A diagram displaying the components of a solar panel.
A diagram displaying the components of a solar panel.

What Are your Solar Energy System Parts?

Solar power is the ability to convert energy from the sun into usable electricity. Sunlight is either directly harnessed as thermal energy (heat) or through the use of photovoltaic cells in solar panels and transparent photovoltaic glass. Solar-electric or photovoltaics (PV) technology converts sunlight directly into electricity. PV can provide electricity for residential and commercial building

If you are confident about what type of solar power system that you are looking for, and are just looking to get a quote, then click here.

What are solar panels made out of?

Solar Panel Key Components

  • Encapsulant / Back Sheet
  • Solar Cell
  • Busbar
  • Cross-connector
  • Frame

What role do these components play?

- The Encapsulation / Back Sheet provides a layer of protection for the solar cells from the environment and provides electrical insulation.
- The Frame is typically made up of aluminum and is necessary to provide structural stability and for mounting the panels.
- The Solar Cells are connected in series via Busbars and Cross-Connectors.

solar panels parts components

What are the parts of a solar energy system?

There are other essential parts to a solar energy system apart from the panels themselves. To produce your own power, and gain independence from your utility company, you need a complete solar power system. The essential components:

- Solar panels, to capture energy from the sun
- An inverter, to convert that energy to a form that can power our devices
- Racking, the foundation on which you attach your system

solar panels and racking
solar system labeling

Solar Energy System with Battery

If you add a battery storage solution to your solar energy system to store the energy produced by your panels, you should understand the parts that go into the battery components. An Energy Storage System (ESS), includes battery and power processing units (inverter). Read our Solar 101 Battery Guide

Batteries Pack to store the energy that is captured by the solar panels. Commonly known ones are the Tesla Powerwall, LG Chem, and Q.HOME.

Charge controller, also known as a battery regulator helps to control the rate at which batteries charge from solar. It prevents overcharging and limits the rate at which electric current is drawn, improving the performance of your battery and reducing safety risks.

Inverters - This connects the solar PV system to the battery system to change the energy captured by the solar panels (DC energy) to the energy that can be used by your household devices (AC energy). Read more about how solar energy works.

q cells battery inverter

Get Your Solar Panel Installation Price

If you are confident about what type of solar power system that you are looking for, and are just looking to get a quote, then click here. Work with one of the best solar companies near San Diego, Riverside, Los Angeles, San Bernardino, and Orange County. With our background in solar repair, we can make sure that you get a quality solar panel install at a cost that you can afford.

By avoiding all of the costly mistakes that typical fly-by-night solar installers make and knowing the local rules and weather we can ensure you get a quality solar panel install. We can also provide a competitive wholesale solar panel install price outside of our local area. Contact us for high quality, low-cost solar panel installation.