- There is no definite answer to how many panels your home would need.
- Lots of factors are involved but the most important is your electricity consumption and what percentage of your utility electricity would you like replaced with solar power.
- For 100 percent replacement, you would need give or take 30 solar panels.
- This can vary and we recommend using an online calculator or consulting with a solar company in orange county
If you are at this point on the website, then we would like to congratulate you. You certainly have shown a willingness to contribute to the future of humanity, which is solar power. Now you have probably done some research or went around this website reading about the requirements, factors, scenarios, and other things concerning solar panels, so we would like to give you advice right now on the quantity you should invest in.
Since we are talking about homes, there you need not worry too much about some shocking expense or investment cost. After all, residential areas use the least amount of electricity, particularly in states like California.
Investing in solar can be quite a big undertaking though, there are lots of things to consider and being rash about them could result in wasted money and opportunity. So you need to take a deep breath, relax, and be wise about things. Above all, the patience to keep researching about solar power and the solar industry can pay off in the long run.
How many are too many?
The thing is, there is no definite answer for how many solar panels you home actually needs. Like other things related to solar panels in this website, there are lots of factors which you need to consider in order to make your decisions and better understand how the panels work to provide you with electricity.
Here are the said factors:
- The size of your house;
- How exposed the roof is to the sun;
- The solar panel brand;
- Solar panel efficiency;
- Whether you have a spare room in the front or backyard;
- Your monthly energy consumption;
- Monthly energy expenses;
- How many people are in the house;
- How many appliances are in the house;
- How often are you in the house;
- How often the appliances get used;
- Electricity prices in your state or area;
- Your house’s exposure to sunlight;
- How much are you willing to invest;
- How much electricity you want to be replaced with solar;
That is quite a lot, though some of them are not mandatory to consider, like how often you use appliances since you get to save on bills anyway with solar panels. They are, however, nice to factor in since panels are not cheap and each panel actually matters.
Now in terms of numbers, average ones at least from the typical homeowner. The average American household consumes about 11,000 kWh per year or about 900+ kWh per month. Now let us assume that the solar panels in use on average are the 250-watt Photovoltaic solar panels with both high and low production scenarios factored in, i.e. exposure to sunlight and weather. Those types of panels produce about 1 kWh per day on average.
If this is the case and setup, then the typical homeowner is going to need around 30 solar panels in order to replace 100 percent of electricity with solar power and be able to quit relying on utilities. Of course, 100 percent energy usage from solar panels can be quite expensive and living off the grid is still not recommended, so the quantity will probably be lower than 30 panels. Besides, 30 panels require quite a lot of horizontal space, so be prepared to that.
Then, there is also the fact that some houses and families are smaller than others and do not consume much electricity. So that 30-panel number is usually just give or take. You could lower the percentage of energy shouldered by the solar panels to around 80 percent and would still probably save more than a thousand dollars every year.
Check with an online calculator or a consultant
Okay, so you can ask EcoSolar consultant or use online calculator to know how many solar panels you actually need. What we did above was just for the sake of education and to give you an idea of how many would you need if you decide to go full solar, which is often not the target of a lot of residential areas. Most of them just want to get some of the load off from the utilities.
Regardless, the calculator does the amount recommended by factoring in your monthly electricity bill and where you live. However, this is mostly for cost purposes, and the actual number of panels is still best left to a consultation with companies. Most of them do it for free and SunPower is certainly no exception.
So remember, when you need an actual consultation on the number of panels you will need, we are here to help you and will be happy to provide our services. Do take note of the estimates and scenario above for references, as they can help you immensely with your expectations.