A number of factors determine the number of solar panels required to power your air conditioner. The size of your air conditioning unit and the wattage of your solar panels are two of the aspects to consider.
An air conditioner uses a lot of electricity to run, especially if it is left on all day. As a result, it will consume a significant percentage of your panel’s capacity.
Because it is linked with the grid, an on-grid solar installation should have no trouble running AC units. Regardless, because they work hand in hand with the utility grid, most on-grid solar panels cannot operate when the power goes off.
On the other hand, Off-grid systems will demand cost and time to effectively set up and operate AC units. The first step is to determine how much power your air conditioner requires.
Every appliance, technically, requires a specified wattage. If your air conditioning unit uses 1.2 kW of electricity and is turned on throughout the day, it consumes 14.4 kWh a day.
Because a utility grid does not support your solar power system, your battery bank must be large enough to manage such a significant demand. It must also have enough electricity to run the AC unit for several days.
A multi-day backup is required to maintain the system on days when the sun does not shine. Keep in mind that your batteries must be of high capacity. In order for your air conditioner to function correctly, your battery bank must provide approximately 45 kWh of electricity over three days.
Moving on, let’s figure out how many solar panels you’ll need to power the batteries. In normally sunny places such as Arizona, approximately 12 solar panels would be required. In colder climates where the sun does not shine every day, this figure could rise to 18 or higher.
Ultimately, you’ll need to use a high-quality inverter because an effective inverter is a vital feature of an off-grid solar setup. Though there are no perfectly efficient inverters, you should choose one with a high-efficiency rating.
Finally, the number of solar panels required to power an AC unit is determined by the type of solar installation used. If you utilize an on-grid solar installation, you may simply use grid electricity to power the air conditioner.
If you use an off-grid solar installation, you will require at least 12 solar panels, depending on how much sunlight you receive. This, of course, should be accompanied by high-quality equipment.
