 Solar PowerThank you for visiting the PV Solar Energy Information page of our site. Please see below for the benefits of generating your own energy from solar power including a link at the bottom to The Energy Saving Trust web site.
For further information on installing Solar Panels to your own home or to have one of our partners contact you please click on the image to go direcly to our partner site.
Renewable Energy
In today's world we are completely reliant on energy for the manufacture of goods and the delivery of services to maintain the level of comfort we have become accustomed to. Energy gives us the choice of where and how we live and provides the means to control our chosen lifestyle and to travel. The level of dependence on energy sources varies according to the climate, level of comfort, and general needs of a community.
Energy is a resource we all need and an expense we have to bear, and using it for electricity and fuel has an impact on the planet. The greatest sources of energy used come from fossil fuels, of which: coal, petroleum and natural gas are the most common, and their combustion release pollution into the atmosphere and they are non renewable so availability will decline.
Lower energy consumption can be achieved through the use of energy efficient approaches. Well planned energy use balances human comfort with reasonable energy consumption levels by developing and implementing effective ways to create and utilise energy.
Solar Power
Solar power is the technology of producing usable energy from sun light. It is already used both privately and commercially for heating, electricity generation, and desalination of seawater. Solar electric power, converting sunlight into electricity, is called photovoltaic (PV) power generation.
Smart Solar specialises in solar PV power for generating electricity. Smart Solar PV systems cause very little disruption because they are substantively installed outside the house or on your roof. The PV systems supplied by Smart Solar are grid-connected so do not require any battery.
There are many advantages of using solar energy to generate electricity. These include:
Clean
Quiet
Renewable
Self sufficient
Non-polluting
Lightweight
No running costs
Scalable
Portable
PV Solar Energy Generation
Photovoltaic panels, more commonly called solar cells, consist of thin layers of semi-conducting material, usually silicon.
The layers are given opposite charges and when sunlight strikes the solar cell, electrons move toward the treated front surface of the solar cell. This creates an imbalance between the front and back of the cell and creates a direct current (DC) which is converted to AC current and then fed into the house’s electrical network.
The amount of energy generated by the solar panels will vary dependant on the level of sunlight and time of year. In the summer months the system will typically generate five times the power generated during winter.
Historically the use of solar cells has been limited due to expensive manufacturing costs and relatively low solar cell efficiency. More recently, advances in research and scale of production have both reduced costs and increased efficiencies.
Micro Generation
By installing a Smart Solar PV system, you will become your own power generator.
Smart Solar PV systems cause very little disruption because they are mainly installed outside the house or on your roof and due to recent changes in planning regulations, they are even easier to install than ever before. Solar systems either be installed on your roof or stand-alone on a ground mounted structure.
PV systems are grid-connected so do not require any battery. The solar panels generate energy by day which is fed back into the house’s electrical network. Presuming that there are some appliances in the house in operation, the electricity generated is used effectively to power these directly. Surplus is exported back into the grid through for which you receive payment or credit according to the tariff you have chosen.
For optimum performance the solar panels should be sited south facing and at an appropriate angle to maximise their energy output on an average annualised basis.
Once installed, PV systems need minimal maintenance. They are silent, have no moving parts, no gas emissions or dangerous by-products.
Generating power at home has hence never been easier, and with introduction of feed-in tariffs at generous rates this will help to reduce payback times. PV systems are now more cost effective than ever.
An additional benefit from installing a PV system is that householders will typically modify further their behaviour by being much more aware of their energy consumption, especially with the aid of easy data monitoring, so end up using even less electricity.
Feed In Tariffs - Get Paid for Generating Electricity
On 1st February 2010 the Government announced the actual feed-in tariff rates which became live from April of that year. The rate for systems 4kW or below is now 41.3p, if installed within the 2 years from that year, thereafter reducing to 37.8p. The tariff will last for 25 years, so even after you have recouped the cost of your system, you will continue to reap financial benefit as well as continuing to save significant carbon every year. This is a much higher rate then the previously expected (36p) so will make investing in solar micro generation even more attractive.
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