In the event of a major disaster like a hurricane, earthquake, or even just a power outage, access to electricity for your home can be a challenge. Solar panels on your home are an ingenious solution to provide electricity when it may not always be available. Not only is it cost-effective and environmentally friendly, but solar panels are also essential for keeping your family safe and healthy in the event of a disaster.
Solar panels are not only environmentally friendly but also cost-effective in the long run. To find out more about the financial benefits of installing solar panels, visit the Solar Energy Industries Association (SEIA) page on solar benefits.
Contents
Key Points of This Article
- Solar Panels as a Disaster Solution: Solar panels provide a reliable source of electricity during disasters, ensuring that homes have power for essential needs like heating, cooling, and charging devices.
- Types of Solar Panels: There are three main types of solar panels – monocrystalline, polycrystalline, and thin-film. Each type has distinct characteristics and benefits, making them suitable for different applications.
- Off-Grid Systems and Backup Plans: To use solar panels during a power outage, an off-grid system or a battery setup is necessary. For those who can’t install solar panels, a portable generator like the Generac GP8000E is a recommended backup solution.
What are solar panels?
Solar panels are designed to capture the sun’s rays and turn them into usable electricity. They are attached to your roof with a racking system. This system allows these panels to sit just above the shingles of your roof by a few inches.
Different types of solar panels
If you’ve ever driven by a house with solar panels, you’ll notice that they might look a bit different. Some have a blue hue; some have a black hue while other panels look more glass-like. This is because there are three different types – monocrystalline, polycrystalline, and thin-film panels.
If you’ve ever driven by a house with solar panels, you’ll notice that they might look a bit different. This is because there are three different types: monocrystalline, polycrystalline, and thin-film panels. For a detailed comparison of these types, check out EnergySage’s guide on solar panel types.
Benefits of having solar panels on your home in case of an emergency
If you and your family are faced with a disaster, your power might be out for days, weeks, or even months. Without power, your food may go bad, you could have no heating or cool for your home, and no lights. Additionally, you’d have no way to charge up all of your devices so they’re ready to go in case there’s an emergency.
That said, solar power can help your household navigate disasters and power outages by acting as a source of electricity when it’s not readily available.
Solar power can help your household navigate disasters and power outages by acting as a source of electricity when it’s not readily available. To understand more about how solar energy can be used during emergencies, visit the U.S. Department of Energy’s page on solar energy.
How to use solar panels during a power outage
There are many factors that can cause a power outage, such as lightning, car accidents, hurricanes, tornadoes, or improperly maintained infrastructure. If the power goes out, you can still use your solar panels during a power outage.
However, there is one caveat. Solar panels only work with an off-grid solar system or a storage method such as a battery set up. The key is to keep the solar panels off the electric grid that would potentially be affected during an outage.
There are many factors that can cause a power outage. If the power goes out, you can still use your solar panels during a power outage. To learn about off-grid solar systems and battery setups, read Solar Power World’s article on off-grid solar systems.
If you don’t have solar panels as a source of electricity, you’d have relied on the power grid, which isn’t the best strategy in the event of a disaster. Demand for electricity is high, leading to higher costs and limited supply, as you are sharing with everyone else in your community. That said, if you can’t install solar panels, you can still implement a backup plan. We highly recommend purchasing a Generac GP8000E Portable Generator as a powerful and portable solution to power your entire home in the event of a power outage.
Solar power is one of the most important sources of energy in our world today. Solar panels are becoming more and more popular as they become cheaper to produce and neighbors are able to talk to each other about the impact they have made on their families and home. In an emergency situation, a complete, full-home system run on solar power will continue to provide heating and cooling, as well as hot water and lights.
Need help creating a customized disaster readiness plan for you or your family? Take Batten’s quiz and shop our Marketplace for product recommendations.
Sources Used for this Article:
- https://www.energy.gov/eere/solar/solar-energy-technologies-office
- https://www.energysage.com/solar/101/types-of-solar-panels/
- https://www.solarpowerworldonline.com/2020/08/the-complete-guide-to-off-grid-solar-systems/
- https://www.seia.org/initiatives/solar-power
- https://www.generac.com/all-products/generators/portable-generators
