What Is A DC To AC Power Inverter?
When you decide to install a solar power system for your home, you need to understand what the various components are in the system. Most solar panel systems consist of the solar panels themselves, connection wiring, possibly a bank of batteries and a DC to AC power inverter. All of the components need to be specifically sized to your home’s power needs and be functioning properly to provide the proper amount of energy.
Solar panels will produce a regular amount of direct current (DC) when the sun shines on them. The amount of solar panels needed is determined by the energy needs of your house. You have to ensure that you have enough panels to produce enough energy to eliminate the need to purchase electricity from your power company.
The DC current needs to be switched to AC current, which is the format that your home runs on. This is what the inverter does, and choosing the right one can take some consideration.
The DC to AC power inverter is among the most vital components of your system. Its primary job is to take the DC current that is being generated by the solar panels and convert it to the AC current used by your home.If you decide to install a bank of batteries as part of your solar power system, the DC to AC power inverter may be responsible for controlling the charging of these batteries and disconnecting them from the system when they are fully charged.
In addition to interfacing with the batteries, the DC to AC power inverter is also in control of the switching between the solar supplied power and the local utility supplied power. During the evening when the sun is down, the DC to AC power inverter switches back to the local power utility for the power your home needs. You will then be buying back some of the excess power you generated during the day from them.
If the solar power system was sized sufficiently when the inverter switches back and forth it should cancel itself out and you won’t have any electrical costs to power your home.
If you are using a battery bank, the inverter will switch over to that as a source in the evening or during a power outage before connecting to the local power utility. This will enable you to save even more money and allow you to use some of the power you had stored up during the day to run your home.
For more information on power inverters please visit http://residentialrenewableenergy.com/dc-to-ac-power-inverter.php