Domestic energy consumption refers to the total energy consumption of a single household. Globally, the amount of energy used per household may vary significantly, depending on factors such as the standard of living of the country, the climate, the age of the occupant of the home, and type of residence. Households in different parts of the world will have differing levels of consumption, based on latitude and technology.

Silicon based modules: aluminum frames and junction boxes are dismantled manually at the beginning of the process. The module is then crushed in a mill and the different fractions are separated – glass, plastics and metals.[96] It is possible to recover more than 80% of the incoming weight.[97] This process can be performed by flat glass recyclers, since the shape and composition of a PV module is similar to flat glass used in the building and automotive industry. The recovered glass, for example, is readily accepted by the glass foam and glass insulation industry.

Each module is rated by its DC output power under standard test conditions and hence the on field output power might vary. Power typically ranges from 100 to 365 Watts (W). The efficiency of a module determines the area of a module given the same rated output – an 8% efficient 230 W module will have twice the area of a 16% efficient 230 W module. Some commercially available solar modules exceed 24% efficiency.