Frequently Asked Questions

More and more people are taking steps to change to a cleaner and greener lifestyle. Generating your own renewable energy is a great way to go green!

One renewable energy source is the sun. Solar energy – light and heat from the sun – can be converted into electricity using solar panels. By installing solar panels to supply electricity to your home or cottage, you can reduce your impact on the environment and save money.

5 benefits of going solar:

Why install solar panels on your home? Here are  five good reasons:

• You can save money. By installing solar panels you will reduce the energy that you use from the electrical grid, which means you don’t have to buy as much. In some provinces you can even sell your solar-produced power to your utility provider, earning money for the energy you produce.

• You can increase the value of your home. A home that costs less to run may be worth more.

• They’re low-maintenance. Solar panels require little maintenance and typically last more than 25 years.

• You can reduce your energy footprint and impact on the environment. Solar power is a renewable, natural energy source that is non-polluting.

• You’ll be diversifying our energy supply. To meet increasing energy demands, people need to diversify our energy supplies beyond conventional sources such as oil, coal and gas.

When you see solar panels on someone’s roof, you know that that person has invested in a solar power system, but have you ever stopped to think what extra components are needed for a system to work?

Here is a complete guide to all the elements you need for a solar power system.

The Panels

PV (photovoltaic) panels are the most common type of panel, especially for residential installations. They are made from three layers:

* The N-Layer – silicon that is mixed with phosphorus

* The P/N Junction – pure silicon

* The P-Layer – silicon that is mixed with boron

When sunlight strikes the N-Layer, it knocks electrons loose. These electrons pass through the P/N junction (which is a one-way junction) into the P-Layer. This creates an electrical field that then drives the electrons that have been “knocked off” from the silicon, creating an electric current.

The Inverter

If you know your physics, then you will know that the electric current that is generated in this way is direct current (DC), which is like the electricity stored in batteries. However, mains electricity is alternating current (AC) where the flow of electricity changes direction 50 times a second. To make the electricity supplied by solar power suitable for use in domestic homes, a device is needed that converts DC current to AC current, and this device is called an inverter.

An inverter works in a very simple way, using a series of switches which are known as “solid state switches” that “flips” the DC current backwards and forwards 50 times a second, to create the AC current.

The Battery

Not all solar power systems have a battery, but some systems that produce more electricity than is needed for the building they are powering have a battery connected to store this excess energy. The stored energy can then be used when the solar panels are not providing enough energy, such as dark and rainy days.

The Distributor

The distributor is the device that distributes the AC power created by the inverter to the grid, and sometimes to both the home in which the solar power system has been installed and the grid. The output from the inverter is fed to a dedicated breaker in your house’s electric panel, and then through to your home. If you are creating more power then you are using, then some of the power flows backwards and into the grid, and you receive a credit from your utilities company. If your system is not supplying enough energy for your home, then the shortfall is made up as usual by your utilities company.

These are the basic components of any solar energy system and as you can see, solar power is not a complex energy system – the cells create DC current, the inverter changes it to AC current, and the distributor controls the way in which power is distributed between your home and your utilities supplier.

Now you understand the components that make up a solar energy system, why not consider making the switch to the money-saving, cleaner and more environmentally-friendly source of energy that is solar energy ?

In a word: fabulous. Our modern, low-profile design and premium front trim integrate elegantly into your roof. It’s a look that never goes out of style.

Solar panels are installed for maximum solar power production.

Today’s solar panels are not nearly as bulky as yesterday’s, and thin-film technology continues to evolve. The industry is also getting better when it comes to the nuts and bolts required to attach solar panels to roofs, including more discreet racking.

Some manufacturers are experimenting with panels tinted in various colors, but blue or black panels currently optimize the capturing of solar energy.

In addition, most homeowner associations have aesthetic rules to preserve the look of neighborhoods. This includes arrays on which the top line of the panels does not extend beyond the roofline.

Generally speaking, a solar panel will last 30 years or more and lose some ½ percent (0.5%) conversion efficiency annually.

Most solar panels used in home solar arrays come with a warranty for some 25 or 30 years, which means that the solar panels are guaranteed for decades, unlike many of the other goods we buy. And again unlike many other consumer goods, they don’t ‘give up the ghost’ at the end of their warranty period and need to be replaced, but continue to still produce clean electricity, although at a slightly less efficiency each year. In fact, some decidedly old-school solar cells have been producing electricity daily for about 40 years or so, and are expected to continue to power homes and businesses for decades more.

Hosing the panels off a few times during the summer and keeping leaves off them in the fall is about the only maintenance required.

Solar panels are built to survive the elements, including hurricane-force winds, high-speed hail, and heavy snow and rain.

Even at the end of 25 years, solar panels usually maintain at least 80% efficiency.

Installing solar panels on the roof is the most cost-effective way to deliver solar energy to your home. Given that the materials and panels themselves are often under warranty for 25 years or more, those panels should provide decades of money saving clean energy to your home.

But will they cause leaks in the roof? No. Modern solar technology is installed using time and lab tested equipment that is designed to protect the roof. Yes, installers will need to make holes in your roof to attach the solar panels securely, but they will be using special attachments that cause the water to run around and away from the penetrations. This is made possible by the fact that water very predictably runs down your roof. The attachments either have a raised barrier, that diverts the water around the attachment point, or create a ‘dimple’ that helps create a reliable seal between the roof material and the attachment point.

In fact, solar panels actually help protect the roof they cover from the harsh and degrading UV rays of the run. By preserving that part of the roof, it keeps pounding rain off (though rain is what ends up cleaning your panels by washing debris off. The same goes for snowy climates). Side note – you might think the solar panels wouldn’t work in the winter due to snowfall. But solar panels (dark in color) heat up and melt the snow, and the strong composite materials that make up those panels means they’re not going to collapse under the snow’s weight.

Solar panels offer a cleaner, more efficient way to meet energy needs.

However, outdoor pests, like pigeons and squirrels, tend to wreak havoc on solar systems, which could wind up costing installers more money and time in the future. Many animals use solar panels for shelter, but end up causing damage by gnawing through the wires. Unfortunately, birds, squirrels and other rooftop animals can easily destroy newly installed solar panel systems within a matter of days.

It’s called the “lake effect” and it happens because they confuse a reflective surface for a body of water. However, this is more likely to happen at a solar farm or large commercial installation than your home.

As for squirrels, raccoons or any other furry creatures trying to move into your attic, solar panel installation includes sealants and flashing to close any gaps. In other words, you’re no more likely to experience a critter invasion simply because you have solar panels.

What is more important for the environment and for humans in the long run: clean energy or trees?

Electrical power is an essential requirement for day‐to‐day living. However, the demand for power is the single largest source for greenhouse gases in all world. According to the US Environmental Protection Agency, electricity accounts for 37% of total CO2e (Carbon Dioxide equivalent) emissions1. While solar energy ‘distributed generation’ projects can greatly reduce the amount of CO2e produced by fossil fuels, they require large areas of land to be effective, often requiring the cutting of trees.

As a renewable energy company concerned about both our environment and sustainable power supplies, we wondered which was a ‘better use’ of an acre of land from a CO2e perspective – leaving the trees alone or installing solar panels?

The reality is that in weighing the environmental benefits for trees over solar energy, solar beats out trees within the immediate and long‐term future by a large margin. Going forward, the most reliable and economical way to reduce fossil fuel consumption and CO2e emissions is to look towards replacing fossil fuels with solar fields, and not relying on the trees alone to save our environment – the forests need a lot of help.

In actual numbers, the math is significant. The forestry group American Forests calculates that each year, an acre of 55‐year‐old trees absorbs about 7,500 lbs of CO2e 2. On the other hand, the US Environmental Protection Agency data draws  the conclusion that an acre of solar panels saves the equivalent of 532,600 lbs of fossil fuel emissions from being sent out into the atmosphere per year. So the net environmental impact of transitioning to solar energy offsets roughly 70 times the amount of carbon dioxide emissions than mature trees can absorb per year. If we consider the fact that manufacturing the acre of solar panels in the first place will emit some 353,000 lbs of CO2e into the atmosphere, we see that the ‘payback’ of using solar energy over fossil sources will offset its own environmental costs in less than two years 2,3,4. Over the lifespan of a solar panel, the amount of CO2 emissions saved heavily outweighs the amount of CO2e that would be sequestered by trees.

This does not mean that we should clear‐cut our forests and replace them with solar panels. Our forests have many other intrinsic values. But for those who are weighing the benefits of solar energy vs. cutting trees, the choice should be clear. Solar energy is an investment in a carbon neutral future. Shifting the reliance for energy from fossil to solar is a great preventative measure lead to a sustainable planet.