J.Boerman 9
“De installalatie keurig volgens offerte en tijdsplanning snel en vakkundig aangebracht.”
Net metering and the feed-in payment for solar panels
What is net metering? Why is the scheme being phased out and what will replace it?
Read moreHow many solar panels do I need?
It depends on what you use in a year and on the room on your roof
One of the questions we are asked most is how many solar panels it takes to cover a household's annual energy use. Our adviser Mark is happy to explain.
What do you need?
To work out how many panels you need, a few things have to be in hand:
- What you use in a year
- An idea of the rating of the panels you want
- The size of your roof and any obstacles on it
Working out the number of panels
The first step is to establish what you use in a year, which you will find on the annual statement from your energy supplier.
The next step is to know the rating of the panel, which is given in watt-peak (Wp). Once you know the watt-peak per panel, you can work out how many you need to cover a year of energy use.
Finally you have to decide whether that number of panels fits on your roof, for which you need its dimensions and any obstacles to work around, such as a chimney or a dormer.
Covering part of your use with solar energy
Ideally you generate as much energy in a year as you use. How many panels can be fitted depends on the room on the roof and on what you can or want to invest. If that leads you to fit fewer panels than would cover your whole annual use, that is no problem at all: the rest simply comes from your energy supplier, and you still save a great deal on your yearly costs.
Do you generate more than you use? Then you can net it off. Read more in the blog I wrote: "Net metering and solar energy".
Solar panel dimensions
How many panels fit on your roof depends on several things. The surface of the roof matters to begin with, and so do the dimensions of the panels. The sizes Dijkman Zonne-energie uses most are 100 x 168 & 105 x 178 centimetres.
It also matters which obstacles we have to work around, a chimney or a dormer for instance, and we look at the shade that falls on the roof. A panel should of course stand in the sun as much as possible.
Would you like to know how many solar panels you need?
Then request a consultation with Mark!
Mark is an adviser at Dijkman Zonne-energie and is happy to help with all your questions about solar panels. Consultations can take place at your home, online or by phone.
More about solar panels
Solar panels on a flat roof
I have a flat roof, can I have solar panels too? Certainly. A flat roof even has a few advantages.
Read more
How do solar panels work?
How do solar panels work? Our adviser Hans explains where solar energy comes from, what the inverter does and where panels work best.
Read more