How Solar Panels Work Explained: Everything You Need to Know
How Solar Panels Work: A Simple Step-by-Step Guide
Curious about how solar power works and what happens from sunlight to electricity in your home? Whether you’re considering installing solar panels or just fascinated by solar technology, understanding the process is easier than you think. Here’s a step-by-step guide that breaks down how a solar power system works and how it can impact your electric bill.
1. Sunlight Activation
Solar panels are typically installed on your roof or other areas that receive maximum sunlight. When sunlight hits the panels, the photovoltaic (PV) cells inside absorb the energy from the sun, kickstarting the process of turning light into electricity.
2. The Photovoltaic Effect
PV cells are made from semiconductor materials, usually silicon. Sunlight excites the electrons in these cells, setting them in motion. This flow of electrons is the foundation of electricity generation, also known as the photovoltaic effect.
3. Direct Current (DC) Electricity Generation
As electrons move through the semiconductor material, direct current (DC) electricity is created. DC electricity flows in only one direction, which isn’t compatible with most home appliances—but don’t worry, there’s a solution.
4. Conversion to Alternating Current (AC)
The DC electricity is sent to a solar inverter, which converts it into alternating current (AC) electricity—the type of electricity your home uses every day for lights, appliances, and electronics.
5. Powering Your Home
Once converted to AC, electricity flows from the inverter to your electrical panel (breaker box) and is distributed throughout your home, seamlessly powering your devices.
6. Utility Meter and Grid Connection
If your solar system produces more electricity than you need, the excess is sent back to the grid via your utility meter. Many homeowners receive credits from their utility company for this surplus, a process often called a feed-in tariff. This is one way solar panels can reduce your electric bill.
7. Optional Solar Battery Storage
For even greater energy independence, excess electricity can be stored in a solar battery. This stored power can be used at night or on cloudy days when your panels aren’t generating energy, ensuring your home stays powered around the clock.
8. Monitoring and Maintenance
Most modern solar systems include monitoring tools so you can track your system’s performance in real-time. Regular maintenance, like panel cleaning and system checks, keeps your solar setup running efficiently for years.
How Do Solar Panels Work with Your Electric Bill?
To see how solar panels can truly impact your electricity costs, let’s look at a real example from one of our customers. This homeowner installed a complete solar system, including solar panels and a battery, and tracked their energy savings over the course of a year. These numbers help illustrate not only how much they save on electricity but also the long-term financial value of their system.
Key Terms Defined:
Net Present Value (NPV): NPV is the present-day value of all future cash inflows minus outflows. Since money today is worth more than money in the future, all future savings are adjusted (discounted) to reflect this. A positive NPV indicates that your solar investment is financially worthwhile.
Discounted Payback Period: Similar to the simple payback period, this measures how long it takes for your investment to pay for itself—but it also accounts for discounted future savings, giving a more accurate timeline. This period is usually slightly longer than a simple payback calculation.
Return on Investment (ROI): ROI measures the efficiency of your solar investment. For example, if you invested $100 today and received $300 back in savings over time, your ROI would be 200%.
| System Details | Specifications |
|---|---|
|
Solar Capacity |
14.96 kW |
|
Solar Panels |
34 × 440W PV JA Solar DeepBlue 4.0 |
|
Battery Storage |
16.12 kWh Sigenergy SigenStor-10S-16 |
|
Annual Power Production (AP) |
17,805.595 kWh |
|
Annual Electricity Bill (Before Solar) |
$2,876 |
|
Annual Electricity Bill (After Solar) |
$245 |
|
Return on Investment (ROI) |
383.3 % |
|
Payback Period |
4.66 years |
|
Net Present Value (NPV) |
$48,618 |
This example clearly shows how solar energy can reduce electricity bills, provide an attractive ROI, and even add value to a home. With battery storage included, the customer can use stored energy during the night or cloudy days, further minimizing reliance on the grid.
Daily Production Per Month
To understand how this system performs on a day-to-day basis, we analyzed the average daily electricity production per month. The graphic below shows how much electricity the panels generate each day throughout the year. Seasonal variations are normal, but the system consistently produces enough energy to cover most of the household’s needs, ensuring continuous savings.
Solar Panel Design
Finally, here’s the solar panel layout we designed for this customer. Every installation is tailored to maximize sunlight exposure while fitting seamlessly onto the roof or available space. This careful design ensures optimal performance and energy production, helping the system deliver maximum savings year after year.
How Solar Panels Work?
Solar panels are designed to capture sunlight and convert it into usable electricity, which is the foundation of how solar technology works. Essentially, these panels absorb sunlight throughout the day and use the photovoltaic effect to transform this abundant natural resource into energy for your home.
At the heart of every solar panel are silicon cells, the critical components that become active when exposed to sunlight. When sunlight strikes these cells, it excites electrons, creating a flow of electric current through a circuit. This movement of electrons is what generates electricity, forming the basis of solar power.
Furthermore, understanding the number of panels you need is essential to optimizing how your solar system works. Several factors influence this, including:
Sunlight availability in your area: Locations with more sun naturally generate more energy.
Roof angle and orientation: The slope and direction of your roof determine how efficiently panels capture sunlight.
Household energy use: Patterns of electricity consumption, which often vary between seasons, help determine the system size needed to meet your needs.
By carefully considering these aspects, you can design a solar panel system that aligns with your home’s energy demands, ensuring you maximize both efficiency and savings.
Solar Inverter: Transforming DC into AC Electricity
Solar panels generate direct current (DC) electricity, which flows through wiring to a solar inverter, usually installed near your home’s switchboard. The primary role of the inverter is to convert DC electricity into alternating current (AC) electricity, which is the type of electricity that powers most household appliances, from lights to refrigerators.
How solar energy is used to generate electricity?
To make it easier to understand, here’s a simplified diagram-style explanation of the process:
Sunlight: The energy source that triggers electricity production in your solar panels.
Solar Panels: Capture sunlight and generate DC electricity through the photovoltaic effect.
DC Electricity: Flows from the panels to the inverter but cannot be used directly by most home appliances.
Solar Inverter: Converts DC electricity into AC electricity suitable for household use.
AC Electricity: Now usable, it flows to your switchboard and powers your home.
Sunlight → Solar Panels → DC → Solar Inverter → AC → Home Appliances
How It Works With Your Home?
Once the electricity is converted to AC, it is sent to your switchboard, where it becomes a usable power source. For homes still connected to the electrical grid, the system prioritizes solar energy first, automatically drawing extra power from the grid only when needed.
Moreover, if your solar system produces more electricity than your home uses, the excess is exported back to the grid, supporting the wider network and potentially earning credits from your utility provider.
For homes with solar batteries, the inverter can also integrate stored energy. Batteries can be connected via the switchboard or through a hybrid inverter, allowing you to use stored solar energy at night or on cloudy days, ensuring continuous access to clean, renewable energy.
Solar Batteries: Storing and Using Your Solar Energy
A solar battery stores excess energy generated by your panels during the day and releases it later, such as in the evening or at night when your system isn’t producing electricity. This allows you to maximize self-consumption, reduce reliance on the grid, and potentially save even more on your electricity bill.
When considering a battery, it’s important to weigh factors like lost feed-in tariffs, battery lifespan, and the total installation cost.
Batteries can also provide additional income through Virtual Power Plant (VPP) schemes, where a network of home batteries helps stabilize the grid and take advantage of wholesale price spikes.
How Solar Batteries Work?
Solar batteries store energy in DC electricity, and how they connect depends on the type of system:
DC-coupled batteries: Connect directly to a hybrid solar inverter, allowing the battery to charge directly from the panels. The inverter then converts the stored energy to AC electricity when it’s used at home.
AC-coupled batteries: Connect to the switchboard, converting AC power to DC for storage and back to AC when discharging. While this involves multiple conversions, it makes the battery compatible with almost any inverter and even usable without solar panels.
By integrating a battery, you can store surplus solar energy, reduce grid dependency, and unlock potential revenue opportunities, making your solar system more efficient and valuable over time.
Grid Rules: Understanding System Permissions
When installing a solar system, it’s not just about the panels and batteries — it’s also about how your system connects to the electricity grid. The grid, often referred to as the “poles and wires”, is owned and operated by your local Distributed Network Service Provider (DNSP). This company is responsible for maintaining the infrastructure that delivers electricity safely and reliably to homes and businesses across your area.
Even though you don’t see it listed separately, part of your electricity bill actually goes toward maintaining this network. These costs are bundled into your energy retailer’s charges to help cover grid maintenance and operation.
However, before your solar system can feed electricity into the grid, it must comply with the specific rules set by your DNSP. These rules define how much solar you’re allowed to install and whether you’re permitted to export excess power back into the grid. Every DNSP has slightly different requirements, depending on the region and the grid’s capacity to handle new solar connections.
In general terms:
For most homes, DNSPs typically allow solar systems up to 5 kW inverter capacity with export approval. This process is often quick and automated.
For medium commercial systems (over 30 kW), DNSPs usually require a network protection device to safeguard the system and grid from faults or overloads.
In short, while solar energy empowers you to generate your own clean electricity, it still needs to work hand in hand with your local grid. By understanding and following your DNSP’s rules early in the process, you’ll ensure a faster approval, smoother installation, and maximum system performance from day one.
Understanding how solar panels, inverters, and batteries work together — and how your system connects to the grid — is key to getting the most out of your solar investment. With the right setup, you can lower your power bills, increase your energy independence, and enjoy long-term savings while helping the planet.
If you’re in Victoria, Australia, and thinking about making the switch to solar, our team at Tech Solar Battery is here to help. We design and install high-performance solar systems tailored to your home or business — from panels to batteries and everything in between.
📞 Call us today on 0485 833 151 for a free consultation and quote, and start powering your future with clean, reliable solar energy.
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