Generating power for your home with alternative energy systems can seem quite overwhelming, if you don’t know how the system works. There are several different types of power systems that you can use to power your venue. Most of them work in a similar way, as the sun shines on your solar panels, which is then converted to electricity, or the wind spins the rotor, which in turn drives the generator, to generate electricity.
Generally, the energy created in this way is discharged into a battery bank and you use the energy from the batteries, usually through a device called an inverter. The inverter changes the voltage it has stored in the battery bank into standard household current. Most homes are powered by utility companies and use AC power, which is typically 120 volts for light duty and 240 volts for the larger heat producing appliances in your home.
I have now released several different terms, which may need further explanation. I will list the different elements and give a brief summary of what they are, how they work, and how they interact with the rest of your energy system. I’m sure no one wants a long explanation, but rather a short description of how these elements work together to make your home’s power system produce the energy it uses.
Components
Solar panels: In sunlight, the panels heat up and convert the heat into electricity.
Wind turbine: the wind passes through the blades, turns a generator and generates electricity.
Battery bank: this is how it stores and uses the energy it has collected, through the panels and the turbine.
Inverter: switch the electricity from DC to AC so you can use it easily.
Basic electrical terms
AC is short for “alternating current.” AC is the standard form of electrical power that is commonly used in the home. AC power cycles at 60 cycles per second, which means electricity changes direction rapidly, side to side, so that it appears to always be on and produces the desired results with the appliances you have plugged in and turned on. When you grasp a hot wire, using AC power, the electricity will continue to hit it until you turn off the power or manage to release it. Alternating current is very dangerous.
DC is short for “direct current.” DC is the type of voltage that you will have stored in your battery bank. DC only moves in one direction and will only bite you when you first touch it and again when you try to release it. Many farms and ranches use this type of energy to charge electric fences around pastures. At small voltages, DC is extremely safe and generally won’t hurt you.
The reason for the two different types of electricity is: AC can be transmitted over long distances, with a smaller cable, and it has less line loss than its counterpart. DC line loss occurs when power is transmitted over distances. The farther away your appliances are from the power source, the more energy it will have to pass through the cables.
When the telegraph became part of the American communications system, the power source came from a battery bank, made up of “dry cells.” Because the power decreases with distance, the telegraph relied on “relay stations” along its length to retransmit the messages sent.
Other basic terms
Volts – the type of energy or force Amps – the force of energy flowing through the wires Watts – the amount of power required to run a particular appliance. Resistance: the degradation of the energy that is transmitted, due to the physics involved.
I promised to keep it short and simple, so as not to delve into this. Electricity is an atomic action, whereby an electron is transmitted through wires to the units it wants to power. When electrons travel through wires, part of the wire is transmitted with power. Over time, the cables wear out because of this and can cause poor connections.
There are some mathematical equations related to the terms mentioned above. Voltage times amperage equals wattage. 110 volts (AC) multiplied by 5 amps equals 550 watts. If the appliance requires 110v to run and uses 9 amps of power, then it will need 990 watts to keep it running. In general, you will not need to know these things if you configure your system correctly.
Using a home power system
We finally got to what you were looking for! Solar panels generate a finite amount of energy. The stronger the sunlight, the more power it can generate, but a panel can only deliver a limited amount. Therefore, you will need many panels to be able to use the energy you need. Solar panels will work on cloudy days, but not as effectively as in direct sunlight.
The panels generate electricity and send that energy to your battery bank. Since the batteries are DC, to use this energy in your home goes through an inverter. That changes the voltage from DC to AC
The battery bank will be configured to store the energy produced by the solar or wind plant. Typically the battery bank will be 12 volts or 24 volts, or several multiples of these. (By the way, your car uses 12 volts DC to run most systems.) The battery bank is designed to cycle, which means that the batteries will charge and discharge many times during the day, therefore the size of your battery bank is just as important as the number of solar panels or the size of your plant. wind. (how much power it produces, under ideal conditions)
This is just a basic description. If you are interested in learning more, there are many books written about it. Using a home power system can help lower your electricity bill, but the hype that the power company pays you for excess power is not really a reason to use this system.
This type of system is most beneficial when power goes out, due to storms, downed power lines, or overuse, such as East Coast blackouts, during peak power hours, when everyone and their cousins are using their air conditioners in summer and heaters in the cold of winter.
If you are going to set up an alternate power system, such as the ones I’ve described, remember to set it up for excess power rather than just minimal. You will generate more energy in summer than in winter, because the days are shorter and there is less sun. Also, the wind is not constant, although it seems so at times. And … The higher a wind plant is established, the more wind it can use.