Cheap Residential Solar Power

With the price of fossil fuels sky-rocketing, many home owners are exploring the use of solar power instead of the traditional power source. If your home is connected to a utility grid, you have two options when it comes to residential solar power. You can install solar power as your primary source and use the power grid as a back-up. Or you can have solar power installed as a secondary source and use the power grid as your primary source.

Solar panels used to generate residential solar power are usually mounted on walls or roofs. They can also be mounted on a tower or a free standing platform. These sometimes can be more effective as they can turn to follow the sun over the course of the day. When sunlight passes through the semiconductor material on the panel, energy capable of powering your household is released.

Solar panels are not restricted to the large square boxy panels we are most accustomed to. Solar cells can now be purchased that are incorporated directly into roofing materials that provide not only residential solar power but offer the same level of home protection as the traditional asphalt shingle. This provides an almost undetectable installation with no affect on your curb appeal.

The path the solar power panel takes in order to generate electricity is dependent upon the type of installation that you choose to use. In a stand-alone system, your home bypasses the connection to the traditional power company grid. In a stand-alone system, electricity from a solar panel will pass through a controller or regulator and then to an inverter, which converts the power from a direct current to an alternating one which all American electrical equipment operates on.

With certain types of installation the power from the solar panels would be routed to a power inverter then into a storage system or directly into your homes electrical system. Excess power can be diverted to the power company. Electrical power that is routed to a storage system, commonly a single or array of batteries, can be tapped into at nightfall or during overcast days. Under either system, the current flows into your homes circuit breaker where it will supply the power to light your home and run your appliances.

Numerous localities provide what is called "metering", which transmits the excess power produced by the residential solar power system to the utility company's grid. In effect, your power meter shifts into reverse so that they could in fact be the ones receiving an invoice from your household!

There are now many financial incentives on both the state and federal level for the installation of residential solar power. These incentives range from tax breaks to grants to low cost financing which can help to offset all, or a large portion of the cost of equipment and installation. And dont forget you will see a return every month in your electric bill.