer of amorphous silicon is needed instead of the about centimeter thick single crystalline silicon. This also means that the amorphous silicon can be distributed on a larger range of products and is more flexible than single crystal silicon.

Another arpanelmanual.com which focuses on solar energy. Please visit his web site to learn more about solar panel technology that is making headlines these days is polymer solar panels. Polymers are inexpensive plastics used in the construction of a number of different items today. These are very cheap materials to produce and use. Like amorphous silicon, solar products made with polymer solar cells are very flexible and very thin. The technology used in creating products with polymer solar cells use very similar technology to that used in photographic films.

This means you have a low materials and low production cost as the solar panel technology requires less in manufacture costs. The unfortunate aspect is that polymer solar cells are not as efficient as the more commonly used silicon cells. The technology is advancing in this field to make polymer cells viable, and it is expected within three years to have a comparable production of energy.

With more interest in green products, and renewable energy sources, the technologies used in extracting and constructing solar panels will continue to evolve. With reductions in cost, interest in these products is sure to increase.

Jakob Jelling runs http://www.solarpanelmanual.com which focuses on solar energy. Please visit his web site to learn more about solar panel technology.

Solar cells convert the suns energy using something called the photovoltaic effect. This is why many solar panels that are constructed go by the name photovoltaic solar panel. The photovoltaic effect involves creating an electric current (or voltage) in a material because of exposure to electro-magnetic radiation.

What builds up voltage between two electrodes is the generated electrons being transferred from one material to another. In most cases the radiation is sunlight and used in solar panels. At times you would use solar panel to specify that the energy source is the sun, and photovoltaic solar panel may indicate that a light source isnt specifically the sun and not indicated.

There are a variety of different materials that use solar radiation and convert it into direct current electricity. These materials currently include polycrystalline silicon, cadmium telluride, copper indium sulfide, and amorphous silicon. The recent increase in interest in solar energy and photovoltaic arrays has advanced the technology greatly used in the renewable energy conversion business.

In the United States in 2006 investors offered free solar panel installation in return for a contract of twenty-five years. It is expected that most commercial photovoltaics installed are with a power purchase agreement. Many other cities are offering incentives to invest in photovoltaic solar panels, if you are interested in converting your home to solar energy, then you would do best to contact your local municipality and ensure you are taking advantage of any financial offsets you can. Most municipalities are allowing you the option to buy back excess energy produced by your system, this way, not only do you not have to pay your energy company, but they pay you!

At this time building integrated photovoltaics are being included in the construction of new homes and businesses, either as the primary electrical power source or ancillary. Generally you will find a photovoltaic solar panel incorporated into either the roof or the walls of a building, although it is now becoming popular to purchase and install photovoltaic roof shingles.

If a building is already built, a photovoltaic solar panel may be retrofitted to fit within the roof or walls of the building. If this isnt possible or practical, then an array can be placed outside of the house and connected to a main power supply.

When choosing to be on the grid or completely off the power grid, you will want to take a look at how close your home is to it. If you are in a remote location, having a solar power supply complete off the grid is practical, if you are closer, putting it on the grid makes best use of the system, and you are protected in case of failure.

In any case, deciding to go greener and install a renewable solar energy source for your home is a smart move. You can eventually recoup the layout costs through your energy savings, and your home becomes more attractive to future buyers.

Jakob Jelling runs http://www.solarpanelmanual.com which focuses on solar energy. Please visit his web site to learn more about photovoltaic solar panels.

If you are going to install your own solar panel system as a renewable energy resource for your home, then you want to put in some considerable time on the solar panel design. A well designed solar panel system will save you time in your original installation, along with saving time, good design will save you money in the long run.

The key to good solar panel design is to know just how much power you need for your solar panel system. You can assess your current energy consumption based on what you currently pay your electrical company, or you can find many calculators on the internet that will provide you estimates based on the type of appliances you use.

If you calculate an amount that seems unreasonable to maintain with a solar panel system, then you can make many changes to lower your energy consumption. Changes that you might want to make include: using low wattage light bulbs, rethink your options for heating, and review all the appliances like fridges and stoves that you use consistently. If you are not using appliances, or use them very infrequently, consider getting rid of them completely and save yourself the trouble.

After you have determined how much energy you consume in a day, you want to calculate how big of a solar panel array you will need in your solar panel design. Again there are a number of online calculators available to assist you and you want to have as many solar panels as needed to get to that total number of power consumption daily. If you do not find an online calculator, you can consult with a solar energy professional, or review the packaging on the solar panels you intend to purchase, they will indicate how much energy they output.

The next consideration in your solar panel design is the battery. Prior to determining the system battery, you need to find how much voltage the system generates. Generally if you have a smaller system you will want to use a 12 volt battery, if larger 24 volts. If you are designing an entire office building or telecommunications, then you can think about using a 48 volt battery.

Your last big consideration is the cables that are required to connect your panels, battery and inverter. The placement of the components of your solar panel design will play a big part in determining what type of cables you need. The further apart your components are the more potential for energy loss, investing in higher quality or larger cables would be optimal in that case.

Now your design should be relatively complete, and you need to determine what type and size of inverter you are using. Check with the local municipal government for requirements and possible financial advantages when it comes to using inverters.

You should have a relatively good design after attending to these details, next you want to ensure you understand how to wire a solar system, and get your materials ready. With a little energy beforehand you will spare yourself some grief in the long run.

Jakob Jelling runs http://www.solarpanelmanual.com which focuses on solar energy. Please visit his web site to learn more about solar panel design.

The world is currently suffering from energy and fuel crisis. Fossil fuels are incessantly depleting and so energy bills are soaring higher and higher. Many homeowners and establishments are now complaining about their huge expenses. But did you know that there is an answer to the crisis and it has long been available to man. However, because of its inefficiency, it is not recognized as a viable solution. Solar energy is free but the cost of generating it is a bit expensive. With the vast improvements in technology, there are now more affordable options for those who want to use solar energy to supply power in their homes and offices.

Probably the most important consideration when it comes to installing your solar energy system is the construction and selection of solar panel mounts. The success of a solar system depends on having enough exposure to sunlight in order to trap enough usable solar energy for conversion to usable energy.

If your system does not have the correct mounting, you will not get enough sun exposure to make your investment feasible. There are generally two types of solar setups: mobile and non-mobile solar energy setups. The key for solar panel mounts is to have equipment that will last several years and stand up to different weather conditions.

There are four common materials that are used in solar panel mounts: aluminum, angle iron, wood and stainless steel. Aluminum is lightweight and resists corroding, while it is easy to work with it is difficult to weld. Angle iron works well but corrodes quickly, if you live in a damp environment you want to avoid this material. Wood is cheap and easy to come by, while it works easily it might not take the weather for extended period of time. Stainless steel is great for longevity but expensive to work with. Its good in areas with lots of different weather types.

A good mount takes into account the wind load for the particular angle at which you are going to mount your solar panel. Good advice from a local contractor can give you direction in this area so you can account for this factor. In general, plan for the worst type of weather possible in your area and account for that with the type of mount you purchase and install.

If you are going to use a tracker with your solar panel, you want to ensure that it requires little energy and power, like a single axis tracker. Trackers allow you solar panel to shift and get most of the suns rays for energy. It is recommended to use concrete with anchor bolts to securely hold your tracker in place.

Solar panel mounts can also be placed on the roof but it is more complicated than putting them on the ground or a pole. You are bound to get roof leaks with a roof mounted solar panel, so consider the weather in your area prior to installing this kind of mount, continued water leakage in the roof of your home can cause some serious damage over time. The advantage of this type of setup comes with the less space required to devote to solar energy generation because the roof is already allocated space on your property.

In the end, when it comes to solar panel mounts you want functionality and durability. You are going to plan in advance where you need to put the solar system, and anticipate the different types of weather in your climate. Then making the choice of materials will correspond to that, and your type of mount will follow. Once you have all the details, selecting your mount will be easy.

Jakob Jelling runs http://www.solarpanelmanual.com which focuses on solar panels and solar energy in general. Please visit the site to learn more about solar panel mounts

The best thing about solar power is that it has an unlimited potential. Learn how to build solar energy systems for home easily and save $1000s on utility bills forever. You just need to know how to make your own renewable energy source and today I am going to tell you exactly how to build your own solar energy systems.

If you want to learn how to build solar energy systems for home, you'll need to learn some basics on how exactly do solar panels work. This way, the entire procedure will be much easier to handle.

Everybodys talking about solar energy. With all the buzz, youd think we just discovered the sun. Of course, the sun has been around for a few billion years and, surprisingly, so has solar energy. We just havent done much with it until lately.

Generating electricity from the sun isnt terribly complicated. In fact, it doesnt require a huge financial investment or any special knowledge that cant be picked up by reading the right material.

How Solar Energy Saves YOU Money If your home is connected to the public power grid, you pay your electric utility company for the amount of power you use each month.

Actually, if you look at your bill, youll probably see that in addition to paying for electricity, youre also paying fuel surcharges and any number of local, county, state or federal taxes. Add that all up and electricity can take quite a bite out of your monthly budget.

The U.S. Department of Energy publishes annual average electricity costs by state. These costs are displayed as a number of cents per kilowatt hour (kWh). The actual definition of a kilowatt hour isnt important, but how many kilowatt hours you consume each month is.

Here are some typical usage examples for electrical appliances and devices you probably have in your home:

A 1000 watt space heater uses 1 kWh hour for every hour you run it A 60 watt light bulb uses 0.06 kWh A 12000 BTU AC unit uses 300 kWh A central AC unit uses 900 kWh A dishwasher uses 30 kWh

Its easy to see that every kWh you take off the grid and replace with solar energy saves you real money.

Want To Get Paid For Generating Solar Power? Not only can you slash, or even eliminate your power bill by converting to solar energy but, depending upon where you live, your local utility company may actually be required to purchase the excess energy your solar system generates above your actual monthly consumption!

So, How Do You Get Started Slashing Your Electric Bill? Check your monthly electric bill and see how many kWh you are billed for. Then use this formula to identify the actual kWh usage of everything you plug in:

kWh = watts/1000

For example, a PC and monitor consumes 365 watts so 365/1000 = .0365 kWh.

If you use your PC for 75 hours per month, it consumes 27.4 kWh (.0365*75). Multiply that by your kWh cost, and thats what you pay to use your computer (before surcharges and taxes).

Once you know what you pay for each electrical device, you can start working on calculating how many kWh you want to have your solar system generate.

We all know the numerous benefits of building your own solar panels, but what about the benefits of learning how to make your own solar powered water heater. Unlike coal, oil and gas it does not produce harmful emissions when burned. Also, it is a renewable energy source so we do not have to worry about how much is left! As if that isn't enough finding out how to build a solar water heater can save you even more money.