Study guide — what to focus on

This module is curated — the teaching is a top free course (linked in the card above); our job is to point you at the right things, make you prove it, and certify you.

The plan

1. Watch the course (the card above). You don't need to memorise it — aim to understand the ideas below.
2. Focus on these — they're what the check tests and what you'll use for real:
   • The system chain — panel → charge controller → battery → load (and an inverter if the load is AC). Know what each block does.
   • MPPT vs PWM — MPPT converts a panel's extra voltage into extra charging current, so it harvests more energy; PWM is cheaper but wastes that headroom.
   • Panel ratings — a panel's watts are measured at Standard Test Conditions; real output is lower, so you size with margin.
   • Energy math — Wh = V x Ah for a battery, W = V x A for a load, and daily energy = power x hours. This is the whole game.
   • Battery sizing — depth of discharge (only use ~50% of a lead-acid bank) and days of autonomy for cloudy stretches.
   • Array sizing — daily load (Wh) ÷ peak sun-hours gives the panel wattage floor; then oversize for losses.
   • Series vs parallel — series adds voltage, parallel adds current; you pick to match the controller and battery.
3. Prove it in Forge (next section) — size a real off-grid setup to a load.
4. Take the K-Check to earn your certificate.

Why this connects to building real products

Power is the quiet half of every physical product — a design that can't stay powered doesn't ship. At Microscale, the solar wedge is exactly this: off-grid and backup power is one of the most in-demand builds in our market, where the grid is unreliable and a well-sized panel-plus-battery kit is a product people will pay for. When you describe a powered device in Forge, the same blocks you just studied show up — a source (panel/supply), a charge controller/regulator, an energy store (battery), and the load. Knowing how to size them means you can read why Forge picks the parts it does, sanity-check the energy budget, and design a system that actually runs through the night.

Time to apply it. The course walked you through a real off-grid build; now use that thinking to size one yourself.

Send the prompt below in Forge Design and watch it choose a panel (source), a charge controller (MPPT vs PWM), and a battery (the overnight store) — then size them to a 12V load and hand you an orderable parts list.

As you read Forge's answer, connect it back to the course: does the panel wattage cover the daily energy across the available sun-hours? Is the battery big enough to carry the load overnight at a safe depth of discharge? That energy budget — load in, sun and storage out — is the whole point.