Choices To Know Before You Purchase Solar Panel Kits

Choices To Know Before You Purchase Solar Panel Kits

Posted by Jens Jackson on February 27th, 2010

For numerous years, the only kinds of solar panels commercially obtainable have been crystalline solar panels arranged in a rectangular frame and placed on a roof. That is why nearly everyone, as soon as they consider solar power for their house, think of this as their only choice. Below are a few new advancements in solar power and mounting options you may have never heard of before.

Thin Film Solar Panels – Man Is This Skinny!

Think of the solar panel you see in a solar calculator. That is a thin film solar panel. Thin film solar panels are used to a great extent in satellites. Thin film technology is at the present being extended into residential and industrial use and was named one of the best inventions of 2008 by TIME magazine.

Thin film solar panels are flexible, nothing like polysilicon cells found in traditional crystalline solar panels. These thin film solar panels are being labeled as second generation solar power technology.

Thin film solar panels are more resilient to hail, rocks, etc. If a segment of a crystalline solar panel is damaged, the whole solar panel will stop working where a thin film solar panel will go on functioning.

Thin film panels can also be flexible and modified to numerous surfaces. They can be functional in places traditional crystalline solar panels cannot be mounted on. I have even witnessed a thin film panel sewed against a jacket that powered a MP3 player.

The downside to thin film panels is that they do not absorb as much energy because they are so skinny. These panels are not nearly as efficient as conventional photovoltaic panels but they cost less. Thin film solar panels are printed onto the rolled backing, eliminating many of the high energy and chemical intensive methods that are typical in conventional PV manufacturing.

Thin film solar panels are low wattage and have need of more room than traditional solar panels and they are more prone to degradation. In an attempt to counter a few of these competitive disadvantages they have against traditional solar panels, manufacturers give better warranties for thin film panels.

The largest thin film solar photovoltaic (PV) project in the United States is the Blythe plant located 200 miles east of Los Angeles, California. The 21-megawatt solar power plant uses thin film solar cells made out of cadmium telluride. At full power, the plant will create enough electricity to power an expected 17,000 houses.

Now let’s examine traditional solar panels and a few of the mounting options that are offered you might have not heard of before.

Mounting Choices For Traditional Solar Panels – It’s In the Mount

Solar panel mounts are available in three main varieties: pole mounts, roof-ground mounts, and flush mounts. With these mounts, you can install your solar panel on your roof, onto an RV, on top of or against the side of a pole, and even install them as a free-standing unit.

Pole Mounts – No That Isn’t Something Santa Claus Uses For His Sleigh

Pole mounts, particularly top-of-pole, have been popular for a long time. Top-of-pole mounts are basically a steel or aluminum frame and railing system bolted or welded to a big casing that sets on top of a pole with set-bolts to keep it stationary. Side-of-pole mounts are usually used when you must mount to the side of a telephone pole or communications tower. Tracking mounts are similar to top-of-pole mounts, but they also have a method of automatically aiming the mount to stay on the sun.

Top of pole mounts (as well as sun trackers) are one of the simplest mounts to set up. They essentially only need a single steel pole set in the ground (normally in concrete), and the mount slips onto the top of the pole. Most ordinary sizes use a 2-inch to 8-inch pole, usually around 11 to 13 feet in length. They can go higher if you need to get the panel up higher to avoid shading from nearby shrubs.

Common Roof-Ground Mounts

Roof-ground systems can be mounted onto a roof or ground without much reworking in setup. They are usually made from stainless steel in a grid-like system of supports. Roof-mounted panels for smaller systems are the easiest to install, using little flush-mount brackets that elevate the panels to the most excellent position for solar collection.

Ground mounts, as the name suggests, are solar panel mounts that are installed on the ground (as opposed to a pole mount or roof mount). They have supporting, modifiable legs which allow you to optimize their upright direction for solar exposure. Ground mounting systems typically require lots of steel supports, concrete foundations, and galvanized footings, which can be troubling, when you are attempting to keep your system low cost. Ground mounted systems call for structural strength to prevent load bearing failure.

Even though module mounting systems are obtainable for ground and roof installation, roof mount installation is the most common and cost effective system. The roof mounted panels are attached to a mounting system normally consisting of an aluminum or steel support structure which attaches the panels to the roof.

The Down Low On Flush Mounts

Flush Mounts are cheap and easy to install – these are perfect for single panel installations and smaller solar arrays. Flush mounts are mounted onto a level surface such as a rooftop, the top of a boat, or the top of a recreational vehicle and are not used for ground installations. These mounts act to separate the solar panel from the mounting surface and allow airflow to go below and cool the solar panel for efficient operation. Flush Mounts are normally used with small solar arrays on roof tops and RVs, because the structural design of a flush mount cannot hold up big solar panels.

There are many new options available in the expanding realm of solar technology. For all you could ever want to know about solar panels and wind generators visit purchase solar panel kits