Sizing Your Solar System
Sizing Your Solar Panel System
Imagine you’re at a restaurant by yourself but all the meals on the menu are family size. You ask the waiter if you can order a meal for one person instead so that you don’t have to spend as much money, and they reply “Don’t you want as much food as possible? More food is always good!”. You probably wouldn’t be very happy… and neither would your wallet.
It’s the same deal with solar. Many homeowners assume that the more panels they can get on their roof the better, but that isn’t necessarily true. If we put 30 solar panels on your roof when your home only uses 10 panels worth of electricity, the money you paid for those extra 20 panels is completely wasted. You would be paying for energy you will never use!
The Importance of Sizing Solar Systems Correctly
There are a lot of factors that impact how an energy consultant chooses to size a solar system. If half of the roof surface is shaded, they aren’t going to design a system that covers the whole roof: those shaded panels would never produce energy and would be a waste of money! If a home only consumes 1,000 kWh of energy each month, they won’t design a system that produces 2,000 kWh of energy monthly. What would you do with those extra 1,000 kWh?
That’s why our energy consultants always take a look at your roof and your power bill before designing your system. Without this information, they would not be able to correctly size your system.
Considerations When Sizing Solar Systems
Various roof characteristics determine the system size a home needs or can support. If your roof is broken up into sections instead of one long, flat surface, it may not be able to fit as many solar panels. Roofs facing east/west get fewer sun time hours each day than roofs facing south, and consequently may need more panels to produce the amount of power your home needs. Roofs that are partially shaded have less space available to place solar panels, since panels that are shaded will not produce enough energy to be worth purchasing.
Your power bill also helps energy consultants figure out how to size your system. Your power bill includes your home’s energy consumption history–how much energy your home used monthly over the last year. Consultants will use this information to calculate your home’s average monthly consumption and build a system as close to that amount as possible. Depending on the size system your roof can support, they may be able to build a system that fully offsets your home’s energy usage. If your roof cannot support a system that large, they will build you a system as close to your home’s energy consumption as possible.
It is also important to consider any future energy usage changes. For example, if you are planning on buying a hot tub or an electric vehicle, or are switching from being out of the house all day to working from home, your energy usage will increase beyond the amount displayed in your usage history. If you know of any upcoming changes like these, inform your energy consultant. They will be able to either estimate the energy increase and account for it when designing your system or walk you through the process of adding additional panels after your installation.
Skip the Shortcuts
This is why online cost calculators and other shortcuts are poor options for homeowners interested in solar. Without a professional home assessment from an experienced energy consultant, you will not receive an accurate quote. Your consultant’s goal is to build you a solar system that is custom designed to meet your needs. Online calculators are unable to access all of the details necessary to accurately build a system for your home.
If you are considering going solar, skip the guesswork and blanket estimates. The cost of solar varies based on the unique characteristics of each home, and working with a professional will present you with a system that will best meet your home’s needs.
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