Before investing in a brand-new solar system, many homeowners would like to know how many solar panels they need to buy for their roof. While it may seem like a simple question, a solar company, like Shop Renewable Energy, needs to know the homeowners’ goals in order to give an effective answer. Are you looking to lower your monthly electricity bill? Increase the value of your home? Reduce your carbon footprint? Or charge your electric vehicle? Because the list of solar goals is endless, we know that every prospective buyer will have a unique solar solution. That is why we are committed to helping our customers discover their solar goals and providing a custom solar solution that will keep them happy for years to come. In today’s blog post, we want to help any prospective or curious homeowners discover what their goals are and how many solar panels they’ll need on their roof.
WHAT DO YOU WANT OUT OF YOUR SOLAR SYSTEM?
For most homeowners, the answer to this question will be simple: I want to cover the cost of my electricity bill. Other homeowners will have more complex solar goals like: I want to have enough panels to have 0 carbon footprint, or I want to be able to sustain my energy usage during energy blackouts. Some homeowners may not even know what they want out of their system. If you fall into this category, I’d invite you to reflect on several questions:
- How did you become interested in residential solar power?
- What was the main reason that convinced you to go solar?
- What do you hope to get out of your solar system ten years down the line?
By answering these three questions, you’ll discover what your solar goals are and be better situated to determine how many panels your roof will need. Now that we can clearly define what our solar goals are, let’s figure out what other factors affect the number of panels you’ll need.
HOW MUCH POWER DOES YOUR HOUSE USE?
According to the U.S. Energy Information Administration, the average American household uses 10,908 kilowatt hours (kWh) per year, or about 909 kWh per month. With that being said, those numbers have no real significance or meaning to the average American homeowner, so let’s break it down. One kilowatt hour equals the amount of energy you would use to keep a 1000-watt appliance running for one hour. For example, you would have to leave a 10-watt light bulb on for 10 hours in order to use 1 kWh of energy. With an average cost of 13 cents per kWh of energy in the United States, the average American household will spend $113 dollars a month on electricity. As you can see, there are thousands of dollars in potential savings by going solar!
At Shop Renewable Energy, we know that many homes do not fall into this “average” category. Thus, there’s not a one size fits all solution to the question: how many solar panels do I need? That is why the first step in determining how many solar panels your roof will need is knowing how much power your home uses. We always ask our customers for their latest power bills to determine how much energy their home uses. From there, we can give a quick estimate of how many solar panels they’ll need to accomplish their solar goals.
If you’d like to determine how much kWh your home is using, find your latest utilities bill, and look for a section on the bill that shows your “Kilowatt hours (or kWh) used”. The number listed should be the energy used in the last 30 days. By determining your power usage, you are well on your way to discovering how many solar panels your home will need!
WHAT ELSE DETERMINES HOW MANY PANELS YOU’LL NEED?
TYPE OF PANELS:
Every panel on the market produces slightly different results. For example, residential solar panels range in efficiency and wattage. Usually, the more expensive the panel the better it is able to convert sunlight into electricity. Because solar panels are relatively new technology, scientists and researchers are still finding ways to improve them. Currently, panels can produce electricity from the sun at a 14-20% efficiency. With that in mind, the wattage of solar panels ranges from 170 to about 365 watts. For the most part, solar companies offer the 250-watt panels. If a 250-watt panel is in the peak sunlight at the perfect angle, it will produce 250 watts of energy per hour. With that being said, rarely do solar panels perform at maximum capacity, so you can expect your panels to produce anywhere from 180-240 watts during the sunny hours.
WHERE YOU LIVE:
Believe it or not, the state that you live in will affect how many solar panels your home will need. This factor is mostly determined by the amount of sun your roof typically receives. The United States of America has a wide variety of climates. Some states like Arizona, California, Florida, and Hawaii receive a lot of sun, while others like Washington, Oregon, and Maine receive less. With that being said, solar panels in the sunnier states will produce more electricity and likely require less panels. If you’d like to see how much sun your state or city receives on a yearly basis, check out Renewable Resource Data Center’s solar data, tools, and maps.
ALRIGHT, SO HOW MANY PANELS WILL YOU NEED?
Using all the information from the post, we can determine a rough calculation of how many solar panels your unique home will need to cover all of your electricity bill. Let’s do a step-by-step calculation for a home that uses the American average 909 kWh per month in the city of Orlando, Florida.
- You’ll Need Your Home’s Monthly Kilowatt Hour Usage:909 kWh per month
- Then, You’ll Determine Your Daily Kilowatt Hour Usage By Dividing The Number Above By 30 (For Days):909/30 = 30.3 kWh per day
- Multiply That Number By 1000 To Determine How Many Watts You’ll Need To Produce Each Day:30.3 x 1000 = 30,300 watts per day
- Divide Your Watts Per Day Total By The Number Of Peak Sunlight Hours In Your State (Use The Map Featured Above) To Determine How Much Energy Your Panels Will Need To Produce Per Hour Of Peak Sunlight:30,300/5 = 6,060 watts per hour of peak sunlight
- Divide That Number By The Wattage Output Of Your Desired Panels (We’ll Use 250-Watt Panels Because They Are The Most Common) To Determine The Number Of Panels You’ll Need:6,060/250 = 24.24 panels needed to offset energy usage
According to these rough calculations, this Orlando homeowner would need around 24 panels to cover their daily power usage. Other factors to consider include shading and trees around the property and direction and pitch of roof. You can also use the steps above to calculate the number of panels you’ll need for other solar goals. For example, if you want to determine how many solar panels you’ll need to put on your garage in order to fully charge your new electric vehicle, you just need to determine how many kilowatt hours are used to charge your car, multiply that by a thousand, and divide by 250. No matter your purpose of going solar, Shop Renewable Energy is here to help you throughout your journey.
Which Solar Company Should I Choose?
After crunching some numbers, you now have a better idea of how many solar panels your home will need to meet your solar goals. With that number in mind, you might have a couple new questions to answer like: What happens if my roof gets some shade from a tree? Will my roof be able to fit all those panels? What happens if my panels generate more energy than I use? Each question has a unique and specific answer for each of our customers. That is why we pair them with the best solar company in their neighborhood! They will be able to answer all of your questions and create a solar solution that will provide you with a more accurate answer to the number of solar panels you need to put on your roof. Don’t wait to get connected! Fill out a form in the link below, and you’ll also be able to have a free consultation with a solar specialist, who can help you determine if solar is right for you! Click the link below and get a free solar consultation today!
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