There is a lot of debate whether solar energy is the best option when it comes to replacing fossil fuels as the primary source of energy. Even if it is not the primary source of energy, solar is a viable and important source of energy which is recognized by a number of nations across the world.
However, a lot of people still don’t fully understand how solar energy works and that leads to a lot of misconceptions and misinformation. The most pervasive is that solar energy doesn’t work during the winter, which makes installing solar street lights a bad idea. This article aims to dispel some of these misconceptions.
Table of Contents
Solar Panels Are Powered by Light, Not Heat
The most important thing people get wrong is the source of the power that solar panels produce. Most people will assume that it comes from the heat since that is the most immediate way we experience the Sun’s energy.
However, if you do just a bit more research, you can learn that the vast majority of commercially available solar panels use something called photovoltaic cells. If you parse that word, you can determine that the first part is derived from the word ‘phos’ meaning light in Greek and the second part is the word voltaic, which is derived from Volt, a measure of electromotive force. What that means is that the energy production comes from the light, rather than warmth.
The Output Will Be Reduced Somewhat
Despite being powered by the light and being resistant to the cold, you can still expect a reduced output. The main reason for that is that the days are shorter, meaning that the duration of the sun exposure will be shorter. This issue is often accompanied by the increased number of overcast and cloudy days, which further reduces the effectiveness.
Another important thing to remember is that your panels need to be clean and unobstructed, meaning that leaves and snow need to be cleared away from the face of the panels. In most cases, the angle of the panels is enough, but if bad weather persists, you may need to do something manually.
Technology Progresses in Leaps and Bounds
Many people complain about the unreliability of solar panels. However, these people usually don’t keep track of current updates and progress in the field. Not only have solar panels become cheaper, they have also gotten a lot better as well. In fact, they have become a cheaper option than fossil fuels recently.
The energy output of the solar panels has increased, but that’s not the only advancement in the field of renewable energy. For instance, solar street lights are now paired with LED light fixtures, meaning that the energy requirement is just a fraction of the one necessary to run regular light fixtures. You can learn more about this topic here https://www.streetlights-solar.com/solar-street-lighting.html Furthermore, the modern solar lights have timers which tell them when to turn on and off, which saves a lot of energy as well.
Savings Are Well Worth the Investment
With the recent drop in pricing for solar panels, the time has never been better to install them in your home or for any other purpose. They can produce as much as 70% of your household’s energy and can pay off fairly soon through the savings in your electrical bill.
When you factor in the tax cuts which your local government surely offers to people who invest in renewable energy, the case against trying out solar panels seems to be weaker by the second.
Solar energy, along with other forms of renewable energy, is the future of energy production in the increasingly energy-hungry world. The sooner you adopt this new technology, the better.
To contact Greenshine New Energy
72 Fairbanks, Irvine, CA 92618, USA
949-609-9636
