Texas is a southern state with 235 days of sunshine per year, which creates the conditions for the successful use of solar energy. Despite lower electricity rates (10.98 cents per kWh, 8% lower than the US average), Texas residents consume more electricity and pay almost 20% more than the national average. Switching to solar power can save each homeowner about $2,000 a year in electricity bills and not be affected by rising tariffs1.
Using solar energy, you will not suffer from power outages during adverse weather conditions. Clean renewable energy is fueling the economy by creating new jobs and cleaning the air from harmful carbon emissions. Installing modern solar panel systems increases the value of your home in a possible sale.
For homeowners willing to make a financially sound investment, switching to solar is a cost-effective option. The Investment Tax Credit (ITC) deducts 30% of the cost of buying and installing your solar power system. Texas Local Finance Programs also offer additional incentives1.
Solar panels often produce more electricity than you consume. Therefore, net metering (an agreement between you and your utility company) returns unused electricity to the grid in exchange for credits on your electricity bill. At night, if there is not enough energy for your needs, you can use net meter credits. You can sell excess power from your grid to the utility company, which increases your net income2.
A solar energy company in Texas https://www.aion.solar/houston-texas/ helps you save money on your energy bills in the long run. Your solar system will pay off in 11.64 years, after which you can pay nothing for electricity.
What indicators do you need to know to calculate the number of installed solar panels?
A solar panel installation company can help you with this question. But if you are interested and want to make the calculation yourself, you need to know:
- the area of the roof space where the panel is planned to be installed;
- number of sunny hours per day;
- the amount of energy consumed by your household in an average year;
- an indicator of the power and relative performance of photovoltaic panels.
Annual energy consumption is measured in kilowatt hours (kWh) and includes all energy sources available in the home3. The more electricity you use, the more solar panels you need to cover your costs. Check your monthly electricity bills and add them up. On average, each household consumes about 11,000 kWh per year, according to the Energy Information Administration5.
The wattage of the panel you are about to install is the amount of electricity that this device emits. The average panel power is 300 watts and varies from 250 to 400 watts. When installing panels with high power, fewer panels are required. The performance factor of a solar power system is the ratio of the calculated energy output of the system over a certain period of time (kWh) to the power rating of the system (Watts).
How to calculate how many solar panels your home will need?
In order to independently determine how many panels you need to install for your home, you need the following sequence of calculations:
- Calculate the annual amount of energy consumed. Because monthly consumption varies so much, you need to add up all your monthly electricity bills for the last year and divide by 12.
- Find out the amount of sunlight your area receives. This indicator is measured in peak hours and tells how many kilowatt-hours of electricity will be produced by 1 kW of solar panels in one month. It is obtained by multiplying the number of hours of sunshine per day by the number of days in a month (30). On average, the US receives 120 to 150 hours of sunshine at peak times per month. For example, if your state receives 150 hours of solar coverage each month, then 1 kWh of solar power will produce 150 kWh of electricity per month2.
- Calculate the required power of your solar panel. To do this, you need to divide the monthly energy consumption by the number of peak hours of solar activity2. For example, a consumption of 900 kWh: 150 peak hours = 6.0 kW of solar power.
- Find out how many solar panels you need for your home. To do this, the power of your solar power system must be converted from kilowatts to watts by multiplying this figure by 1000: 6.0 kW x 1000 = 6,000 watts. Then the system power in watts should be divided by the power of the solar panels you want to install. The average panel wattage in the US is 300 watts. By dividing these two indicators of energy power, we get the number of solar panels: 6,000 W: 300 W = 20 panels.
To determine how much rooftop space your solar system will occupy, you need to multiply the number of solar panels you need by 17.55 square feet (which is the standard area for home solar panels that are commercially available today): 20 panels x 17.55 square feet = 351 square feet.
How many solar panels does it take to power an average Texas house?
For clarity, we will give an example of calculating the optimal number of solar panels to supply electrical energy to an average-sized house in Texas. The average area of a residential building here is 2031 square feet 4 . The average energy consumption of such a house size is 11,000 kWh per year or 30 kWh per day (30000 watt hours)4. The average solar irradiance in Texas is 7.83 kWh/m2 per day. The amount of solar energy required can be determined by dividing the average daily output by the number of peak hours: 30,000 watt hours: 7.83 = 3,831.4W.
With a solar panel power of 300 watts, the number of solar panels for an average home in Texas would be 3831.4 watts: 300 watts = 12.8 or 13 panels. However, the loss of all photovoltaic solar systems is about 23%. In order to take them into account, you need to multiply the amount of solar energy required by a factor of 1.4. The corrected battery power is 3831.4W x 1.4 = 5364W. The actual number of solar panels required will be 5,364W:300W = 18 panels.
The site https://www.aion.solar/ contains all information about the installation and maintenance of solar energy systems with a 25-year warranty period. The best solar panel technology and skilled technicians will help you save money on your electricity bills.