The choice of solar panel power is essential for optimal installation and fully satisfying your energy needs. To do this, several factors must be considered, such as the available surface area, the number of hours of sunshine, your annual energy consumption, or the efficiency of the different models of solar panels.
In this article, I offer a guide to help you properly size your installation and choose the best solar panels that suit your needs without using a solar panel calculator.
Determine your energy needs
The first step before anything else is to define your annual energy needs. This data can be obtained based on your yearly energy consumption indicated on your electricity bills or by estimating your real electricity needs. Here are some things to consider:
- Your daily energy consumption
- The different periods of consumption (workdays, weekends, holidays, etc.)
- Seasonal variations (electric heating, air conditioning, etc.)
If you opt for self-consumption, that is to say, producing and consuming your own electricity, you will also need to consider the quantity of electricity you wish to sell to the network to determine the ideal power to install.
Estimate the number of hours of sunshine
To know how much energy a solar panel can produce, you need to estimate your average hours of sunshine over the year. This information is easily found on the internet for different regions or cities.
Also, remember to check that your installation will not be shaded by obstacles such as trees, buildings, or other objects likely to cause you to lose part of the production.
The surface on which your installation will take place will directly impact the power that can be installed. Here are some things to keep in mind:
- Evaluate the available surface area (roof, terrace, floor, etc.)
- Determine the pitch and orientation of the roof
- Check that nothing is blocking exposure to the sun in the area concerned (trees, walls, etc.)
Choosing the right solar panel technology
Finally, given all these parameters, you must choose the right solar panel technology to meet your needs. There are several types of solar panels on the market, with different yields and prices:
- Monocrystalline solar panels offer an efficiency of approximately 15% to 20%
- Polycrystalline solar panels offer an efficiency of roughly 13% to 18%
- Amorphous or “thin film” solar panels offer an efficiency of around 6% to 12%
So, depending on your budget and the desired output, the solar panels to choose from will be different.
Call a professional installer to carry out your calculations
Even determining the ideal power for your solar panels can sometimes be a complex exercise; it remains essential to guarantee an optimized installation that fully meets your electricity needs.
Calling on a professional installer with experience in this field will allow you to obtain precise calculations and thus avoid any risk of error. In addition, some installers offer simulations based on analyzing your electricity bills.
Example of calculating the power of a solar panel
To illustrate this information, let’s take the example of a household with an annual consumption of 5000 kWh and benefiting from 1500 hours of sunshine per year. The calculation of the power required for solar panels is carried out as follows:
- Annual energy requirement: 5000 kWh
- Number of hours of sunshine: 1500 hours
- Power in watts-peak (Wp) required: energy requirement/number of hours of sunshine = 5000 / 1500 = 3.33 kWp
Thus, in this example, a solar installation of a 3.33-kilowatt peak will be necessary to cover all of the energy needs of the household in question.
Setting up a solar panel installation adapted to your needs is essential for optimal performance and optimized energy autonomy. Considering your energy needs, the amount of sunshine, the available surface area, and the type of solar panels, it is possible to obtain an installation that perfectly meets your expectations and allows significant energy savings.
