Tabbing The Solar Cells Of Your Homemade Pv Panel

Even a few years back, owning a solar panel was a costly proposition; in spite of the fact that someone installed the project all by himself. However, things have changed for the better and now there are affordable materials that facilitate do-it-yourself (DIY) installation of solar panels.

Like any other project, making and installation of a solar panel becomes easy if you follow the directions laid down in credible guidelines. The preparation of the tabbing wire, which includes tinning the wire, is one of the most crucial steps in making the solar panel; if you are not aware of this, read below to understand the term and process properly.

Tabbing wire falls in the group of regular wires with special characteristics; one such characteristic being it is not made from copper and is a mixture of tin along with other metals. This characteristic makes enables this wire with silvery finish to become an efficient conductor of electricity and being flat it is ideal for attachment to solar cells.

To tab a solar cell, initially you need to cut the tabbing wire to an appropriate length, which you can do by laying two cells at an appropriate length and then taking the measurement of this length to determine the size of the wire. Cut the tabbing wires all at once, since you will be required to cut many of these wires for your project.

Take a wood, cut it to the proper length and wrap the tabbing wire around it to get uniform length. Now cut the tabbing wire according to the folded markings after taking it out from the wood template. Now that the tabbing wire is cut as per the required length, you are ready for the next step, which is tinning and for this you will require a solder and soldering iron.

Before you start tinning, straighten the wire so that it is evenly flat. Then lay it down to the working surface and make a mark at the middle, since this is commonly the place where tinning is required. Apply a soldering lead, evenly, on top of the tabbing wire with the help of the pre-heated soldering iron and continue this process until you finish coating the tabbing wire completely.

However, exercise caution and do not apply too much solder on the tabbing wire, since the objective is to coat the wire evenly and completely. Now that this process is complete, the rest that you require to do is to align and connect the solar cells together to set up your own solar panel.

Making and installing a solar panel is an economic way of having solar energy for your home, which will not only help you to cut down on electricity bill but will also help you to take that necessary step in doing your bit for keeping the environment clean and free of pollution. This is simple and all it takes is to have appropriate materials for the project and good solar guidelines on how to carry it out.

Do some research work, visit the related sites online and if required try to get a video illustration. The most satisfying part of this project is that you will get a good experience in doing solar panel and later can use this expertise to start your own assembly business. Get smart, cut down on electricity bill and use the vast source of energy, the sun, to produce your own solar energy.