Question:
How do solar panels work?
Yuuki
2015-04-15 13:03:20 UTC
I am planning to install solar panels on my rooftop. I have about 100sqm of space allotted for it. How many kilowatts per day will be produced if we have atleast 10 hours of 28°C to 34°C of sunlight?
Three answers:
Rudydoo
2015-04-15 20:12:52 UTC
Hey Yuuki, as a rough measure, you can install about 100 watts of solar power for each square meter. This is assuming the sun actually shines on all that space all day, they don't work when it is shady even though there is still light there. Solar electric panels, or "photovoltaic" panels do not actually like warm temperatures. A panel like ours for example, a Kyocera KC-120 can develop 120 watts of power in direct noon time sun if the temperature is below 20 degrees C. In colder temps they actually produce more power, more than their maximum ratings in fact. In hotter weather, they produce less. At 34 C, I would estimate a 100 watt panel will produce about 70 watts. There isn't anything you can do about it, panels are made out of the same silicone that computer chips are, and computers slow down when they get hot, that's why we cool them.



If you did indeed install enough panels to cover the full 100 square meters of your home with panels, you would have about a 10 kw array, maybe enough to run your entire home, depends on how much energy your home uses, or wastes. We have a 1.6 kw array, and it produces 90% of our energy, but our home is small, 1200 square feet, and very efficient. I know people with homes that use 10 times what our home does, and they live alone. I guess my best suggestion is to learn more before making decisions. In my 15 years installing, using and teaching school kids about solar power, I've learned that there are two things in vast supply, sun, and misinformation. I'm always amazed how many people are willing to weigh in with their advice, who have never laid a hand on a solar panel, inverter or battery. Don't get your information here, I'll put some links below. Get a subscription to Home Power Magazine, and check out the calendar section in the back, then try to get to an energy fair. We did 15 years ago, and here we are today. Good luck Yuuki, and take care, Rudydoo
?
2015-04-15 14:43:08 UTC
Those specs are surely in the docs of your particular panels, and the rest is simple arithmetic.
anonymous
2015-04-15 13:25:04 UTC
no


This content was originally posted on Y! Answers, a Q&A website that shut down in 2021.
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