Although residential solar customers want systems with the highest power ratings for maximum utility cost savings, aesthetics still reign supreme when it comes to solar panel choice. If even a sliver of an array will be seen by neighbors, homeowners will usually pick all-black modules for a sleek, finished system.
There aren&#;t many differences between &#;traditional&#; solar panels and their all-black counterparts. Traditional panels use white backsheets and silver frames, while all-black modules use &#; you guessed it &#; black backsheets and black frames. They&#;re manufactured the same way through the same processes, except black adhesives may be used around junction boxes and other electronics on all-black modules.
The major difference between the two is their efficiency ratings. All-black modules run a bit hotter and offer fewer opportunities for reflected light absorption, so their efficiencies are slightly lower.
&#;When white backsheets are used, the empty spaces or gaps between and around the solar cells provide a reflection of the unused light and increase the likelihood of &#;light trapping,&#; resulting in an increased generation of photocurrent,&#; said Geoff Atkins, executive advisor of North American panel manufacturer Silfab Solar. &#;All-black modules have a more aesthetically pleasing look but lose the benefit of reflection and light trapping, resulting in a lower photocurrent &#; up to 3% less than a white-backsheet module. Three percent less current means about 0.5% lower absolute efficiency.&#;
To even out this major difference, companies like Silfab will use higher efficiency solar cells in its all-black modules. The company also uses a back-contact design &#; wherein all busbars and electrical connections are moved to the back of the solar cells &#; along with a flexible, conductive backsheet to more effectively spread the heat produced by a module. This lowers the nominal operating cell temperature of Silfab modules, providing a higher module efficiency.
But a 0.5% efficiency loss isn&#;t especially noticeable to the average residential customer, so often these extensive production efforts aren&#;t made on all-black modules.
When Silicon Valley solar panel startup Aptos Solar Technology began making panels in , CEO and co-founder Frank Pham knew his company&#;s role as a newcomer in the industry was to stick to the mainstream &#; and that meant providing both white- and black-backsheet modules. Aptos wants to be competitive and innovative, but Pham said he can&#;t ignore customer desire for attractive systems.
&#;The biggest advantage of all-black vs. white is the aesthetic. It&#;s exactly why you would pay Tesla [more] for an electric car over a Chevy Bolt. It&#;s the same electric car performance, but it&#;s about aesthetics. It&#;s not about performance,&#; he said. &#;We know that white backsheets will out-perform the black backsheets, but the key is to make sure the aesthetic is good while maintaining a very good panel output.&#;
Aptos Solar&#;s white- and black-backsheet modules are identical in specs, except for that less-than-0.5% efficiency difference. Pham said that difference is moot when residential rooftop systems use microinverters. If the microinverter is power-rated for less than what the module will produce, it doesn&#;t matter if the back of the module is black or white &#; might as well go with the more aesthetically pleasing option.
&#;If you&#;re going to clip 30% of the power anyway and you&#;re running a silver frame, you&#;re just wasting it,&#; Pham said. &#;You throw on something that is ugly? You&#;re just wasting power and throwing ugliness up on the roof.&#;
Customer demand reinforces the all-black trend. Many residential solar installation companies across the country now offer all-black modules as standard. Washington-based Northwest Electric and Solar works on both residential and commercial projects but keeps things simple for homeowners.
&#;We started offering all-black modules years ago for customers that had aesthetic concerns, and now they&#;re part of our standard offerings,&#; said Ian Robinson, energy program manager. &#;We pitch ourselves as a company that installs premium products and refuses to sacrifice on quality. Part of that is offering the best-looking modules possible. For that reason, we offer Solaria&#;s all-black modules to all our customers.&#;
Robinson said Northwest Electric and Solar will finish the project with black rails or rail-less mounting systems for the most visually pleasing array. But Pham with Aptos said all the major racking providers look good with all-black modules, as long as installers take time to finish the system in an attractive way.
&#;If you take special care, the installation will look just as good as any other,&#; Pham said.
Black solar panels, otherwise known as monocrystalline panels, are the most common model on the market today. They are just one of many types of solar panels available on the market.
Despite being the most efficient product on the market, these solar panels cost more than other options, on average.
In this guide, we&#;ll explain why you can increasingly see them replace blue solar panels on roofs all over the country, and explore whether they&#;re the right choice for your home.
If you&#;re ready to start benefiting from solar energy, you can easily compare solar panel prices with our help. Just provide a few quick details, and our expert installers will be in touch with free quotes for you to compare.
Where do you want to install solar panels?
Get started
Solar panels are black because they&#;re monocrystalline, meaning each of their cells is made with just one silicon crystal.
The way light reflects off monocrystalline panels makes them look black, unlike polycrystalline panels, which we see as blue because they have multiple crystals per cell.
Both are natural silicon colours &#; though solar companies also intensify these colours during the manufacturing process.
They add anti-reflective coating that removes the grey undertones from these panels, giving monocrystalline a darker shade of black, and polycrystalline a brighter shade of blue.
Black solar panels are the best type of solar panel available on the market at the moment.
They&#;ve won the race with blue solar panels, as well as thin film models and all the other kinds of solar panels, and now dominate the UK&#;s solar panel industry &#; as well as the country&#;s roofs.
Every single one of our best solar panels this year was black &#; and that trend is likely to continue for the foreseeable future.
If you can afford them, we would recommend getting black solar panels.
All of our most efficient solar panels were black solar panels, as monocrystalline is more efficient than polycrystalline.
Black solar panels usually have an efficiency rating of 18-23%, whereas blue solar panels are typically 13-16% efficient, and thin film models only hit 7-13% efficiency.
That&#;s a big difference, and a big advantage of choosing black solar panels over other kinds.
Monocrystalline panels are more efficient because they&#;re made from one block of high-grade silicon that&#;s had its impurities removed, and is therefore better at turning sunlight into energy.
Black solar panels have a higher heat resistance than blue solar panels.
This means that when the thermostat goes above 25°C &#; as it regularly does now during British summers &#; monocrystalline solar panels&#; power output are affected less than their polycrystalline counterparts.
As the UK gets hotter with each passing year, this feather in the cap of black solar panels becomes increasingly important.
Black solar panels are typically more powerful.
This isn&#;t due to any natural advantage, but is simply a result of monocrystalline panels being better in every other area.
潞安 are exported all over the world and different industries with quality first. Our belief is to provide our customers with more and better high value-added products. Let's create a better future together.
Because of this fact, manufacturers are more likely to make black solar panels when they&#;re rolling out their new, cutting-edge designs with higher power ratings.
Where do you want to install solar panels?
Get started
Black solar panels are the best type of panel in most ways &#; but not all.
Here&#;s a pros and cons table to clearly explain all the reasons black solar panels do &#; and don&#;t &#; deserve a spot on your roof over other types of solar panel.
Pros
Cons
Black solar panels typically cost more than other kinds of solar panels.
Monocrystalline panels cost £370 to £420 per m² on average, whereas polycrystalline panels usually cost £300-£350 per m².
This means a black solar panel system will cost around 20% more than an array with blue panels, on average.
If you want to find out more about pricing, read our page on solar panel costs.
Black solar panels are almost always worth the extra expense, because they&#;re typically more efficient, powerful, and heat resistant.
These factors combine to ensure black solar panels produce much more solar energy than other models from the same amount of sunlight.
The average three-bedroom house with 10 solar panels will break even less than halfway through the panels&#; lifespan, whether they&#;re black or blue &#; but you&#;ll save more money with black solar panels.
Solar panels don&#;t have to be black.
They can be blue, because they&#;re polycrystalline panels, or they can be an even wider range of colours.
For instance, Italian firm Peimar sells monocrystalline solar panels in green and red, as well as in more traditional shades.
Peimar creates this effect by replacing the standard anti-reflective coating most companies use with a thin layer of coloured, anti-reflective glass.
You now have all the information you need to make a decision about getting black solar panels.
The next step is to get quotes for your own panels.
Just provide a few quick details about your property, and we&#;ll put you in touch with our expert solar suppliers, who will provide you with quotes to compare.
Black solar panels reflect as little as 0.3% of the light that hits them, and absorb as much as 99.7%.
They absorb more light than any other type of solar panel, thanks to their dark colour.
Black solar panels can still only turn around 23% of this light into energy, but that number is increasing &#; and it&#;s the best efficiency rate on the market at the moment.
Solar panels do cause glare for neighbours, for the short amount of time each day that your array&#;s angle and their property line up.
However, solar panels are covered in anti-reflective coating that limits glare, so the effect won&#;t be too extreme.
And since windows reflect light all the time &#; and no-one would ask a neighbour to get rid of their windows &#; you usually won&#;t receive any complaints.
Black solar panels cause the least glare for neighbours, as they reflect the least amount of light of any solar panel.
Black is the best colour for solar panels, as it absorbs the most sunlight of any panel.
Black solar panels are also the most efficient, powerful, and heat resistant panels on the market right now.
Plus they usually come with the best product and performance warranties, as companies feel safe to back them for longer than other types of solar panel.
Are you interested in learning more about full black solar panels? Contact us today to secure an expert consultation!