One of the biggest concerns of people using solar power systems is whether there is any harmful radiation emitted by both the solar panel and the inverter.
If you are one of those solar inverter users who feels the same concern about the radiation emitted from the solar inverter and its harmful effects, I am here to enlighten you with the right information. Have a look!
Do solar inverters emit radiation?
Yes, solar inverters as well as solar panels both emit radiation. Not only that, all other electric and electronic devices we use in our daily life emit radiation.
Every electrical or electronic device or appliances form an electromagnetic field (EMF) around them when they are running.
This electromagnetic field is surrounded by electromagnetic radiation (EMR).
Therefore, solar panels being a device that forms electricity from solar energy is also surrounded by electromagnetic radiations.
And, solar inverters are the device that converts the electrical energy produced by the solar panel in DC form to AC.
That is why it also emits electromagnetic radiation as it is an electrical device.
Safe distance from solar inverter
If you are worried about the electromagnetic radiations emitted by the solar inverter, let me make this crystal clear to you that electromagnetic radiations are not really harmful to human health.
If it were, then you would have several health complications by now due to this.
Because as I said, not only solar panels or solar inverters, every electric and electronic item we use including refrigerator, oven, and even mobile phones emit EMR.
Thus, there is no requirement of maintaining a safe distance from the solar inverter other than the simple caution to avoid electric shocks or accidents that you must maintain for all electronic devices.
Solar panel health side effects
Solar panels will not affect your health adversely unless you stay close to them for a long time.
Therefore, as long as you are maintaining a safe distance from the solar panel and not staying near to it during the daytime, there are fewer to no risks of health hazards.
Solar panels are made from photovoltaic (PV) cells that transform solar energy from the sunlight into electrical energy.
Due to the continuous exposure to sunlight, the surface of the solar panel may burn and produce smoke containing toxic materials like lead.
So, if you are close to the solar panel during the daytime for too long and inhale this toxic smoke continuously, it might lead to an excessive amount of lead (Pb) in your bloodstream.
An excessive amount of lead in the bloodstream has the potential to damage the digestive, reproductive, and nervous systems of the human body slowly.
It might cause stomach aches, anemia, and convulsion. Children at their growth stage are more vulnerable to it as it may cause brain damage or behavioral problems within them.
Thus, it is wise to keep children away from the solar panels as well as yourself as much as possible especially during the daytime.
Do solar panels cause cancer?
You might have heard from many of your friends and acquaintances to not use solar panel because it causes cancer. Well, these are all myths.
There can be a few minor health hazards from solar panels, especially when you are exposing yourself too much around them.
But the hazards are not too dangerous to cause cancer. There has been no evidence of solar panels being the cause of cancer till now. So, don’t listen to these rumors.
Are solar farms safe in residential areas?
Let’s get this straight. Solar farms in residential areas are not harmful or dangerous.
There are many concerns and rumors that living near solar farms is not safe, but that is not true.
Solar farms are designed in a way that will not harm people who live a certain distance from them.
Many people think that if the electrical energy generated from the solar farms gets too high, then it might cause accidents, health hazards, or damage the electronics in their homes.
However, this does not happen actually. The electrical energy will not just come out and travel to the houses near the solar farms. Thus, these worries are baseless.
Though if you plan to cultivate vegetation and plants in the residential area, the solar farm can be detrimental to their health, only if the farm is too near to your house that it is clearly visible.
Can solar panels cause headaches?
If you are having a severe headache for a few days and wondering whether the solar panels on your roof are contributing to it, you might be wrong.
Because solar panels do not increase the risk of headaches in individuals.
They do emit electromagnetic radiation for sure, but on a very minor level that does not affect human health significantly.
Moreover, there is no legit cause behind a solar panel to be the reason behind causing or increasing headaches.
Sleeping next to solar inverter
A solar inverter is as easy as just another household electronic appliance you use. There are myths that sleeping next to solar inverters is harmful to health.
But that is not true at all. It is not even as harmful as sleeping next to your mobile phone or laptop is.
Final Words
I hope I was able to clear out all the doubts you had about the harmful impacts of solar inverters and solar panels. Thanks for reading till the end!
Eng. Matthew Joseph Nandirio is the Founder of walkingsolar.
After graduating from the University of Houston in 2002, matt started working as a Solar Electrical Engineer for several multi-national solar energy companies.
He has a wide range of experiences including solar system requirement analysis, planning, maintaining, debugging and even solar device development through research.
He now shares his 20 years of expertise through his articles on the walkingsolar website.
Further, he is also the author of two books on Solar Technology, “Solar Power for Villages” and “DIY Solar System for Dummies”.