How to Wire for Solar Energy

If you are able to hook up your own home solar energy system, you can save money from the costly installation service. Wiring your own solar energy system is a difficult job, requiring familiarity with electrical systems and circuits. Wiring your solar electric system is similar to any other electrical project, with its own inherent risks and hazards. Call a licensed electrician if at any point you are confused.

• 1

  Solder 12-gauge electrical wiring to the two output wires from the solar panel. The black wire should be connected to the positive terminal from the solar panel. The white wire should connect to the negative terminal of the solar panel. Ground the green wire on the frame of the solar panel.

  Use wire strippers to expose one inch on the end of each wire. Twist the wires together so the finished joint is barely thicker than the original wire. Heat up the soldering iron, and hold it beneath the wire joint until the soldering iron is beginning to move into the joint, indicating the joint is hot enough for adding solder. Apply solder to the top part of the joint, adding more solder until the joint is covered. Wrap adhesive-lined heat shrink tubing around the joint and heat the tubing with a lighter until it is tightly covering the joint.

• 2

  Turn the charge controller off so that electricity is not passing through it. Solder the ends of the 12-gauge wire coming from the solar panels to the charge controller. The charge controller will keep the deep-cycle batteries from becoming overloaded. The charge controller should be stored adjacent to the batteries. The charge controller also has labeled inputs, indicating negative and positive ports for each of the respective wires.

• 3

  Connect the output wires from the charge controller to your deep-cycle battery system. Use a screwdriver to install the charge controller's output wires. Wire the batteries together in a series, parallel or a series-parallel circuit, depending on what type of electrical requirements you need.

  To connect the batteries into a series circuit, connect the negative terminal of the first battery with the positive terminal of the second battery. Continue this pattern until all of the terminals are connected, except for the negative terminal from the first battery and the positive terminal from the last battery.

  To connect the batteries into a parallel circuit, connect the positive terminal of the first battery with the positive terminal of the second battery adjacent to it. Connect the negative terminals of each adjacent battery. Continue this pattern until all of the terminals are connected.

  To connect the batteries in a series-parallel, do both configurations.

• 4

  Connect the battery circuit to an AC inverter. The inverter changes the Direct Current from the batteries to Alternating Current, which is the form of electricity for standard home appliances. Inverters are also equipped with outputs in the form of sockets that are identical with standard wall sockets.