So how does solar work?
The Energy Independent Home is now powered by solar panels and batteries, although still connected to the grid. Throughout the day, the panels power the home, charge the battery, and send a little bit back to the grid. At night, the home is powered entirely by the battery.
A typical day…
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Morning
It’s 6 am and its time to get the kids ready for school and for you to go to work. You turn on the lights, make your breakfast and coffee, and take a hot shower. All this is powered by your battery which has about 35% charge leftover from the previous day. The sun is not up yet to begin producing power, but will be soon.
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Afternoon
The kids are in school, you are at work, and the sun is now out and producing all the power needed to supply the house and recharge your home’s battery. Once the battery is full, you begin sending excess power back to the grid (in some cases you earn credits for this).
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Night
You’ve arrived home from work and it’s time to cook dinner, turn on the TV, and relax. The sun has set and your home is once again being powered by your battery, now fully charged. You go to bed and the system repeats the same process tomorrow and day after day.