HOW DOES A SOLAR BATTERY SYSTEM WORK?

Want to learn how solar battery systems work? Below, we provide a complete guide to solar energy systems, highlighting the key differences between DC and AC coupling and how solar battery storage works.

WHAT’S A SOLAR BATTERY SYSTEM?

A device designed to be added to your solar power system, a solar battery system will store any excess electricity generated by your solar panels for future use. For example, using stored energy from your solar panels, you can power your home even at times when your solar panels aren’t able to generate the necessary electricity– particularly during nights, rainy days or during power outages.

Solar panel systems, in essence, help to ensure you’re personally making the most of the solar energy you have created, instead of it being sent back to the grid for public use before you’ve had a chance to take full advantage of the electricity you’ve generated for yourself.

DC & AC COUPLED STORAGE

Put simply; your solar panels will be wired to your solar battery systems in one of two ways, either through direct current (DC) coupling or alternating current (AC) coupling. The key difference here is the path taken by the electricity that the solar panels themselves create. Whilst solar panels will create DC electricity, it must first be converted into AC electricity before it can be used to power your home. However, solar batteries are only capable of storing DC electricity and therefore require different ways of connecting to your solar power system. 

DC COUPLED STORAGE

Efficient, yet costly, and requiring a complex installation process, DC coupled storage solar panels create DC electricity that flows through a charge controller and then directly into the solar battery. Needing no current charge before storage, conversion from DC to AC will only occur when the battery delivers electricity directly to your home.

AC COUPLED STORAGE

Unlike DC couple storage, AC coupling requires your DC electricity generated from your solar panels to pass through an inverter first in order to be converted into AC electricity for everyday use in your home.

SOLAR BATTERY STORAGE & SOLAR ENERGY

Solar battery storage allows you to make the most of your solar panel system by storing solar energy instead of sending it back to the grid. This intelligent process begins with your solar panels on the roof generating power. Below, we provide a step-by-step breakdown of what happens with a DC-coupled system:

●     First, sunlight hits the solar panels and energy is converted to DC electricity.

●     Then, electricity enters the battery and is stored as DC electricity.

●     Finally, DC electricity is released from the battery, passing through an inverter that converts this into AC electricity the home can use.

However, an AC-coupled system requires a slightly different process:
 

●     First, sunlight hits the solar panels and energy is converted into DC electricity.

●     Then, electricity enters the inverter to be converted into AC electricity the home can use.

●     Excess electricity now flows through another inverter to change back into DC electricity that can be stored for later.

●     Finally, if your house requires the stored energy within the battery, this electricity must flow through the inverter again to become AC electricity.

Seeking battery systems and solar panels for your home or business? At GE National, we’re here to help you get the best out of your solar battery system supplying battery system and solar panel installation services across the UK. Get in touch with us today.