small solar panel system atop a roof in the desert

Catching Some Rays down in the Desert

It might look out of place, but in my opinion, it looks pretty nice to see some small roof solar panels resting on-top of this desert home.  From this actual picture, you can see the the panels are not getting direct sunlight at the moment, but that is because of the winter time and the sun already going down for the day.

Most people would wonder what a system this size is going to produce in terms of electricity, and the answer is actually a reasonable amount over the course of a year.  You could expect anywhere from 3000 to 4000 kwh per year depending on how much shading is minimized.  This is not large enough of a system to power the average sized house, but it will be enough to cover some smaller lights and some very small electric appliances for a little while each day.

The wiring on a system like this can either be connected directly to the utility meter, or it can also be connected to some sort of battery backed up power supply so the energy can be used at a later time or when needed.  Like we have talked about before in older solar postings, the battery backed up systems are much more expensive and will end up costing you an arm and a leg so be prepared.