Solar Energy and Power

For our purposes, we can think of energy as the solar electricity generated by the solar panels and stored in the batteries.  (Technically, it is "energy" when the electricity actually flows through a circuit).  Power, on the other hand,  is the rate at which the electricity flows.

To illustrate electrical energy and power in an off grid solar system we can think of the lake and the pumps in our previous example.  The energy would be represented by the water in the lake, and the power would be represented by the rate at which the water is pumped.  Obviously, the rate at which the water can flow is limited by the capability of the pumps even if there is a huge amount of water in the lake.

This means that for an off grid solar system, even if a solar array is large enough to fully charge the batteries and supply the load, and even if the batteries are sufficiently sized, an undersized inverter(s) (the "pump") will create severe performance issues typically by shutting down during heavy loads.

The modeling system used by Mohave Homes addresses these issues and provides estimates of the energy and power that will be required for your solar system.  Specific estimates are generated by the model for the energy and power questions below.

Typical Energy Questions. 

1.  How large of a battery bank (i.e. the lake) is required to provide sufficient reserves to satisfy my load (put out the fire)? 

2.  How much rain (solar kilowatt hours) is required to supply appliances and fill the lake (i.e. solar and the battery bank)?  

Typical Power Questions.

1.  How many inverters (i.e. pumps) are required to handle starting appliances? 

2.  How many inverters (i.e. pumps) are required to handle the continuous load?  

Contact us to discuss your project!