3 Reasons You Should Oversize Your Solar Power System

When building a solar power system, it’s important to carefully calculate the size of the system that you’ll need. However, you don’t want your system to exactly match your energy consumption; it’s generally recommended that you slightly oversize your system. But why would you want to pay for more solar equipment than you actually need? Keep reading to learn just 3 of the reasons to oversize your system.

Accounting for Future Growth

Most homes’ energy consumption tends to increase over time. Whether it’s because you purchased an electric vehicle, upgraded your electronics, or just have more kids in your household, future power needs can often grow beyond what you’re currently using. A slightly oversized system ensures that your setup can handle those increases without needing to expand your system later (which will usually cost more than initially oversizing it).

For example, if your home currently uses 8,000 kWh per year, and you design your system to meet those needs exactly, any upgrades to your home’s electronics or changes to your family’s lifestyle can cause you to fall short in just a few years. Oversizing by 10% to 20% helps future-proof your solar energy production so that your investment is longer-lasting and more adaptable to your changing needs.

Compensating for Losses in Efficiency

Solar panels naturally degrade over time, losing a small percentage of their efficiency every year; most panels tend to lose about half a percent in their solar output per year. Over the course of 20 years, this means a 10% reduction in every panels’ production. So, even if your energy consumption stays exactly the same for the next 20 years, your system will be falling 10% short by the end of that time period. By installing a slightly oversized system, you can offset this gradual efficiency loss (known as degradation) and ensure that your system continues to meet your needs in spite of those losses.

Additionally, factors like dust accumulation, shading on the panels, and temperature fluctuations can all reduce panel efficiency on a daily basis. So, if your system matches your needs at peak efficiency, all it takes is a little bit of shade for it to fall short that day. Designing for a little extra capacity helps ensure your system consistently meets your home’s actual energy needs.

Ensuring Reliability for Off-Grid and Hybrid Setups

If your home uses batteries for off-grid or hybrid solar designs, oversizing your system is even more important. Weather variations, cloudy days, and seasonal shifts will all impact production on a regular basis. Having extra capacity ensures batteries stay charged, giving you a more stable and reliable power supply—because, if an off-grid system falls short, you don’t have the grid as a backup power source, and you’ll be left in the dark.

So, if you’re looking for Phono Solar panels for sale, be sure to oversize your solar array by a few panels so you can ensure your system continues to meet your needs for years to come.