What Can You Run on Solar Energy in Your Home
We’re not fond of burying the lede, so...you can use solar energy to power anything in your home! Want to start your own bitcoin mining enterprise? You can do it. Are you a snowman who uses 3 AC systems to cool your home to -4 every summer? You can power them all with solar energy. That is, if you have a big enough solar array. With that in mind, let’s hone in on what you should really focus on: the size of solar array you’ll need to power your home. The needs of someone living off-the-grid with a home designed for low power usage will differ from those of a family living in the suburbs with modern amenities. Both of these homes can be entirely powered through solar energy. What size of solar array do you need? There are a ton of different methods for calculating power consumption. You’ll want a solar array that meets the needs of your household - that’s why no two solar arrays are exactly the same. Generally, it’s a good idea to overestimate how many solar panels you’ll need. After all, we can only ever calculate average power consumption - by overestimating, you’ll account for spikes in electricity usage. The easiest way to find out how much power you use is to check your electrical bill. Most utilities will provide a figure for the number of kWh of power you use - this is often per month, per quarter, or per year. You’ll then divide that number by the number of days in a month/quarter/year to get how many kWh your household uses per day, then divide that number by 24 to get your hourly power usage. You’ll be able [...]
