Archives April 2021

Many homeowners who have solar panels installed on their roofs worry about one thing the most: shade. Having shade over your solar panels is inevitable. It also brings a valuable impact to the operation and power generation performance of your solar panels.

Shades can come from the clouds, the leaves that have fallen from trees close to the panels, or it could be due to a structure that overshadows your home at a certain time of the day.

However, thanks to the best solar panels available to date, such as the Solid State Solar’s solar solutions, shading has become less of a problem for many solar panel owners.

Below are a few shading scenarios which you can possibly experience:

1. Spot Shadows

Say the spot shadow coming from a single leaf fallen from a tree and landed onto your solar panel. This shadow may not seem much. However, it can actually have a huge impact on your solar panels’ sunlight collection and power generation capabilities.

Solid State Solar’s solar panels are designed to keep solar energy flowing independently on parallel rows. This means that each cell row deploys versatile and redundant paths to allow power to move from one cell to another. Thus, a spot shadow delivers a very minimal to zero impact on the panel’s performance.

2. Linear Shading (Landscape or Portrait Orientation)

A linear shadow delivers a greater impact on a solar panel’s performance compared to a spot shadow. If the linear shadow is on a portrait or landscape orientation, conventional panels typically shut down one of the three zones for electricity in order to deviate from the shading.

Most conventional solar panels will typically experience an average of 33% power loss when subjected to linear shading. However, industry-grade solar panels such as Solid State Solar’s only experience a maximum of 17% power loss. Therefore, even if our solar panel experiences linear shading, its performance will not be heavily affected.

Conclusion

As shading is bound to happen one way or another, having a reliable solar panel that offers the capability to withstand shading is extremely important.

At Solid State Solar, we are well aware of the possible scenarios that may affect solar panels’ efficiency and power generation capabilities. Therefore, we make sure that all of our solar solutions can bypass all the obstacles that may undermine our panels’ performance.

Are you looking for the most practical ways to conserve power and reduce your monthly electricity bills at your business? You are lucky enough to stumble upon this post.

Here are 8 quick and easy methods that you can implement today:

1. Hire an energy auditor.

Having a comprehensive audit of your business’s monthly energy usage and costs allows you to have a quick gander of how your company goes about using power. In order to accurately do energy audits, you need the help of a certified energy auditor who can do the job.

2. Turn off electronic equipment and lights that are not in use.

Whether big or small, any running equipment that is not in use can make a substantial contribution to your company’s total energy consumption. Therefore, it would make a difference if you encourage your team to make sure that all unused electronics are turned off.

3. Make use of natural light as much as possible.

Natural light is not only great for helping you save up on your company’s monthly electricity bills, but it is also great for the workplace. In fact, natural light is proven to have positive effects on employees’ mood, eye health, and vitamin D levels. Additionally, natural light is also hypothesized to boost people’s productivity.

4. Install LED or CFL bulbs as they are longer lasting.

As lighting is essential to any business facility, it also covers a huge chunk of most entities’ total energy consumption. Investing inLED or CFL light bulbs allows you to cut back your monthly lighting cost as these bulbs are energy-efficient and longer-lasting compared to conventional light bulbs.

5. Invest in programmable thermostats.

A programmable thermostat offers the capability of automatically adjusting the temperature in your facility or workplace when no one is around. You can also set it to automatically turn on the central cooling or heating a few minutes prior to your business’s or workplace’s opening.

6. Invest in energy-efficient electronic equipment.

Investing in electronic equipment that has high energy-efficiency ratings is one of the best ways to reduce your business’s overall energy consumption. Computers, printers, copiers, air conditioners, and other commonly used electronic equipment should also offer impeccable energy-efficiency to help you save more.

7. Clean or replace your cooling and heating systems’ filters regularly.

Dirty filters on your air conditioner or heater can affect its efficiency and performance. As a result, your HVAC system’s motors work harder, thus leading them to use more energy. For this reason, it is crucial that you make sure that your HVAC’s filters are also clean.

8. Make use of alternative energy sources.

If you are on the lookout for the ultimate way to conserve energy and cut back the cost of your monthly electricity bills, then going off-grid is the way to go. Alternative energy sources such as solar panels or wind turbines can help you have a more sustainable and cost-efficient energy source for your business.

Conserving energy at home benefits your bank and contributes to the foregoing efforts to fight the adverse effects of global warming. Thus, by making an effort to cut back your monthly electric bill, you are also giving the planet a favor.

This quick guide will walk you through a rundown of the different ways you can save power at your own home.

Saving Energy With Your Gadgets

Your gadgets are probably one of your most-used electronics at home, and they are unknowingly one of the biggest contributors to your overall energy consumption. Here are a few ways on how you can cut back your power use with your tech gadgets:

• Turn off devices that are not in use to conserve their batteries’ power.
• Make use of the hibernate or sleep modes of your devices.
• Avoid charging your devices overnight.
• Turn down the brightness of your phones, computers, and other devices with screens.
• Make use of your device’s “eco” mode if it has it.
• Have a set schedule where you and your kids do a fun activity that does not require the use of your devices.

Saving Energy With Your Appliances

Your appliances at home, such as your fridge, oven, TV, etc., are probably the ones that are constantly using electricity at your home.

Below is a list of the probable ways for you to save power whilst using these electronics:

• Unplug appliances that are currently not in use.
• Use your outdoor griller instead of your oven or electric grill when having a roast.
• Invest in appliances with an inverter feature as they are more energy-efficient.
• Do your laundry a maximum of twice a week only.
• Hang your clothes instead of folding them to avoid creasing. This will eliminate the need for ironing.

Saving Energy With Your Heating and Cooling Systems

Here are some ways you can save energy with your heating and cooling system:

• Open your windows to allow air to enter your home during warm weather situations.
• If possible, avoid using your home’s central heating or cooling and use space heaters or electric fans instead.
• Clean your heating and cooling systems’ filters regularly.
• To keep your home warm during the freezing winter months, seal small leaks at your doors or windows to prevent the cold air from seeping through.

Conclusion

The little things you can do to conserve energy at home can substantially impact your monthly electricity bills. Additionally, by taking these steps, you are also leading a more sustainable lifestyle.