Want to get into residential solar panel installation?  Get solar energy training!  Watch this video and where you could be!

Boots on the Roof, one of the best solar/wind training providers in the San Francisco bay area, is currently enrolling students into its upcoming Solar PV and Wind Energy training boot camp.  Students can get certified as solar PV installers. The training program includes hands-on labs, classroom activities focusing on solar electric system design, safety regulations, installation and extra business topics related to photovoltaic.  To learn more about dates, locations, and course details,  click here.

Solar Electricians are the backbone of the solar power industry. After all, photovoltaic solar cells convert sunlight into electricity, and that electricity then must be distributed throughout a building. Attending a solar school to get solar panel installation training rather than a regular vocational school, however, to get an Electrical Engineering degree specializing in solar power will provide you with a strong advantage in getting hired as an electrician in the solar power industry.

Why? The answer is because wiring a building to run off of solar power requires very different technologies and skill sets than wiring a building to run off of the local electrical power grid.

Using local grid power, regular home construction electricians are used to accessing a constant, regulated, steady flow of electricity from the local power grid. All they have to do is distribute that constant flow of electricity throughout the building via the standard residential electrical wiring network.

Solar power, however, is much more complex. Under solar power systems, electricity comes not from the local power grid, but from the sun. Solar panels in the roof convert sunlight to electricity. Consequently, the flow of electricity is neither regulated nor constant. To overcome this problem, electricity generated by the solar panels is stored in battery banks. The batteries, in turn, provide a regulated, steady flow of electricity to the building. If the batteries are depleted, the home electrical network needs to be able to switch seamlessly back over to the local power grid.

All this, obviously, adds an extra layer of complexity to wiring a building’s electrical network. Any electrician specialized in dealing with it will be in high demand in the solar power industry.

How will I use my Solar Power Training Certification–What Does a Solar Electrician Do?

In addition to wiring a home or building with the usual electrical network, a solar electricians must also set up the solar energy battery banks. This is not as easy as it sounds. The solar electrician must know what type of batteries to use, and how many will be needed. If there is more than one battery (as with all but the most basic solar power system there will be), the solar electrician will need to set up load-balancing equipment to charge and deplete the multiple batteries evenly. The electricity will also need to be converted from DC power to the 120-volt AC power used in the building’s wall outlets.

Solar electricians also need to be also to install instrumentation to measure the charge in the battery banks, and control mechanisms to switch over to local grid power when the battery banks are almost drained. Today, very few homes are capable of being powered entirely by solar energy. Most use a combination of solar and grid power, using the solar power produced merely to reduce their monthly power bill.

How Do I Become a Solar Electrician?

At least an Associate’s degree in Electrical Engineering or a related field would be the required to qualify as a Solar Electrician. Obviously, a Bachelor’s or Master’s Degree you be preferable. If possible, attend a solar school rather than a community college or a vocational school program to get solar panel installation training. Not only will a solar school train you in the specializations needed to work with solar power systems, but you’ll learn more about solar power in general. Both of these will make your degree more attractive for a solar power company, and increase your chances of being hired.

Boots on the Roof, a leading Renewable Energy training institute, is enrolling students into its Solar PV Installation Training classes. For more information on qualifications, Training Dates and Locations, click here.

One of the main issues in the recent US elections focused on government investments and dedication toward finding sustainable, cost-effective energy sources. Not that the world’s supply of oil is near depletion. Besides being harmful to the environment, the world, not just Americans, hates being dependent on foreign oil. Thus, the need to look for sustainable, alternative energy sources.

This move away from oil-powered energy plants, gas-driven cars and use of depletable fuel sources has prompted this present trend toward alternative sources of fuel. As governments and private organizations continue to invest in research and development, technologies that have been known to work well, such as those tapping solar energy, are taking the frontiers. Solar heating training for professionals and skilled workers are in high demand in the construction industry to address the growing need for solar-powered facilities.

The Demand in Numbers

Solar panel installations around the world were nearly 6000 megawatts, more than double the number of solar panel installations in 2007. Demand for solar energy grows at a staggering 30% annually in the last decade and a half. Last year’s increased worldwide demand was due to government attention. Germany’s Feed-in law made it the second largest market in 2008. US markets increased to 357 megawatts; Japan is now the sixth largest market worldwide. PV cell manufacturers worldwide produced a total of 6.85 gigawatts in 2008.

Solar Career Opportunities

Obviously, with the market growing, there’s a surge of jobs and various career opportunities in the solar industry. And it’s only a subset of an even larger industry – renewable energy sources industry. Here are some of the many career opportunities for professionals with solar heating training:

• Sales engineers: It’s a new industry and the demand for highly qualified sales people are on the rise. Sales engineers whose expertise lie in solar panel installations, design of solar heating systems and other custom solar-powered energy-saving products can help speed up the process of bringing clean energy sources to communities.

• Technical support staff: As is the current trend in business, an after-sales support service is vital in keeping customers happy. The renewable energy sources industry needs it’s version of professional staff to man its phone lines, websites and other customer feedback channels. If you’re already familiar with the customer service industry, solar heating training will give you that edge to become part of a highly technical new industry.

• Trainers and Teachers: Solar training is a growing business as well. With new industries spurring a high demand of skilled workers, educational institutions are pooling experts to train workers for the industry. This presents an excellent opportunity for those who already are in the field to take on leadership roles and train others to join them. Engineers, architects and others in the construction and energy industry could obtain more specialized skills with solar training.

The demand in the renewable energy market will be filled some time in the future. But just like the internet, it’s here to stay. Trends will change, practices will improve but those who have positioned themselves as key players when the market was young will remain valuable. So, even if you’re still a bit skeptical, you can’t go wrong with an additional skill.