Solar 101: Understanding the Basics

If you’ve ever looked at a rooftop covered in shiny blue panels and thought, “Okay, but how does sunlight actually power my home?” — this one’s for you.

Solar energy can seem intimidating at first glance. There’s a maze of acronyms, formulas, and fancy technical terms that sound like something out of an engineering textbook. And truth be told, behind every system is a lot of complex science — semiconductor physics, electrical conversion, and grid integration.

But here’s the good news: you don’t need an engineering degree to understand the basics. Once you learn the core ideas and a few key terms, it all starts to make sense. And that’s exactly what we’re going to do here — make solar simple, clear, and practical.

By the end of this post, you’ll be able to read a solar quote or talk to an installer with confidence, knowing exactly what they mean when they throw around watts, kilowatts, or “solar PV.”

☀️ What Does “Solar PV” Actually Mean?

When people say “solar PV system,” they’re really just saying “a solar electricity system.”

“PV” stands for photovoltaic — photo meaning light, and voltaic meaning electricity. So, photovoltaic simply means creating electricity from light.

It’s like saying “light power.” No need to overcomplicate it. When someone says they’re installing solar PV panels, they just mean panels that turn sunlight into usable electricity for their home or business.

⚡ Speaking the Language: Watts, Kilowatts, and Kilowatt-Hours

Solar lives in a world of measurements — power, energy, volts, amps — and if that brings back nightmarish flashbacks of high school science class, don’t worry. We’ll keep it friendly.

The easiest way to think about these units is with a car analogy:

• A watt (W) is like your speedometer — it tells you how fast you’re using or producing electricity right now.
  💡 Your phone charger might use 5 watts. A toaster? Around 1,200 watts.

• A kilowatt (kW) is simply 1,000 watts — like going from meters to kilometers.
  🏎️ A typical solar system might be rated at 6 kW, meaning it can produce up to that much power under full sun.

• A kilowatt-hour (kWh) measures energy over time.
  ⏱️ If watts are your speed, kilowatt-hours are your distance traveled.
  Run a 1 kW appliance for one hour and you’ve used 1 kWh — just like driving at 100 km/h for an hour covers 100 km.

So, in simple terms:

Power (W or kW) is how fast you’re going, and Energy (kWh) is how far you went.

Once you think of electricity this way, solar quotes and utility bills start making a lot more sense.

🔌 DC and AC: Two Types of Electricity (for all you science nerds and history buffs)

Electricity can flow in two main ways: DC (Direct Current) and AC (Alternating Current).

Solar panels produce DC power, but our homes and the grid use AC power. So, to bridge the gap, we use an inverter — a device that converts DC into AC so your lights, fridge, and coffee maker can actually use it.

That’s all you need to know for now — we’ll dig into how it happens in Solar 101: The Science Behind Solar Generated Electricity.

🏠 The Major Parts of a Solar PV System

Let’s look at what’s actually in a solar setup — the main components that work together to turn sunlight into usable power.

1. Solar Panels

These are the flat, glass-covered rectangles you see on rooftops. Each one contains dozens of small solar cells that capture sunlight and turn it into DC electricity.

Panels are rated by how much power they can produce in ideal sunlight — for example, a 400-watt panel can make up to 0.4 kW. Most homes use 10–20 panels, depending on energy needs and roof space.

Think of them as miniature power plants, quietly generating clean energy all day long.

2. Inverter

The inverter is the translator between your panels and your home. It takes the DC electricity your panels produce and converts it into AC electricity that your household can use.

There are different kinds of inverters (string, micro, hybrid), but the idea is the same — no inverter, no usable power.

3. Mounting or Racking System

This is the hardware backbone that holds everything in place. It’s not just about keeping panels secure — the angle and direction of those panels can dramatically affect how much sunlight they capture over the course of a day.

At Intricate Renewables, all our systems are engineered by a Professional Engineer (P.Eng.) with stamped drawings, and we optimize every setup for performance and cost savings. Unlike some companies that install panels wherever they fit, we design for your home’s exact roof geometry, tilt, and orientation — maximizing sunlight exposure and overall efficiency.

4. Electrical Panel and Utility Meter

Once your inverter converts the electricity to AC, it flows into your home’s electrical panel — the same one that powers your lights and appliances.

If your system produces more energy than you’re using, that excess electricity goes back into the grid through your utility meter, earning you credits through net metering (more on that in a this post).

It’s a seamless handoff between your solar system and your power provider.

5. Battery (Optional)

Batteries store excess power during the day so you can use it at night or during power outages. They act as your energy savings account — deposit power when it’s sunny, withdraw when it’s dark.

Not everyone needs one, but they’re becoming increasingly popular as battery prices drop and homeowners look for more independence from the grid. We talk more about why you might want to consider using a battery in our article Batteries: Why Bother?

6. Monitoring System (Recommended)

Most modern solar systems include digital monitoring — an app or online dashboard that shows how much energy you’re generating, using, and saving in real time.

At Intricate Renewables, we always recommend including a monitoring system. Not only does it let you see your energy production, but it also helps with energy audits, cost savings tracking, and ongoing system optimization.
We can help manage and interpret your data to ensure your system keeps performing at its best.

🔆 How to Estimate Solar Energy Production (Using Alberta as an Example)

One of the most common questions we get is:

“How do I figure out how much energy solar panels can make for my home?”

Good news — you don’t need fancy software to get a pretty close estimate. You just need a few key numbers and a bit of simple math.

Step 1: Start With How Much Power You Use

First, check your electricity bill. It usually shows your monthly usage in kilowatt-hours (kWh) — that’s the total amount of energy you used.

For example, the average Alberta home uses about 7,200 kWh per year, or roughly 600 kWh per month.

That’s your target: how much energy you’d like your solar system to offset.

Step 2: Understand How Solar Power Is Measured

A reminder that solar systems are sized in kilowatts (kW) — which is basically their “horsepower.”

A 1 kW system can produce a certain amount of energy per year depending on how sunny your location is.

In Alberta, thanks to our long daylight hours and clear skies, 1 kW of solar panels typically generates around 1,200 – 1,400 kWh of electricity per year. (That’s one of the highest yields in Canada!)

Step 3: Divide Your Usage by the Sunshine

Now you can estimate how large a system you’d need. Just divide your yearly energy use by that production number:

An average Alberta home (most data suggests the average size of a detached home in Alberta is about 2300 sqft) would need about a 5.5 kW solar system.

Step 4: Convert System Size Into Panels

Each solar panel has a power rating — usually around 400 watts (0.4 kW) today. Using this, you’re looking at 13–15 panels for a typical home.

☀️ Wrapping It Up

So now you know:

• What “solar PV” really means (light + electricity).

• The difference between watts, kilowatts, and kilowatt-hours.

• The major components that make up a solar system.

At Intricate Renewables, we believe in educate first, sell second. Our systems are engineered for your home or business — designed by certified professionals, optimized for maximum energy capture, and installed by top-tier technicians.

Because at the end of the day, every company has access to the same basic ingredients: panels, inverters, wiring. But it’s the method, technique, and attention to detail that make the difference.

Think of it like cooking — a great chef can take the same ingredients as everyone else, but it’s how they combine, season, and prepare them that makes the meal exceptional. Our engineers and installers are that chef and kitchen team — crafting a solar system that performs beautifully for years to come.

Next up, we’ll pull back the curtain on the science of solar: How sunlight actually becomes electricity — and why solar panels are one of the most elegant pieces of technology ever invented.