Guides — United States
Every guide answers its question in the first two sentences, dates every price, and names every source. 434 published, grouped into the questions buyers actually ask.
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Start with your question
What should I buy, and how do I not get cheated?
29 guides
FixesWhy is my inverter beeping?
5 guides
SystemsHow do I size it, and what changed with net billing?
86 guides
ElectricShould I go electric, and what will it really cost per km?
21 guides
MoneySchemes, instalments, loans — what can I actually get?
288 guides
ReportsWhat do the numbers say?
5 guides
All guides — page 2 of 19
Buying
What should I buy, and how do I not get cheated?
Portable Solar Panels: What They CAN and CAN't Do
Folding panels are honest tools with a narrow job: recharging power stations and RV banks at camp. Watts versus reality, and when portable beats permanent.
Solar Panel Kits: What's in the Box and Who They Fit
A kit bundles panels, inverter, racking and wiring into one box — brilliant for sheds, RVs and off-grid cabins, complicated for whole homes. What's missing.
Solar Quotes: How to Audit Residential Proposals and Pricing
Audit residential solar quotes by normalizing cash price per watt, checking Section 25D 30% tax credit rules, and uncovering dealer financing fees.
Solar Sales Red Flags: Twelve Things That Should End the Meeting
Rooftop solar is a good product sold, too often, by a bad sales culture. Twelve behaviours that mean walk away, and four questions no honest rep minds.
Solar System for Home: The Complete Residential Equipment Guide
Understand the complete anatomy of a residential solar system, covering solar arrays, inverters, battery storage, smart subpanels, and net metering.
Fixes
Why is my inverter beeping — codes, symptoms and real repair costs.
Can Hail Damage Solar Panels? Ratings vs Reality
Panels are impact-tested against inch-plus hail at highway speeds and shrug off storms that dent cars — but Texas-grade stones win sometimes. Odds and cover.
How Long Do Solar Panels Last? Degradation, Not Death
Panels don't die at 25 — they fade about half a percent a year, warrantied to 80-87% at year 25 and usually producing beyond it. What fails first, and why.
How to Clean Solar Panels Safely (And When Not to Bother)
Water, a soft brush, dawn hours and feet on the ground — panel cleaning is deliberately boring. The safe method, the tools that scratch, when to bother.
Solar Panel Maintenance: The Honest Annual Schedule
A solar system's real maintenance calendar: glance at the app monthly, walk the ground quarterly, clean on evidence, inspect professionally every few years.
Solar Panel Repair: What's Fixable, What's Replaceable
Most 'panel repairs' are really inverter, connector or wiring fixes — panels are sealed units that get replaced, not repaired. The triage tree and who to call.
Systems
How do I size it, and what changed with net billing?
Adding a Battery to Existing Solar: AC vs DC Coupling
Retrofitting storage is routine: AC-coupled batteries bolt onto any system, DC-coupled ones reward an inverter swap. Both architectures, and the paperwork.
Connecting Victron VE.Direct LoRaWAN Module to VRM Portal
Connecting the Victron VE.Direct LoRaWAN module to the VRM Portal via The Things Network.
Do Solar Panels Need Direct Sunlight? Shade, Explained
Panels prefer direct sun but run on any light — the enemy is partial shade, which can drag down a whole string. How shade works and how design defeats it.
Do Solar Panels Work at Night? What Actually Happens
No — panels need light, and moonlight is millions of times too weak. What powers a solar home after dark is the grid, net-metering credits, or a battery.
Do Solar Panels Work in Winter? Snow, Cold, Short Days
Cold improves panel efficiency; short days and snow cover cut production. What winter does to output, how snow slides off, and why December was already counted.
Do Solar Panels Work on Cloudy Days? The Real Numbers
Yes — on diffuse light, at reduced output: a mild haircut under thin cloud, a deep cut under storm. Why annual averages, not gray days, decide your economics.
How Are Solar Panels Made? From Sand to Rooftop
Quartz becomes polysilicon, polysilicon becomes wafers, wafers become cells, cells become the glass-and-aluminum sandwich on your roof. The chain, step by step.
How Do Solar Panels Work? Explained Simply
Sunlight knocks electrons loose in silicon, an inverter turns that flow into household power, and your meter does the accounting. The chain, minus the physics.
How Many Solar Batteries Do You Need? Size the Evening
Size storage to your evening, not your house: the kWh between sunset and sunrise for daily shifting, or essential-load runtime for backup. Both calculations.
How Many Solar Panels Does It Take to Power a House?
The average US home uses about 865 kWh a month, roughly 18-25 modern panels depending on your sun. The three-number method to compute your own count.
How Many Solar Panels for 1,000 kWh a Month?
1,000 kWh a month needs roughly a 7.5-10.5 kW system, 19 to 27 modern panels depending on your sun. The worked math, plus a table for 500 to 2,000 kWh.
How Many Solar Panels for a 1,000 Sq Ft House? Sizing & System Guide
Calculate solar panel count for a 1,000 sq ft home, evaluate EIA electricity consumption data, and size array kW and roof space.
How Many Solar Panels for a 1,500 Sq Ft House? Sizing & System Guide
Calculate solar panel count for a 1,500 sq ft home, evaluate EIA electricity consumption data, and size array kW, panel count, and roof space.
How Many Solar Panels for a 2,000 Sq Ft House? Sizing & System Guide
Calculate solar panel count for a 2,000 sq ft home, evaluate EIA electricity consumption data, and size array kW, panel count, and roof space.