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How Many Solar Panels Will You Need?

Hmmmm.... Interesting question. The answer to this depends on 2 main factors:

1) How much money you are prepared to spend.

2) How much electricity your household uses.

The size of a solar PV system is typically described by its solar PV "peak output" (in Watts or kW) i.e. how much electricity it will produce on a perfectly sunny day, when the sun is at its strongest. So, a 1.5kW solar PV system will produce 1.5kW peak or 1500W peak.

If your system was made up of 150W solar PV panels, it would be 10 x 150 = 1500W peak. (for example)

This value is measured in "kiloWatts" (kW). A Watt is a basic measure of electrical power, and the Kilo means there are 1000 of them. i.e. 1 kW = 1000Watts

A word of caution: be careful to understand what you are being quoted by your installer and that it is the solar PV peak Watts and NOT the inverter size they are quoting. I've seen a few press adverts that are selling a 3kW System that consists of a 3kW inverter with only 1.5kW of solar panels!

To give you a ‘feel’ for how much power a kW represents here is what you can run with 1kW of power:

Wow, so does that mean you could power 60 globes with a 1kW solar system?

Errrrr... Kind of..but not neccasarily.

The thing is, a 1kW solar panel system will only give you 1kW of power for a few hours a day, and then only if it is a clear, sunny day. So your 60 globes will actually only be all on for a few hours a day.

This graph shows a what the electricity output of a 1kW solar panel might look like over a summers day. You can see here that 1kW is only generated at midday when the sun is at its strongest:

That is the reason that any (reasonably priced) solar installation is connected to the national electricity grid. The grid will absorb any electricity generated by the solar panels that you don’t use in your house. For example when the sun is strong and you don’t have the air con on. And on the other hand, when you are using more electricity than can be produced by the sun, the grid is used to top-up your electricity needs.

The simple answer is to get good advice from a qualified professional who can design a system to suit your needs. If all this talk of kilowatt hours is totally confusing you, then I suggest that you simply use this site to get 3 quotes for a solar power system, and when you are asked what size you are looking for, simply select the ‘don’t know – please help’ option. This will allow you to talk directly to an expert who can explain all the ins and outs of system sizing with you.

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