If you are looking to save on electricity bills, you cannot go wrong if you look at the option of the endless energy that is available from the sun. For this, you will need the guidance of a solar panel buying guide so that you can buy panels that will suit your need.

Solar panels are 2″ thick and come in varying lengths and widths. Choose panels that are less than 30 pounds in weight as they are easy to carry and install on your roof. It may be cumbersome to carry larger panels. The industry standard is framed solar panels which are easily applicable to most solar panel installations and also cost-effective. You can also get foldable solar panels that weigh less than five pounds but are more suitable for carrying in a backpack when you go hiking or camping. Then there are the flexible panels that can be rolled up and kept away when not in use, but they are bulkier than foldable panels.

A solar panel buying guide will tell you that you first need to estimate the quantity of power you need before you decide on the number of panels that you require. Solar panels vary in the number of watts that they can produce and you need to first estimate the watt-hours per day that you need from the installation. You then need to know the solar insolation in your geographical area, which is the number of hours that solar panels will produce power every day. Divide the electrical usage with the solar insolation to give you the watts that your installation will have to produce. Increase this by at least 30 percent to cover cloudy days and inefficiencies of the system. You can now calculate the number of panels that you need to produce the required wattage.

This figure can then be translated into the square area of the panels, and you need to check whether the roof on which you are planning to install solar panels has that much area correctly oriented to the direction of the sun. Location is another very important factor that must be taken into consideration and is stressed on in most guides. Panels must be located in such a way that they get full sunlight between the hours 9 a.m and 3 p.m. and must also never be shaded by any trees, or by other buildings or structures in the area.