Tips to Determine the most efficient solar panels for business & residences

Tips to Determine the most efficient solar panels for business & residences

HOW TO DETERMINE WHICH IS MOST EFFICIENT SOLAR PANEL

Which one is the best or most efficient solar panel? This is the most common question that comes to the minds of people when they consider about going solar. To be more accurate, the question should be how to ascertain the efficiency of solar panel, which solar panels are worth the investment or understanding the ways to adjudge solar cell efficiency

Solar panels are basically of three types:

  • Monocrystalline: these panels are black in color, have high efficiency and have better temperature resistance.
  • Thin film: these are made up of photovoltaic cells on a base plate of glass or metal. This category is less efficient. It is rarely used in rooftops but mostly used in solar calculators and lamps.
  • Interdigitated black contact solar cells: IBC are a variant of standard solar cells. All the electrical contacts are made on the rear of the cell rather than the front and this becomes the reason for its efficiency.

Here is a list of things that must be considered to ensure that a particular solar panel is most efficient.

  1. Must have standards: You must ensure is that the particular solar panel has is equipped and pertaining to the international standards. The solar panel must necessarily be certified by a credible and authorized entity.
  2. Electricity consumption: You need to estimate how much electricity does your household consume during daylight when the panels are at peak of generating electricity so that you can accordingly match the consumption pattern. Clearly, if the consumption during day is not more, you need a small capacity system otherwise a larger one. This is also a point of influence for the residential buyers.
  3. Solar panel quality: You need to check how it has been manufactured. Generally there are three tiers of manufacture quality. Tier 1 includes 2% of solar photovoltaic manufacturers and uses best quality of silicon to produce the solar cells. The higher the quality of silicon, longer the cell lasts. Tier 2 includes the manufacturers that have an experience of 2-5 years in this field and produce these cells at good prices. Tier 3 involves the manufacturers who assemble solar panels. These neither produce the solar panels nor do they do any sort of R & D.
  4. Efficiency: Efficiency is the measure of the panel’s electricity output in comparison to the rooftop area. Higher the efficiency, more power you can obtain from a particular rooftop area.
  5. Installations: Even though solar panels are supposed to be under direct sunlight, they might not work as they get warmer. Thus it is also important that panels should be correctly installed such that the air can circulate under the panel and help to keep it cooler.
  6. Tolerance: Tolerance describes the range, a solar panel will either exceed or not meet its rated power. Consider that you purchase a solar panel under the nameplate of 100 watts. In reality it may be only 95 watts and this can be possibly due to quality control issue. However, a positive tolerant panel would not only generate 100 watts but may be even more than this.
  7. Conversion efficiency: The efficiency of a solar panel to convert heat into electricity will determine how much power is being generated by the system. The solar panel which will have a high conversion efficiency will have more value for the money.
  8. Durability/Warranty: Warranty also plays an important role is deciding the efficient solar panel. Generally the quality solar cells have a life span of 25 years.

In a nutshell, here is the KOR Energy’s suggestive buying checklist for any solar panel:

  • What materials have been used in themanufacturing process of Solar Systems
  • Check if it meets any international standards
  • Check for tolerance, temperature, efficiency etc
  • Check for the warranty details and also the after sales service and maintenance
  • Try to gather more knowledge about the company that manufactures these solar panels

And in case you need to know any further about the Efficiency of Solar Systems, or need to take a Live Demo, feel free to write to us on demo@korenergy.in or contact through this form.

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