Solar Power VS Solar Energy

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Solar Power VS Solar Energy
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• Did you know there is a difference between solar
  power and solar energy? Dont worry, I bet many
  solar reps dont either. In this blog, I will
  explain the difference between the two and why
  its so important to understand these two terms
  when learning the fundamentals of a solar system.

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• Power Electricity (kW)
• Energy Amount of electricity used (kWh)
• First lets break down the abbreviations you may
  have heard of
• k meaning kilo or one thousand
• W meaning watt
• h meaning hour
• kW The measurement for power is kilowatts
• kWh The measurement for energy is kilowatt hours

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• Now the easiest way to explain the difference
  between solar power and solar energy is to
  imagine you are filling up a pool with water from
  the hose.
• The water, flowing through the hose represents
  power. All the water collected in the pool, is
  referred to as energy.

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• You might be thinking to yourself yeah, yeah who
  cares, but the reason this is so important when
  considering investing in solar, is because it
  gives you a greater understanding of the size of
  the system you may require for your needs.
• For instance, I once had a customer tell me they
  need a 10kW solar system. They made this
  assumption based on their energy usage figure
  written on their electricity bill which stated
  they used 10kWh per day. For me to install a 10kW
  solar system, this would come at a cost to the
  customer of 10-15k and would consist of 30-35
  solar panels.

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• But in this case, the customer has assumed that
  the 10kWh he was using would equate to a 10kW
  solar system. This is not correct.
• A 10kW solar system would be far too large for
  his needs. In reality, a 2-3kW solar system or
  6-10 solar panels would be more than enough to
  suit his household needs and only come at a cost
  of 3-5k.
• Now lets put it into perspective. A solar
  system may consist of 10x 300w solar panels and
  it would be commonly referred to as a 3kW system.
  This is what we call the solar peak power rating.

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• The most common mistake people make when
  investing in researching solar systems is
  assuming that a 3kW system will produce 3kWs of
  power whenever the sun is shining. This is just
  not true.
• A 3kW system will rarely, if ever, produce this
  much power. The peak power rating would only
  occur if all conditions were perfect, this
  includes the temperature, the angle of the solar
  panels in respect to true North, the height of
  the sun and the efficiency of the solar panels
  and inverter.

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• On average for the Sydney and Macarthur area, we
  estimate a 3kw Solar power system will produce
  2.4kW of power for five hours a day giving you
  approximately 12kWh per day.
• 2.4kW x 5hours 12kWh
• The rule of thumb for a quick calculation of a
  solar power systems output in Sydney or Macarthur
  is 80 of the peak power rating multiplied by
  five hours per day. This will give you the
  average daily energy generation of the system.