On-Grid Solar System Buying Guide: Prices, Subsidy, And Advantages and Disadvantages Disclosed

Here’s a breakdown of how every single component in an on-grid solar system comes together to power your home.

1. Solar Panels

Solar panels are the most visible part of the solar system. They’re installed on the rooftop, facing the South direction. When sunlight falls on these panels, they absorb that sunlight and convert it into electricity.

Did you know? Solar electricity directly from the panels is DC power. Since homes require alternating current (AC), a solar inverter is needed to convert direct current into AC.

2. Solar Inverter

Without a solar inverter, the entire solar system would have been an impractical model. The solar inverter converts DC into AC.

This conversion is essential because that’s the only way to convert electricity generated from an on-grid solar system into a usable form (AC) that can run household appliances.

3. Solar Module Mounting Structures

These are the pillars that support solar panels. They must be of a standard grade so that they can withstand heavy winds during storms and cyclones and hold the weight of the solar panels for 25 years (that’s the life of a solar system).

The best solar module mounting structures are prefabricated in precision labs. They’re coated with hot-dip galvanizing on steel to make them rust-proof.

For instance, My Solar Roof top’s Intelligent WindPro MountTM 2.0 mounting structure, which is IIT-Bombay approved, can:

• Withstand wind speeds as high as 170 kmph
• Prevent rusting for years because they have a high-density galvanized iron (HDGI) coating of 80 microns to withstand corrosion.

4. Solar Accessories

They might not sound that important in the entire setup, but solar accessories are as important as a panel, an inverter, or a mounting structure. Let’s see how!

• AC and DC cables: They are required for wiring solar panels and connecting different parts to make the entire solar grid functional.
• DC combiner boxes: A DC combiner box works like an isolation box. All the cables carrying DC current from the panels are isolated in this box. DC power coming from the panels can be as high as 1,000 volts, even more. It’s dangerous (potentially lethal); hence, a DC combiner box is required. This box feeds the DC current into the solar inverter and the solar inverter produces alternating current.
• AC combiner boxes: The AC power from the solar inverter is fed into an AC combiner box (all cables carrying the AC current from multiple inverters are combined in this box).
• Earthing strips and wires: Once the entire on-grid solar system is set up, earthing is done using earthing strips and wires.

Please note : all the DC cable connections are made using MC4 connectors.

5. Bi-directional Meter

Also known as a net meter, the bi-directional meter is basically designed to keep a track of:

1. Electricity supplied to the grid
2. Electricity imported from the grid

An on-grid solar system will not become functional until and unless the regular meter is replaced with a bidirectional meter.

The net meter helps the discom track the power generated by the solar system, the power consumed, the power supplied to the grid, and the power imported.

At the end of every month, when the electricity bill is generated, the readings from the bidirectional meter give an account of:

1. How many units were supplied to the grid
2. How many units were taken from the grid

Here’s how this solar net metering process helps:

1. If you supply more units to the grid than you consumed, those units will be deducted from your bill. It will reduce the bill further.
2. If you use extra units from the grid in addition to what your solar plant generated, those units would be added to your bill.