In recent times there has been much talk about solar power in the media with a plethora of different information being given; some say solar power has great advantages and is the power source of the future, some say solar power has its disadvantages and is good for calculators and not much more. On this page we will aim to give you as many facts about solar energy as we possibly can so you can come to your own educated opinion on whether the advantages of solar power outweigh the disadvantages.
Solar Power Advantages
- Solar power is renewable – solar power has the great advantage of relying on a resource that is predicted to last at least another 5 billion years – the sun.
- Solar power is reliable – one thing you can rely on is that the sun will rise tomorrow. Knowing that this is the case with solar power you can be sure that solar panels will be producing energy tomorrow, and the next day and the next day. Solar power has the advantage of being a reliable, dependable source of energy that you can be sure will be available next week and next year.
- Solar power is low maintenance – a great advantage of solar power is that once a solar power system is setup there is very little maintenance required. Solar power panels have no moving parts to wear out or breakdown and are relatively self cleaning with rainfall. With industry standard warranties of 25 years you can expect solar power panels to be harnessing the energy of the sun for many years to come.
- Solar power does not produce any harmful by-products – solar power only really has one by-product and that is heat. Obviously the sun light falling on a solar panel makes the solar panel heat up and this heat is a loss as it is not converted to useful energy. Also solar energy is usually converted into useful electricity by a regulator or inverter – in this conversion process some energy is lost as heat. This is a great advantage compared to the by-products of coal, oil and nuclear power.
- Solar energy is an abundant resource – there is so much solar energy reaching the earth’s surface that if one year’s worth of sunshine was captured it would be around twice as much power that will ever be obtained from all of the earth’s non-renewable resources of coal, gas, oil and uranium combined.
Solar Power Disadvantages
- Solar power is not constant – one disadvantage of solar power is that the amount of solar energy being produced is constantly fluctuating and when the sun goes down in the evening power production ceases altogether.
- Solar power is initially expensive to set up – as with any power generation the capital outlay to begin producing energy from solar power is expensive. A great advantage though is that as solar power becomes more popular the price of the components are becoming cheaper and the technology is becoming more efficient, and with government incentives available in Australia to help with the initial installation cost solar power still makes a lot of sense.
- Solar power panels do not work well on cloudy days – the amount of solar energy produced by solar power panels is proportional to the amount of light (irradiance) that falls upon them. Obviously on cloudy days the amount of light falling on the solar panels will be less, therefore the amount of solar power produced will be less. A solution for this disadvantage would be to provide efficient storage so the fluctuating solar power input can be utilised when required.
- Solar power is not available at peak demand times – the current residential power grid has a peak demand time between 5pm to 9pm as everyone gets home and start using their power for cooking along with lights, big screen TV’s, computers etc. Unfortunately solar power production peaks at around midday and at 5pm the sun has nearly gone down for the day. There are two solutions for this disadvantage;
- Install solar power at commercial and industrial properties that require vast amounts of power during the day.
- Install storage for solar panels such as battery banks so the power can be drawn when from when it is most required.
Solar Power myths
Solar power panels take more energy to manufacture then they will ever produce – this is an urban myth. Studies have shown that standard crystalline solar panels have an energy payback time of around 3.3 years and thin film solar panels around 1.8 years. Poly / Multi crystalline solar panel producers REC have actually developed new technology to bring their solar power panel energy payback time down to 1 year, leaving for decades of energy neutral power production.
Conclusion
Solar power, like any other technology has its advantages and disadvantages. As the world continues to focus on green power, reducing our carbon foot print and being environmentally friendly it is clear that solar power will be a driving force into the future. The key to solar energy overcoming the disadvantages it faces is in the efficient storage of the power it produces so that it can be used when required, not just when it is produced. The great thing about solar power as installed on many properties in Australia is that it is connected directly to the power grid: with this being the case if you do not need the solar power that you are producing you can sell it to someone down the street who does need it, and with some very generous feed in tariffs available in some states and territories this can be very beneficial. With power prices only predicted to rise in the foreseeable future installing solar power panels on your roof can be a very effective solution to putting a stop to your skyrocketing power bill, and with many systems paying for themselves within 5 years the advantages of solar power far outweigh the disadvantages.
