Basic Solar & Electricity: Volts, Amps, Watts, kWh, AC, DC, PV, Storage & More Explained
Here at The Solar Lab, we fully understand how confusing and intimidating solar power systems can seem for complete newbies. Rather than just toss solar terminology at you and expect you to know your volts from your amps, we want to take some time to explain the basics.
This no-nonsense breakdown of electricity and solar power terms will help you gain a greater understanding of how everything works. Plus, it will make the buying process that much easier the next time you want to pick up a portable power station, a set of solar panels, or just about any other piece of solar equipment.
So, if you've ever been confused by terms like volts, amps, watts, AC, DC, and PV, you've come to the right place. It may sound a bit boring, but we’ll try our best to make this first lesson in our course as painless as possible!
Understanding the Basics of Electricity
Volts, Amps, and Watts:
To get started, let's break down some fundamental terms using a simple analogy. Imagine for the purpose of this lesson that you have a faucet hooked up to a hose:
Volts (V):
Think of volts as the pressure in the faucet. It's what pushes the electricity through the system. In most homes, you have either 120V or 240V (which is just two strands of 120V).
Amps (A):
Think of Amps like the width of the hose. A thin hose allows less water (electricity) to flow through, while a wider hose allows more. Amps are a measurement of the current, or the amount of electricity flowing through the wires.
Watts (W):
Finally, watts are what come out of the hose. Like water flowing from a hose into a bucket, watts flow through the system to power your appliances, devices, or charge your battery. In other words, this is the actual power you get.
Watts can also be calculated by multiplying volts by amps (Volts x Amps = Watts).
For example, let’s say you have a vacuum that operates at 120V and draws 15A, it uses 1,800W (120V x 15A = 1,800W).
AC Power vs. DC Power
Now, let's talk about the different types of current: AC (Alternating Current) and DC (Direct Current). This is where a lot of people really get thrown off, but it’s actually not that complicated when you break it down.
DC (Direct Current):
With DC power, electricity flows in one direction, much like water through a hose. This is the type of current generated by solar panels. It’s also what will be stored inside your solar batteries or solar power station’s internal battery.
It's also common in low-voltage applications like car batteries, which is why you may notice that anything you plug into your vehicle’s auxiliary power outlet, or the car cigarette lighter port for our older readers, is also called a DC 12V Port.
AC (Alternating Current):
AC power is what you get from the power grid and it’s the type of current you’ll get when you plug anything into a standard outlet in your home. Instead of flowing in one direction, AC current alternates back and forth. You can picture it like a wave in the ocean, which rises and falls but doesn't move the water itself.
Since most of your devices and appliances require AC power, almost every solar power system or portable solar power station will feature a power inverter.
Power Inverters:
As mentioned, a power inverter is a crucial component in solar power systems. Its job is to convert the DC power your solar panels generate and your solar batteries store into AC that your home appliances and portable devices can actually use.
Some inverters can also convert AC to DC, but in most solar setups, you’ll be converting DC to AC.
Power Storage and PV
Power Storage (Wh and kWh):
This refers to how much power a battery can store, which is often listed as battery capacity or storage capacity. Basically, it’s the total amount of energy your batteries are capable of storing when they are fully charged.
Power storage is usually measured in watt-hours (Wh). For example, if you have batteries with a combined capacity of 6,000Wh, that would be your total storage capacity.
When dealing with larger solar power systems and solar batteries, you’ll often hear about kilowatt-hours (kWh). A kilowatt-hour is just 1,000 watt-hours. It’s a way to measure energy consumption over time. For instance, if your home uses 30kWh of electricity per day, it’s just a shorthand for 30,000 watt-hours.
PV (Photovoltaic):
This term is pretty much synonymous with solar power. PV panels (solar panels) convert sunlight into electricity. When you see "PV input" on a device, it’s referring to the solar input, or where you would connect your solar panels to your system or solar generator.
Solar Array:
Your solar array is the total number of solar panels you have connected to your system. If you had four 100W solar panels connected to your system, your solar array would be 400W. It’s just a quick way to describe the total power generating potential of your combined solar panels.
Putting It All Together
Now that you are familiar with the different terms and symbols that represent them, let’s quickly revisit our analogy to tie everything together.
When you turn on the faucet (volts), water flows through the hose (amps) and fills the bucket (watts). If you have a bigger hose (more amps), the bucket fills faster (more watts).
Your solar panels generate DC electricity, which flows like water in one direction. To power your home appliances and devices, an inverter converts this DC power to AC power, creating the alternating waves of electricity you need.
When it comes to solar power, watts tend to be your key measurement. Everything from solar panels to inverters and batteries will be rated in watts (W) or watt-hours (Wh). To figure out how much power your devices need, you can use the simple formula: Volts x Amps = Watts.
Our Final Words
There you have it – the basics of solar power and electricity! See, it’s not so difficult when you actually break it down.
Understanding these basic terms might seem a little bit boring, but it’s one of the first steps you should take towards mastering solar power.
With just a basic understanding of solar lingo, you'll be better equipped to size and choose the right components for your own solar power system, whether it's a full home setup or just a portable power station.
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