By now, it’s become clear that renewable energy sources are the way of the future. The human kind simply cannot survive in communities that are even more polluted than they are now, and if we’re to have any hope of leaving a healthy, green world for our children, we must act quickly and stop using fossil fuels.

Fortunately, the popularity of fossil fuels is definitely dropping and leaving room for much better, eco-friendly solutions. One of the best, most sustainable of them is solar power – energy that comes straight from the sun, that’s there in abundance, and that doesn’t wither away the way oil, coal, or natural gases do.

The key component of any solar system is its solar inverter. In sunny countries like Malasia, Philippines, Vietnam, Indonesia, and Australia steps are being taken to have entire cities and areas switch to this renewable energy source, and inverters are the little devices that make this possible. We can take the expertise of these countries into consideration when choosing components, even if we plan to power up only our own house instead of the whole neighborhood.

Here’s how to pick the right inverter for your home.

Choose the correct type

First, let’s learn about the type of inverters there are. There are three: string inverters, micro inverters, and central inverters.

String inverters are affordable and easy to install. This type of inverter combines all of the panels of your solar system and treats them as one panel. In general, all of your solar panels can be connected by one inverter, which makes string inverters a very cost-effective solution. Of course, the downside of this is that if something goes wrong with one panel, it will reflect on the entire system.

Micro inverters are more expensive because they are installed on each individual panel separately. This means you can monitor different panels and if something happens to one of them, it won’t affect the rest of the system immediately.

Central inverters are the middle ground between micro and string inverters. They aren’t particularly expensive, but they are big, loud, and generally aimed at larger systems. You probably won’t need these for a residential area (unless you live in a castle or something).

Which inverter you choose depends on your needs and your budget. In general, simple string inverters can be a great choice for family homes.

Find a balance of price and power

When you find the type of inverter you need, it’s time to research all of the options available on the market. In places like Hong Kong, Malasia, Vietnam, and Philippines, a good SMA inverter is usually the way to go because it gives you the perfect balance of quality and price. SMA Solar Technology is a reputable solar equipment supplier from Germany, and their inverters are some of the best ones you can find.

Regardless of what kind of inverter you want for your home, always make sure to find a product that will generate the biggest yield for the price that you can afford to pay.

Make sure it coordinates well with the rest of the system

You can’t just choose an inverter and call it a day. What you pick depends on what the rest of the system is like, mainly how many panels you have, how much you plan to rely on solar energy, and how much sunlight there is in the place you live. If you don’t know what you’re doing, don’t choose your inverter alone. Talk to the professionals that will actually end up installing the system, and ask them what kind of options are at your disposal.

Make sure it’s easy to maintain

Your solar system is no different than the plumping or electricity in your home. It won’t always work perfectly, and sometimes you’ll need to clean it, replace old parts, or fix what’s broken. When choosing an inverter, you want to find something that’s easy to maintain, which means it needs to be made of quality materials and that it’s installed in a way that allows easy access. Both you and the handymen who come in to fix it should be able to access it with ease.

There are many benefits of renewable energy in your home. You won’t have to keep poisoning the environment and increasing your carbon footprint if you switch to solar, and you’ll always have readily-available energy to power up your entire home. With the right inverter, the entire system will run smoothly and easily, so choose one based on our tips and you’ll always have clean power to rely on.