If not how do they give power to a house/a company?
Solar panels can be connected to your household wiring with a piece of equipment called a grid tie inverter. You power company will probably require either an automatic or manual means for disconnecting your equipment from their grid in the event of a power outage or line maintainence. Homepower Magazine is an excellent source for information about solar and other alternative energy sources. A primer on the basics of solar electricity can be found using the first link below. You can download a free sample issue of the magazine using the second link below. The sample issue being offered changes occasionally. Don
Don is spot on. The connection of that thing called the grid-tie inverter is done at the service panel, the same box where your circuit breakers for the house are. It's not the kind of thing that most homeowners should do on their own.
No they don't have an outlet. The wires attached to the solar panel can be attached to say a battery and keep it charged during day even during.use. At night you use battery power.
They are wired into the power system much like the normal power from the local power co. That is simply stated as it can be a complex system with switching cercuits and computer control. Most home systems are more simple and in many cases the solar pannels realy only charge batteies. The ones that use them directly only feed them to certain curcits while the rest run off of the local power company. Solar systems still can't supply a lot of current so it takes a bunch of them to get much usable wattage.
They are powered by the sun. You set them up out side of the house or on the roof and the sunlight shines on them through out the day. It stores the energy into light so when you turn on a light it is from the sun's energy. Plus it can save you on electric bills.
