Solar power is a renewable energy source that uses sunlight to create electricity. Since it does not use a physical fuel to create power, solar produces no harmful emissions.

How Solar Produces Power

The main component of a home solar power system is the solar panel, where the conversion of sunlight into electricity takes place. Solar panels are made up of many individual solar cells which are responsible for producing the electricity. The cells, individually, produce very little electricity so they are packaged together into panels. They generate electricity using the phenomenon called photovoltaic effect, wherein electrons are knocked off from a material hit by sunlight. The electrons then travel to the circuit built within the cells therefore producing current. The current, however, is DC which is unusable for most appliances. A typical home solar power system, therefore, has an inverter which converts the DC current into usable AC current.

Sharing Power With the Grid

Solar energy relies on the sun to produce electricity. This means that you don’t produce energy at night. When the sun is out and you are generating power, your electric meter “runs backward” indicating that you are sharing power with the grid. Your utility company will give you credit for this generation (Click here to learn more about selling your energy ). At night, you pull from the grid once again receiving power from your utility company. The result is a significant reduction in your utility bills!