Difference between ‘grid-tie’ and ‘off-grid’ solar panels

Today we can think of the sun powering our business and our household. However solar energy is still at its nascent stage but it is going to make it big every soon since the government and the people would like to save on their costs and contribute towards the sustainability of the environment.

As of now there are 3 types of solar powered systems which are gird tie, grid tie with provision of battery backup and off grid. The metering laws make the grid tie a safe bet. In case you have less utility of power than off grid is a better bet. In case you want backup power in case of a blackout that can happen anytime then you should go for gird tie with battery backup.

The grid tie solar power system is connected directly to the utility feed. The service works in countries where net metering is allowed. The solar power turns the electric meter in the backward direction in case it produces more power than required at that time. The gird tie system has a solar panels and a grid tie inverter with a power cut off switch. The system is wired directly to the utility switch. In case more power is generated than required then the excess power is sold to the electric company. The gird tie system is the cheapest option to purchase and maintain.

In case of grid tie with battery backup there are a couple of additions. Here there are 12 volt batteries along with a battery charger and a solar charge controller. However there is more maintenance required because of the batteries. The solar charge controller does not let the batteries more or less power than required. The battery charger helps to charge the batteries.

The off gird system is independent of the utility grid. It is the best option in areas where electricity is not available. The system has the same configuration as the grid tie with battery backup, however the inverter used is different. There is an off grid inverter that is used for specific applications. The system is used normally in case of generator backup in case the current system does not meet the required wattage requirements. You will have to check whether the individual components of the system are compatible with each other.