Saturday, January 28, 2012

Misconceptions about Solar Panels

By Jonathan Ryder


Sunlight, as we all know, is a necessity of solar photovoltaic panels for the conversion of the harnessed energy to electric current. This leads many people to believe that solar panels cannot work without the sun or cannot provide electricity to a home during a cloudy weather. As a matter of fact, even without sunlight, solar panels can still provide electricity since they are attached on large batteries. This is a common misconception about solar panels that they require sunny weather for efficiency. Germany has proven that sunny weather is not required for the solar panels to work. The truth is, solar panels can work with UV light. UV light is not affected by a cloudy weather.

Another mistake people believe is that solar panels have high maintenance cost. It is true that solar panels contains array of solar cells, but it does not mean that much maintenance is needed. Every component installed in solar panels are secured, so any replacement is not needed. Today, you can buy solar panels with 25 to 40 years warranty. As the technology of solar panels evolves through time, they become more reliable.

Many are also mistaken when it comes to the cost of photovoltaic solar panels. Many believe that solar panels have high prices. Nevertheless, findings show that solar panels? cost declined in the past years. The truth is, you can now purchase solar panels for free just by trying different schemes. Apart from having free and cheap electricity, solar panels can also add value to your home.

The reimbursement period of solar panels is yet another misconception of people. It was not a misconception but a fact that was only a few years ago. The payback period of solar panels have already lessen due to the decline on their prices and also due to the increase on the cost of electricity. In present time, the payback duration is 5 to 7 years. The cost of electricity is believed to double in the next five years due to the increasing price of fossil fuels worldwide. Keeping these statistics in mind, thinking about solar panels as an alternate source for cheap electricity is not a bad idea.

One more misconception about solar panels is that you have to leave modern appliances that consume lot of electricity behind in order to use solar panels for electricity. In fact, no cut off from the national grid is necessary. In reality, you can enjoy using modern appliances at home while still having cheap electricity.

Realities on Solar Panels

As people are becoming more and more aware about global warming and greenhouse gasses, they are showing more interest about solar panels and their use in the production of electricity. Environmental alertness is important in the worldwide growth of the industry of green energy sources. Now that the topic on misconceptions is done, it is time to indent remarkable facts about solar panels and their use.

The first fact about solar panels is their sharp declining costs. Not long ago, solar panels have unreasonable prices and too long payback time, but not anymore. Another interesting fact about solar panels is that their efficiency has risen up to 22%. Research and development on more efficient solar panels have also increased since many have invested on it. The efficiency of solar panels continues to increase along with the advancement in technology.

A good thing on the usage of solar panels is that unused electricity can be sold simply by adding it back to the national grid. Many governments like the UK pay you for your electricity through feed-in tariff systems.

Often Asked Questions on Solar Panels

The questions often asked about solar panels have already been tackled above. Most people want to know about solar panels and their use, cost and efficiency. Others worry more on the payback period and reliability of solar panels. The topic on maintenance is another concern of people. In maintaining solar panels, much effort or money is not essential. Other people desire to know if solar panels are harmless. Solar panels are totally safe since its key part is silicon. Since silicon is a main component of sand, it is not harmful. The technology of solar panels does not produce any toxic or leakage of any harmful liquid or gas.

Yet another query on solar panels is their storage. A common mistake of people is that they think solar panels can actually store energy. Solar panels are more on the production of electric current, not on storage of it.

Before placing solar panels at your home, you have to first be familiarize with them. To acquire reliable data about it, you can check online for details. I hope this article imparted sufficient information about solar panels.




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