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Solar modules (solar panels)
A home solar array is made up of one or more solar modules connected and installed where sunlight can be easily absorbed. Usually, on the roof of a home or upon an unobstructed area on the ground. Sunlight hits the solar array to create direct current electricity.
2
Inverter
The direct current (DC) produced by sunlight hitting the solar array moves in only one direction. Because nearly all appliances in a home require AC or alternating current, an inverter is used to change DC from the sun into AC for use in the home.
3
Electrical panel
An electrical panel is a metal box located within the home that divides the main power entering a home into different circuits. Circuits are protected by fuses or circuit breakers which are triggered if there is over-current during the distribution of power.
4
Bi-directional meter
A bi-directional meter connects to the home’s inverter and the utility company’s grid. This meter is installed by the wire services provider in the area—free of charge to the customer for the ordinary and reasonable costs of interconnection—as part of a residential solar installation. The bi-directional meter is responsible for measuring:
- The amount of energy delivered to the grid when excess solar power is generated.
- The amount of energy drawn from the grid when solar power does not meet a household’s energy needs
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Electricity usage
Electricity entering the home—via the grid or from the solar array—is used for many things including powering home appliances and electronics and, increasingly, charging electric vehicles.
Learn about ENMAX Power’s smart charging pilot Charge Up
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Excess solar energy and micro-generation
Micro-generation refers to small-scale energy generation by households, small businesses and communities, such as solar modules installed on a home’s roof to produce power. Under the provincial Micro-generation Regulation, there are two types of micro-generators: small-scale (under 150 kilowatts) and large-scale (between 150 kilowatts and 5 megawatts).
When a home solar power system generates more power than is used by a household, that excess power is sent or “sold” to the grid and appears as a micro-generation credit on a utility bill, at the homeowner’s current electricity rate.