Do Solar Panels Work at Night?
Do solar panels work at night?
This happens to be one of the most popular questions that we’ve seen people ask, when it comes to solar panels. When it’s bright and sunny outside, your solar panels are working hard to generate solar energy. But what happens when the sun goes down? Do solar panels still function at night?
The answer is – no solar panels don’t work at night.
Solar panels can only convert solar energy when the Sun is out. This is because Solar panels have photovoltaic cells which need light from the Sun in order to produce electricity. The solar panel system absorbs photovoltaic energy (PV), converts it to direct current (DC) and with the help of an inverter. It then converts DC to alternating current (AC) so that it can be used as electricity at home.
So how is your home using electricity if the solar panels are not generating energy? Well, two things can happen, depending on the type of solar system at home.
1) Import of Electricity From The Grid
When sunlight is not enough for solar energy to be generated, your system then starts importing electricity from the grid.
This process requires no manual interference, as your solar panel installer would have ensured the system works seamlessly.
With the excess energy that is fed back into the grid, customers get credits that they can use to import from the grid when the sun is down. In other words, electricity at home is optimized by being connected to both solar energy and the grid.
2) Powered By Solar Battery
When using battery stored solar energy, excess energy generated by your solar panels will be stored within a powerful battery, like the Tesla Powerwall.
Instead of exporting excess electricity into the grid, you will be able to store energy in the battery and use solar power to run appliances in your home or business at night.
This gives our customers a bigger saving with their electricity bills and a level of independence knowing that their homes are not reliant on the grid. Customers also get a sense of security during power outages, as the solar battery energy can be used to power up devices for emergency use.
Deciding What’s The Best Energy Option for Your Home