Solar Energy

Are you planning to ‘Go Green’ and add a solar power to your home? You have made a wise decision but first, you need to know that there are benefits and drawbacks to adding a solar power system to your home. I will cover them both in this article.

First a few of the benefits. Solar power will help to;

• reduce or even eliminate your electric bills
• increase the value of your home
• decrease dependency on foreign energy
• help the earth by creating completely ‘renewable’ energy
• reduce pollution and leave a better planet for our children and grandchildren

As for the drawbacks for solar power which can be very expensive, many commercially made systems are incredibly high price. You could be forced to take out a second mortgage on your home. Commercially made solar system has to be installed and the install fee is high. Hire your own contractor to do the work is not only expensive, but time consuming and could disrupt your home for months.

So why invest for a commercially made solar power generator while you can ‘Do-It-Yourself’ in just one week time for less than $200. If you are as ‘DIY’ challenged as I am you can build one for yourself. With these simple instructions (written in plain English but not constructionist directions) anyone can learn to do this and it is a fun weekend project and you can get the kids involved. You have probably seen or heard about solar energy system on television or internet, why? Because it works!

Let me show you how to successfully create a solar system for less than $200

Jonathan Valentine
http://www.articlesbase.com/diy-articles/earth-4-energy-build-your-own-solar-power-system-695597.html

I mean, it’s the hottest place on earth, so one would assume it would be prime area for solar energy methods no?

The equator isn’t the hottest place on earth, it just gets the most direct sunlight at the top of the atmosphere. Near-tropical desert areas are hotter and get more sun at ground level due to less cloud cover. In addition, there are the questions of local demand for energy and local economic surplus to build solar power installations. There are some solar power installations in equatorial countries.

The increasing cost of organic fuel and its hazardous effect on environment are opening the door for the massive usage of alternative energy sources. Organic fuel is exhaustible in nature and the the whole globe is worried regarding what will happen when they are exhausted. The most viable solution for this situation is to use renewable energy sources like sun, wind and tide to reduce the dependence on organic fuel. With the help of solar panel, you can convert the sunlight into energy to meet your daily energy requirements like heating water and production of electricity.

Solar panels can be installed on the roof of your house and connected to the in-house heating system. Solar panels when designed to heat water only are known as thermal solar systems. The collector of this system is capable of absorbing solar radiation and converting it into heat. After it, the process of heat conduction is done to transfer the heat from the collector to the water tank.

Photovoltaic systems are the solar panels capable of producing electricity. In case of photovotaic solar systems, an electrical field is created by placing a positively charged layer of silicon against a negatively charged layer of silicon. When sunshine falls on this field, electric charge is created. Then with the help of conductors, this charge is conducted to power household appliances.

There are many advantages of installing solar panel. This offers you the access to free and clean source of energy. You can check the environment pollution and reduce your fuel and electricity bills. Now, some of the states in US are offering incentives on solar panel installation. Estimates show that solar panels, within five years of installation are capable of covering the investment on it. It is definitely a wise investment if you are planning to stay in your home for a longer period.

Roberto Luongo
http://www.articlesbase.com/technology-articles/solar-panel-installation-an-environment-friendly-access-to-energy-677641.html

The simple fact is that we cannot depend on oil and fossil fuels for our energy forever. Many people are already starting to realize this and are beginning to switch to residential solar power.

Using residential solar power may seem complicated but it’s simpler than you might think. I personally know people that aren’t as smart (or as good looking) as you and they have built their own solar power system.

First, let’s talk about what solar power is and how it works.

Solar power is an amazing thing. The sun blasts more than enough energy to provide us enough power to sustain ourselves. They key is being able to harness this energy and use it to our benefit. Our goal is to take this energy and convert it into electricity. Once we convert to electricity, this will give us all the residential solar power we will ever need.

Electricity is created by solar panels and converted using photovoltaic cells. The word photovoltaic literally means ‘light electricity’. Don’t let these big words confuse you, creating solar power for homes is quite simple and anyone can do it.

A solar generator can cost as little as $200 and can pay for itself within the first few weeks that you put it into use. Not to mention the benefits to the environment.

Let me give you an example of a recent solar generator I built. This is what’s called a ‘portable solar power system’ and can be made with only four pieces of material. (solar panel, charge controller, battery and inverter) These supplies can be purchased from any major hardware store and should cost around $200 total. This is one of the most popular systems to build due to the fact that it is ‘portable’. Take it wherever you like and you will never have to worry about the lack of electricity again. With a system like this, you should be able to get your investment back in as little as two weeks.

I have cut my electric bill be nearly 85% due to the solar panels I have built. Not to mention that the whole setup cost just under $200. Now how’s that for ‘going green’.

Anyone can do this, sometimes on a much larger scale. I’ve have know people who SELL the excess energy that they don’t use back to the electric company. So much for being at the mercy of the power company. Now you can actually MAKE money from them.

The idea of making homemade solar power was unheard of 20 years ago, but today is one of the fastest growing trends in the world. With the ever increasing costs of utility bills it just makes sense for someone to use homemade solar power as an alternative energy resource.

Gen Wright
http://www.articlesbase.com/branding-articles/residential-solar-power-how-to-make-your-own-energy-718649.html

Change is a watch word for our planet, and changes have been made that have enhanced the Earth. Scientist are exploring the negative effects of solar energy in order to safely replace the energy sources that we presently use with this form.

Solar energy has the ability to give us cheaper if not free electricity to our homes through the use of solar panels. However, before you jump on the band wagon and go out and try to start this new power trip there are a few things you should know. There are some people who believe there are many negatives to solar power.

Many people believe that thermal solar energy has many health risks when it is used to heat water and the air in their homes. This can happen when it has not been set up properly or the manufacturer made errors when producing it.

If it is unable to store the water properly it can cause fungus and molds to grow making anyone who drinks or uses the water sick. To make sure that this does not happen you can make sure that the units used to store the water have been built from materials that are made to prevent this.

PV solar energy also as health risks that you need to be careful of. PV (photo-voltaic) panels require millions of silicon dioxide in order to be used. That number is lowered when they are exposed to heat. The materials that are released during the refining process will increase the rate of toxicity and can affect your health. This is one of the more serious negatives of solar energy that is responsible for eleven to twenty one deaths per each quadrillion joules of energy that are created.

But do not let this deter you completely. Study up on the different types of solar panels and the negatives as well as the positives. You might find that they are worth it in the end.

nlwest21
http://www.articlesbase.com/electronics-articles/solar-energy-negatives-740949.html

Daily headlines make everyone aware of the dangerous situation in which our environment must operate. The human population has historically overtaxed its natural resources and today we are seeing the long-term effects of this selfish behavior. While many people try to reduce their “carbon footprint” by recycling, spending their money in more effective ways and eating a more “earth friendly” diet, one of the most important practices we should all begin is improving our energy efficiency.

One of the most well developed methods of becoming energy efficient is through the use of renewable energies such as outdoor solar lights. In fact solar power is the best developed and most broadly applied of the modern energy technologies and almost anyone can use it to reduce their traditional energy consumption.

How? It is actually quite simple to recognize the ways in which the sun’s energy can be put to use in even the most basic methods. For example, during the hot summer months a home owner or apartment dweller could close all window blinds, curtains or shades to reduce their need for air conditioning or home cooling. (Imagine a summer without warnings about “rolling blackouts” because everyone has to keep their air conditioner turned to its highest settings simply because they allowed the sun to pound into the room all day long.) Alternately during the winter months they could easily rely on the sun’s warmth to heat up a room during the earlier hours of the day and then close the blinds before dusk in order to capture the remaining heat.

Those who have the financial means can use solar energy in a significantly wider number of ways, and not just to heat their domestic hot water or supply their homes with some energy. While such functions are ideally where all home owners should be headed, currently the materials and equipment required to convert a home’s energy supply entirely to a solar powered system are not within everyone’s budget or ability. Home owners can however employ a wide number of solar powered LED lights and appliances (including radios, solar landscape lights, ovens and attic fans) as an effective approach towards energy efficiency.

Finally, solar power has finally reached the automobile industry and several major manufacturers have promised consumers that they will make cars with rooftop solar panels available by the year 2010. While such vehicles may not be fully powered through solar energy it is clearly a step towards a healthier planet.

Jonathan Gal
http://www.articlesbase.com/environment-articles/the-importance-of-solar-energy-to-our-everyday-lives-734197.html

Earth 4 Energy has brought forth utilizing solar energy as an inexpensive and environmentally safe way to using electricity. To help you better understand what solar energy can do to help save the environment as well as help save you money on your electric bill you must first understand the basics of solar energy and solar power.

The electrical energy obtained by converting sun light is called solar energy. This conversion is done by using collectors that are placed on the tops of homes or buildings. The collecting of solar energy is done by using solar panels made up of semi-conductive materials, all of which are furthered explained through Earth 4 Energy. Solar panels are capable of producing enough electricity to power the lights and electrical appliances in the average home after about 6 and 7 hours of collecting sunlight. If the sunlight is direct it may take less time to store the needed energy.

The amount of solar panels needed will depend on the intensity of the sunlight received as does the efficiency. Solar energy is said to be a lot cleaner than energy collected from coal, oil or nuclear energy sources, because there are no pollutants released into the air. Through technological advances which are displayed in Earth 4 Energy’s instructions and information guide, these solar power systems have become attainable to the common man since the price has decreased steadily. It also has become a possibility for us to produce enough solar energy to actually sell the extra amounts back to the power companies, to make a substantial profit.

When you convert your home over to solar power or even partially depend on solar power, which is explained more in depth through Earth 4 Energy; you will notice an immediate difference between the cost of your old power company and the very small cost of the solar energy. The difference in your power bill and the effects on environment will speak for itself. Solar energy being a vast free source of energy which is emission free so there are no hazards towards the environment, is surely to become a very popular alternative to paying the power company every month.

The solar energy that is collected may be used for longer hours than most other energy sources. Once the installation is made you would not have any expenses to pay as the system requires very little maintenance. As long as you get enough sun light they seem to work forever. You can alternate this with wind power if your place does receive enough sunlight.

Solar energy in the home is a win win situation and so is turning to Earth 4 Eergy in guidance on how to make solar energy work for you. You are not only being environmentally friendly but you will also influence others to begin using solar energy to power their homes. In this day of energy conservation and concern for the effect that human activity is having on our planet you will want to install a home- made energy system to give the environment and your wallet a break.

Using home-made solar energy is a great way to save money and the environment at the same time. If more people took the initiative to convert their homes to use solar and wind energy this world would become a cleaner and healthier place to live. Earth 4 Energy can help us get there!

Lina Smith

Solar energy is one topic that is receiving increasing interests from legislators, scientists, and even the average persons from all over the world. This is because solar energy is one of what is considered sources of renewable energy, a concept that might spell the survival of the human species in the future. In order for one to know more about this particular energy source, here are the top 10 solar energy websites.

On top of the list would be the website of the American solar energy Society (ASES), www.ases.org. Because of its untiring work toward promoting this energy through education, the organization is considered a leader in the effort of promoting the use solar energy in the US and in the international community. Apart from presenting news and updates on the organization itself, the site also features articles contained in the Solar Today magazine.

Another solar energy website worth visiting would be www.fsec.ucf.edu/en, the official website of the Florida Solar Energy Center. It provides updates and news on research and developments made by the center toward promoting the use of solar energy in the state.

Education is also the focus of the Solar Energy International, a nonprofit organization that maintains the www.solarenergy.org website. In particular, the organization teaches on designing, building, and installing solar and other renewable energy systems. It offers online as well as actual training on these systems.

Another website worth mentioning would be www.ises.org/ises.nsf!Open, a site that supports the development and use of renewable energy technology. It is maintained by the International Solar Energy Society, a non-governmental organization accredited by the United Nations and aims to promote sustainable energy on a global scale.

Also included in the list of top solar energy websites would be www.azsolarcenter.com. It focuses on promoting solar energy in the state of Arizona and its contents are developed and maintained by the Arizona Solar Center.

Information about this type of renewable energy can also be found at www.solarnet.org. It is maintained by the Solar Utilities Network which seeks to advocate responsible energy use one step at a time. It also espouses using affordable and simple strategies to use energy efficiently.

Also included in the list of top solar energy websites would be www.solarliving.org, established by the Solar Living Institute. The institute provides workshops and training on sustainable living and is based in Hopland, California.

Solar energy enthusiasts should also visit www.solarharvest.org, where news and updates on the topic can be found. The website provides practical information and instructions on how to utilize solar energy technology and design innovatively.

Other sites that are included in list would be www.builditsolar.org and www.txses.org/solar. The former provides interesting and often simple DIY instructions on utilizing solar energy at the household level. It even presents designs on solar homes as well as provides list of published sources on the subject matter. The latter is maintained by the Texas Solar Energy Society which partners with different schools in the state to promote sustainable energy. Among the partner schools are the Austin Community College and Hubbert’s Peak.

Joost Hoogstrate
http://www.articlesbase.com/environment-articles/top-10-solar-energy-websites-727762.html

I live in a home with Zero Utility Costs.  Sounds too good to be true?  Well, if not for the Solar Photovoltaic Array on our roof and some other smart changes, it would not be possible.  But getting there wasn’t easy, and it wasn’t simple.

Back in 2005 I was concerned with the rising cost of utilities.  You may be too if you are reading this article.  Here in New Jersey, when I charted it for the past 5 years, it averages out to 1% increase per month in overall electricity cost.  If you think that sounds different than what the politicians and utility company tells you, you are right.  But when I looked at the total bill, and what I received for it, that was true.  There are a lot of additional fees, surchages, and ’service or delivery charges’ that just show up on the bill.  Fortunately for us, we found a way to deal with this issue.

We did it in two steps:

• conservation of electricity or decreased consumption, and

• alternate energy installation, or in our case Photovoltaic Solar Energy and a wood-burning stove nestled into our fireplace

I will take some time in this article to explain the top things to avoid for solar energy installation so that you can evaluate whether solar energy is right for you.  The good news is just conserving electricity may be enough to help you in the short term.

The three biggest mistakes about moving to a Solar Energy array in your home or business are:

1. No conservation efforts on your electricity consumption first and establishing that savings up front.  Otherwise some of that solar electricity is wasted when it could be making you money.
2. Avoiding detailed analysis on the consumption of electricity around your house.  Otherwise you wind up with the wrong size solar energy system.
3. Doing simple financial payback calculations instead of through fiscal modeling.  Every one of the installers who quoted me had this very wrong.  Some were very conservative to be fair, but others made some large mistakes on the financial calculations.

With our photovoltaic solar energy system, we hit all our milestones for savings ahead of schedule because of working the items listed in 1 & 2.  And of course we are now utility-bill free because of item #3.  Now let’s explore each of the three mistakes further.

Mistake #1 -No conservation efforts on your electricity consumption

Everything about installing solar energy installation benefits from eliminating all wasted electricity.  It is absolutely critical to do as much conservation as possible and as much as you feel comfortable doing and then establishing those savings up front.  The savings help determine what type of consumption savings alternatives makes sense to do and how long the payback or cost recovery will take.   This includes swapping out costly halogen exterior lights for compact fluorescent bulbs and the same for the interior lights.  Timers on lights that can get left on will also make a big difference.  Old, inefficient appliances can be costing you large amounts of money in wasted electricity. Otherwise some of that solar electricity is wasted when it could be making you money.  We were able to successfully reduce our electricity consumption by over 25%.  Key items were investigating the appliances, compact fluorescent lighting or CFLs, and using timers.  We also modfied the setback programs on our HVAC systems to provide cooling during very limited times of the day, only when needed most.  We identified a lot of places where cooled air was escaping into the attic, basement, garage and outside.  We essentially inventoried the entire house for everythign connected to a wall outlet or wired internally to the AC breaker box.  We then questioned all of it, and challenged whether we could simply unplug each item.

Mistake #2 - Avoiding detailed analysis on your consumption of electricity

Otherwise you wind up with the wrong size solar energy system.  It is important if you live in an area with varied heating and cooling seasons to have a seasonal model.  This is most of North America so these efforts should be explored by most readers.  By creating a good seasonal consumption model, you can identify exactly how large your energy needs are, and whether the conservation efforts from avoiding mistake #1 will apply, and in which seasons.  We developed a full seasonal consumption model, and listed for each appliance whether their usage would change by the season.  We then applied our conservation efforts and measured the results against the expected values to see whether we were on-track or off-track!  We successfully conserved through the peak 7 months of consumption, and knew we had made real progress.  We also were able to partially scale back our solar energy array size, saving thousands of dollars over a larger system under consideration.  Lastly, by knowing how much we would be conserving, more electricity was produced and sold back to the utility grid.  This provided us with hundreds of dollars more each year from Solar Renewable Energy Credits or SRECs.

Mistake #3 - Doing simple financial payback calculations

Instead of through fiscal modeling, simple calculations provide may provide very misleading suggestions.  Every one of the installers who quoted me had this very wrong.  Some were very conservative to be fair, but others made some large mistakes on the financial calculations.

A detailed financial payback model should include your initial outlay or deposit.  The financing costs should be included in the payback calculations, making note of any finance fees and interest costs.  Savings on your electric bills should be made on a seasonal or annual basis and included in the model.  Special notes should be made on expected maintenance costs, including DC to AC inverter replacements every 5 to 7 years. The payback model should be useful to predict what your future with the conservation efforts will look like.  It is recommended that you give this model a try for a portion of the year to see how well the model predicted how much you would save with energy conservation and if it actually came true before investing in a Photovoltaic Solar Array.

Finally, the payback model should include any income from the Solar renewable energy Credits or SRECs.  The model should be able to show your expected  electric utility bills for the next 12 to 48 months and possibly longer.  The model should be given to you by any reputable installer, so that you can do some of your own “What-If” scenarios with the payback parameter assumptions.

Summary:

The three biggest mistakes we covered in moving to a Solar Energy array in your home or business are:

1. No conservation efforts on your electricity consumption first and establishing that savings up front.  Otherwise some of that solar electricity is wasted when it could be making you money.
2. Avoiding detailed analysis on the consumption of electricity around your house.  Otherwise you wind up with the wrong size solar energy system.
3. Doing simple financial payback calculations instead of through fiscal modeling.  Every one of the installers who quoted me had this very wrong.  Some were very conservative to be fair, but others made some large mistakes on the financial calculations.

While we have focused on the top three mistakes, there are plenty of others!  Read all you can, talk to people who have already done it, and ask them what they liked and what they would do differently.

find out more by visiting us:

http://www.solar4biz.com

http://www.lowermybillsnj.com

Joe Ficalora
http://www.articlesbase.com/home-improvement-articles/the-top-3-mistakes-to-avoid-when-going-solar-or-installing-solar-energy-1249083.html

Solar and Wind Energy

The first matter you need to do to get off the control grid is to rid yourself of dependence along electrical energy from your power company. The most common style to do indeed is away practicing the sunlight and the winding to provide your power. Incomplete conception is new, but more citizenry are turning to these constant powerfulness origins to help commencement or replace their reliance connected electrical energy fuelled aside essential coal. You can learn latest detail virtually solar and wind energy in it. How Solar Cells Process and How Wind Power Works — but we’ll explain the general conception

Installing solar  ways non getting disfigured powerfulness lines guided to your place.Residential houses that apply solar power typically make photovoltaic  solar panels located on the roof or near the house. These impanels contain cubicles made working of silicon semiconductor devices. When the sun’s light affects the impanel, these semiconductor devices accumulate the vitality and knocking negatron clear so they fire course freely. An electric subject modern the impanel then requires these electrons and forces them to rate of flow modern identical focus, producing an electric direct current. The Direct current  is early passed complete an inverter that merely exchanges this Direct Current into the alternating latest  that your home uses. Wind power works successful a similar fashion. As typical residential wind turbine aspects like an airplane propellor static a height a 50 to 120-foot pillar. When the winding blows, the blades starting running and reel a screw that leads from the hub of the rotor to As generator. The generator takes the energy produced from the rotation and works it into electricity. Alike solar cells, the energy created by winding turbines is converted into usable AC powerfulness with an inverter.

Winding turbine

This wind turbine supplementations the power supply of a house in all over now latest world getting fast modern mean solar day by 24-hour interval. Many Another individuals couple their solar and wind vitality with traditional power to produce As hybrid system that impart edit their bills. Latest these cases, the vitality produced is stored by the alternative accompany.

If the energy you raise is larger than your intake, 40 countries actually appropriate you to sell your electricity support to the common company. However, to work off the power grid, you need to swing associations with the powerfulness accompany entirely. Latest this case, the energy you produce is stacked away latest a organization of batteries every bit DC powerfulness and converted to AC power as you motivation it. The battery system is typically placed up-to-date a service department or thrown most the power source. Winding powerfulness is the finest and cheapest energy applied science in the world-wide. The popular costed per kilowatt 60 minutes for coal-burning electrical energy was 10.4 cents in 2006. Winding energy can equal generated for a inadequate three pennies per 60 minutes productive optimum circumstances. Add to this that in that respect are no more greenhouse discharges developed, and it’s no more wonder that wind powerfulness is developing so fast.

CLICK HERE TO TO GET FREE ENERGY NOW   www.solarandwindenergy.com

suresh Gowrugolla
http://www.articlesbase.com/diy-articles/reduce-electrical-bills-by-using-solar-ans-wind-energy-1010996.html