How Many Solar Panels Do I Need?

Solar modules are a great way to power your home with clean energy. Installing a properly-sized system is essential if you want to save money on your electricity bill each and every month. Calculating how many solar modules you’ll need can be a bit complex. Seeking help from a professional is essential, but you can do some of the most basic math on your own.

If you are ready to learn how many solar modules your home will need, this guide will walk you through the necessary calculations.

Determining Electricity Usage

Before you can dive into figuring out how many solar panels you’ll require, you need to know how much electricity you use on a regular basis now. This might be difficult to figure out if you have recently moved to a new home. It is best to have one full year of electric bills at your disposal so you can accurately measure how much power you use on a daily, monthly, and annual basis.

When looking at your bill, you should see the total number of kilowatt hours (kWh) you were charged for. Figure out how many kWh you used over the course of the past year by adding up that number from each of your monthly bills.

Solar Panel Power Rating

It can be tricky to determine how many solar panels you’ll need because each panel will have a different power rating. This is measured in watts (W) and measures the electrical output of the panel. For the most part, you will find panels that range from 250 to 400 watts.

Production Ratio

The final number you’ll need to know is the actual production ratio of your new solar panels. This measures the energy output in kWh compared to the system size. This can depend on how much sunlight you get around your home in any given year. The ratio is calculated by dividing the actual kWh production by the system size. For example, a 10 kW system that produces 15 kWh of electricity would have a production ratio of 1.5.

Figuring Out The Math

In order to figure out how many solar panels you’ll need, you will have to do some math based on the numbers you found in the first three sections. The formula is usually denoted as:

Number of panels = system size/production ratio/panel wattage

Each number gets divided by the next number to give you the final tally of how many solar panels you will need. This will give you the unique number needed based on your electric usage and the specific panels you are considering purchasing.

Get Professional Help

Calculating how many solar panels you require can be a bit complicated, so you should really contact the professionals. Whether your goal is to go completely off-grid or just to save some money every month, we can help you reach your goals!