{"id":18149,"date":"2023-02-10T09:47:29","date_gmt":"2023-02-09T23:47:29","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.originenergy.com.au\/blog\/?p=18149"},"modified":"2024-10-21T10:23:34","modified_gmt":"2024-10-21T00:23:34","slug":"how-do-solar-panels-work","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.originenergy.com.au\/blog\/how-do-solar-panels-work\/","title":{"rendered":"How do solar panels work?"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

With solar panels adorning rooftops, driveways and even space craft, it comes as no surprise that plenty of Aussies are interested in solar for their homes. Our 2021 Future Energy Report <\/a>reveals even more insights about Aussie households. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

A particularly interesting insight from our report was discovering that customers with solar are more optimistic about their ability to manage, and save, on their energy bills than households without it. With that in mind, if you’re considering solar for your house, you might be curious about exactly how this technology works. Let us break down the ins and outs of converting sunlight to energy.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The basics of how solar panels work<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

So, how do solar panels work? Solar panels are made up of units called solar cells AKA \u2018photovoltaic cells\u2019. The term \u2018photovoltaic\u2019 relates to the production of electricity by substances exposed to light and is a special property that some materials have.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

High purity silicon is used to make most solar cells and when carefully manufactured, acts as a semiconductor. The semiconductor properties of silicon can then be used to make solar cells.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cLight is made up of photons,\u201d Mark Kerr, Origin\u2019s Group Manager of Large-Scale Solar and Operations, says.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cWhen solar cells absorb certain photons from sunlight, electrons within the solar cell can become excited. These excited electrons can then move through the conductors and wires in the solar panel to create electricity that can power your home\u201d.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

How do heat and light affect solar panels?<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

It\u2019s no secret that Australian summers are famous for being bright and sunny. One issue that often comes with extreme amounts of light is heat \u2013 and too much heat can reduce the efficiency of solar panels. So, with spring, autumn and summer being prime times in Australia for high-efficiency solar power<\/a> production, how can you be sure that your solar panels<\/a> can weather the conditions?

A well-engineered solar panel, from a trusted supplier, will be designed to operate under Aussie conditions. And, as long as your panel gets enough light, you can feel confident knowing your system will do its job efficiently.

Another question that occasionally pops up, is whether it\u2019s possible for there to be too much light for a solar panel to handle? Of course, some light is reflected away, and often panels contain design elements that capture and re-focus some reflected light, but too much light is rarely an issue for a solar panel. With the exception being if light is \u201cconcentrated\u201d on to the solar panel (for example using mirrors) \u2013 this can certainly cause problems.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Well-engineered solar panels will be designed to withstand Australian weather conditions<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

What does the future hold for solar energy?<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

It\u2019s clear that solar will be a major ingredient in the energy mix of the future. In 2021 more than a quarter<\/a> of Australia\u2019s total electricity generation came from renewable sources, and that this was predominantly driven by the small-scale solar sector, which saw a record 378,451<\/a> rooftop solar installations.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

So, how\u2019s that technology that we know so well going to change?<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

At Origin, we\u2019re already looking to the future. Until now, solar\u2019s popularity has been driven by electricity savings that can be made during the daytime \u2013 but we\u2019re looking towards a future where solar can power your entire home (and car) 24\/7.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Batteries open a whole new world by enabling savings when the sun isn\u2019t shining. The last 12 months have seen a shift in battery prices, reducing them for the first time and making the option of battery storage a more economic reality for many Aussie households. Whether this be with a flash new Tesla Powerwall, one of the LG Energy range of batteries or a complete solar, battery and grid managed energy service with Origin\u2019s Virtual Power Plant \u2013 Loop \u2013 more Origin customers are realising the savings benefits of coupling their solar with batteries.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

When we look outside the home, electric vehicles (EVs) also present a unique opportunity for solar solutions. With solar, and home batteries, able to charge the family car and eliminate another household cost \u2013 petrol. To effectively manage this energy ecosystem of the future, Origin Loop<\/a>, has been designed to connect and manage a households end to end energy usage.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Get solar sorted at your place<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

At Origin, we\u2019ll help you on your way to energy independence with tools, information, access to solar quotes<\/a> from our preferred partners, plus more. In less than 10 minutes, you can arrange up to 3 free solar and battery quotes<\/a> from our preferred partners for your property. You can also check out recommended solar system sizes, potential bill savings, and more. It\u2019s free and without obligation+<\/sup><\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Request a solar quote today<\/a><\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n
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+<\/sup> Origin has a commercial agreement with our partner installers and receives a commission from them for each referral.<\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

If you’re thinking about adding solar panels to your home you might be wondering how they work. We’re breaking down how sunlight is converted to energy.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"featured_media":18269,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[108],"tags":[49,29],"oe_author":[],"class_list":["post-18149","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-future-energy","tag-solar","tag-solar-batteries"],"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.originenergy.com.au\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/18149","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.originenergy.com.au\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.originenergy.com.au\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.originenergy.com.au\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/38"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.originenergy.com.au\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=18149"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.originenergy.com.au\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/18149\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.originenergy.com.au\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/18269"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.originenergy.com.au\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=18149"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.originenergy.com.au\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=18149"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.originenergy.com.au\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=18149"},{"taxonomy":"oe_author","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.originenergy.com.au\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/oe_author?post=18149"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}