Power Vs Energy (kW vs. kWh) : Absolute Solar Power Basics

When it comes to solar, Power (kW) and Energy (kWh) are two of the things I see people get mixed up the most - I've even seen trained solar salesmen confuse the two, especially when talking about batteries.

If you want to fundamentally understand solar power, batteries, electric cars, and the future of energy so you can reap the benefits of the technology instead of being bewildered by it all, then understanding the difference between power and energy is your first step.

In this video, I break down how the two relate to solar power and solar batteries in a simple, intuitive way.

[rimaal-hayek]

I CANNOT THANK YOU ENOUGH FOR THIS ANALOGY! I have been struggling to understand the difference for weeks at work and this 6mins video made all the difference! :D

[Koh_Scoot]

I've just started a new career within the solar industry, so I'm still getting used to the basic concepts. This video was great and I learned a lot, thank you!

[CalebsCastles]

Amazing explanatory skill this presenter demonstrates. Thank you, helped a lot.

[dalroth]

A very clear explanation - much appreciated 👍

[leonseramup]

A very good explanation that is easily understood by anyone. Thanks.

[ChiquitaSpeaks]

This is pretty simple. Whenever you find something labeled in its watts that’s how much power is being used by it per second…so first, you just convert it to Kw to determine it’s usage. Example: A 300w GPU. Make it Kw, so just move its decimal back by 3 or divide by /1000, whatever’s easier for you. So 300w is .3Kw. That’s .3Kw per second. Then see how many of that is being used in an hour. So that’s one second, that is there’s 3600 seconds in an hour. So multiply that .3Kw by 3600 seconds (1hour). That’s 1, 080. So 1.08 KWh. Granted my pc will have more than just the GPU. A one Kw solar panel system could run the GPU for basically ~1hour. A six KW solar system could run it for about ~six hours.

[Sbudarh_P]

You are the best at simplifying this made it simpler

[sathyasview]

Pretty cool examples I appreciate this method of teaching

[mskraemerartclass]

practical help: what is a difference between these two companies 1. Each block is equivalent to 50 kilowatt hours (kWh) of electricity and is available for $4.92 net cost per month. So when you subscribe to two blocks, you’re supporting 100 kWh of solar energy for only $9.84 per month or just 33 cents per day.versus Versus 2. The initial credit rate on your bill will be approximately $0.04 per kilowatt-hour (kWh) and will remain at that level for the first 36 months. Starting with the 37th month of continuous enrollment, the rate will increase 1.5% annually; A 1kw subscription to solar energy will cost less than $8.35 a month** Please help what is the difference between these two offers?

[atomicdmt]

20w vs 100w: saying faster denotes more pressure: voltage increase. This is incorrect, or course. You might say its a wider/bigger (waterfall).

[mmnyako]

Thank You, just the perfect explanation I needed

[mmccarthy]

Cheers mate, I think I'm finally getting it

[FirstGigawattDown]

Yes! People get confused. FYI, here's how we explain w v. wh, on the road to explaining our newly minted metric, the @ @hZ38 - Go Team Earth!

[michaelgonzalez]

When you turn on a 100 watt bulb in your home it actually consumes 100 watts per seconds but your electric company charges by the hour so that would be 100 watts every hour. When you produce electricity from your PV system that 100 watts bulb would consume it every seconds, so a 100 watts bulb will drain a total of 100 X 3600 ( 3600 seconds in an hour) = 360kwatts in that hour from your batteries.

[tomdane]

You said we're pushing electricity into the bulb faster. Is that true? For example if the voltage was the same, but the amps were different. Is it more accurate to say that we're pushing a higher volume of electricity into the 100w bulb?

[mrmatias]

Very informative video. Greeting from Angola.

[evoprod]

I don't mean to be pedantic when I ask this question but, when you refer to the speed of electricity, don't you really mean the amplitude of current? Higher the current, the more electrons are flowing past any particular point at any given time - therefore more power being delivered. Speed of electricity is only ever talked about in terms of it's frequency i.e. Hertz, which for all intents and purposes never changes in a typical system.

[jimwalker]

thanks, i think you should also add the conversion factor at the end....kW to kWh is 3600

[Ducklesworth]

So if i have a 1500 watt solar generator why is the batter only rated for 1069 wh instead of 1500. In my mind i could use 1500 watts for one hour. But by this rating itd be less.

[dannysuru]

still dont get it 100% -that solar graph was confusing - 6kW system measuring kW to add up to 24kWh per day??