DIY Solar Panels World » Home Solar Power

“Who Else Wants to Build DIY Solar Panels?”

admin — Sun, 11 Dec 2011 22:00:24 +0000

If you’re interested in making DIY solar panels, this may be the most important place you discovered. Here’s why…

For every curiosity you have in your mind, there will almost certainly be a resource available to satisfy it.

Whether you want to build a solar panel by connecting individual photovoltaic (PV) cells or buy it retail… whether you are a do-it-yourself, homemade guy or a swear-by-a-brand person, we have mini-resources prepared for you.

Otherwise just write to us to request for it…and we’ll get it up just for you.

In the future, we’ll broaden our scope to include bits and pieces of other types of renewable energy generator like wind turbines.

For starters, you can browse the following pages to get up to speed with the DIY solar power world. Tell me what you think:

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Build Amazing Home Solar Power Systems Used by Families Who Don’t Want to Pay For Their Utilities

admin — Wed, 01 Feb 2012 22:00:17 +0000

Do you need home solar power systems that can at least take part of your household consumption “off the grid”? If you do, you’re in for a treat. I recently discovered a detailed plan that can allow you to do this easily.

Home Solar Power Systems

This article will paint a thirty thousand foot view of this plan and then discuss how we can implement it. Then I’ll let you in on further resources that will help you with solar energy calculations, construction and installation.

Building a home solar power system involves a few major steps:

(1) Determining the household energy requirement. This influences the number of solar cells needed to produce the required electrical energy.

Most households will not want to take their homes completely off-grid. After calculations, the majority of families seem to prefer their solar panels to bear roughly 75% of their total energy consumption.

Why do they not want their house to be totally off-grid and be 100% powered by green, renewable energy? Because there will be periods when the light intensity is insufficient. It’s during these times when we’ll need to tap into the grid again.

(2) Constructing the solar panel. The photovoltaic cells are responsible for converting solar energy into electrical energy. It is also a major cost driver. Therefore the solar panel is the most important piece of the puzzle.

If you’re on a budget, you’re able to construct a solar panel by joining broken solar cells together. If you have money to burn, buying ready-made, commercial solar panels can also be an option. These come with long warranty periods (like 25 years and beyond) and are framed in high quality aluminum.

(3) The inverter. This component converts direct current (DC) generated by the solar panels into alternating current (AC) that’s usable by your household appliances. After that, this is channeled to the power distribution box via a synchronizer so that electricity from the grid and electricity from the solar panels can be combined before each appliance in your home uses them.

(4) Installation. Obviously, we need to choose a location where there is as little shade as possible throughout the day. This is usually the roof. With proper guidance from more experienced hobbyists or a guidebook, you can fix the solar panels to your roof (or anywhere else) exactly like the professionals do.

To put all these together, you’ll need a proven plan that tells you exactly what to do — from the broad structure down to the last bolt and nut.

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Home Solar Power — Different Ways of Harnessing Energy From The Sun To Reduce Energy Bills

admin — Sat, 24 Dec 2011 10:01:04 +0000

Before you build a home solar power system, you have to understand different ways you can harvest energy from the sun. The technology involved depends on the way you intend to capture, convert and distribute sunlight.

Generally, the techniques for harvesting solar power are classified into 2 main categories: active or passive.

Active solar techniques involve inventions like photovoltaic panels, pumps, and fans. These are responsible for converting solar energy into useful output. Passive solar techniques involve positioning materials (with desirable thermal properties) along the path of solar radiation and designing spaces that allow natural convection (air circulation).

You have to consider the benefits of each approach (active or passive) before you implement them. Active solar techniques are somewhat more expensive to implement. However it gives you more control and the energy can be converted into a wider range of output other than heat. Passive solar techniques involve careful thought to the architectural design of your house. However it does not drain as much financial resources. Most people will consider implementing both types of system that complement with one another.

The most common installation you can consider is the solar heater. They are cheap, easily installed and are efficient. These nifty devices can help you cut a large percentage of your energy bill by taking care of your heating needs. You can heat up your rooms without using any electricity. You can also heat up water so you can have a warm bath or swim after work.

Heat gathered during the day can be stored in materials with high specific heat capacity (or thermal mass). They act like rechargeable batteries for storing heat in the day. At night, they provide you with warmth while the ambient temperature outside falls. Some of these materials include water, bricks, cement and stones.

The next most common installation you can consider is a solar panel. Solar panels convert the energy from the sun into electricity via a process known as Photovoltaics (PV). Thus these contraptions are also known as photovoltaic panels.

Photovoltaic panels are popular because of their practicality and convenience. While solar heaters gives out only heat, electricity from solar panels can be converted into heat, movement and light. Electricity can also be stored in battery banks so there will still be electricity supply even at night or during an overcast afternoon. However the down-side of this installation is the cost. For the average household, it may require up to $8 per watt to install. A 2.5kW system can easily cost you $20,000. (This costing is not exact as it depends on several factors like your location and solar panel efficiency.)

There are also other systems that can be built into the architecture of your house. However using only the solar heater and photovoltaic panel, you can design a world-class home solar power system that can effectively gather energy from the sun for your household needs.

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Home Solar Power – Advantages and Disadvantages of Using Photovoltaic Generators to Power Your Home

admin — Fri, 23 Dec 2011 22:03:28 +0000

There are several advantages of using home solar power for your everyday needs. On the other hand we cannot deny the disadvantages.

Let’s consider the advantages:

1. Solar energy is everlasting. The sun will shine everyday, at least for the next few million years. Unlike fossil fuel, there is no fear that solar energy will one day run out. If the sun is no longer present, life on Earth ceases anyway. Thus solar power is a very dependable source of energy.

2. Solar energy does not cause air pollution. Burning coal or oil, on the other hand, causes fumes and toxic gases to be released into the atmosphere. Large volumes of greenhouse gases (such as carbon dioxide) cause global warming, which is now a topic that concerns every nation in the world. This is due to the devastating effects of global warming.

3. Solar energy does not cause noise pollution. If you are living away from the power grid and have a diesel generator running 24 hours a day, you may be aware of the deep humming noise that never goes away. Those super-silent models provides you temporary relieve before you’re aware of the deep droning noise only after a few days. In contrast, solar panels make no noise at all – not even a little.

4. Solar panels and solar water heaters are maintenance free. They have no moving parts and do not require you to oil their joints. Once installed, they continue to harvest energy from the sun without complaints. All you have to do is give it a spray of water every now and then. This is to make sure dirt and leaves do not stay on the surface to make your solar generators less effective. Try using this method to maintain a diesel generator and you’ll soon have to send it to the mechanic for a complete overhaul.

The main disadvantage about using solar energy is the cost. Also, solar energy is absent at night. However, there are ways to get around these obstacles:

1. You can start by using a solar water heater. You can save a lot on energy bills simply by letting the sun heat up your water instead of using electricity.

2. You can spend time to make a DIY solar panel to begin with if budget is really your concern. Homemade solar panels may not be as pretty but they are at least as functional as commercial ones.

3. During the day, energy gathered from the sun can be stored in battery banks. At night, these storage units provide your house with electricity.

Even though solar energy may seem quite expensive right now, the cost of electricity generated from fossil fuel may one day overtake solar energy costs. Then if you have already installed solar panels and solar heaters on your roof, you’ll be laughing all the way to the bank while the rest of the world pays for their energy needs through their nose.

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Flexible Solar Panel Technology Transforms Ordinary Roof Shingles Into A Home Solar Power Generator

admin — Mon, 11 Jul 2011 17:37:15 +0000

It is now possible for flexible solar panels to be placed on roof shingles. In recent years, scientists used a transparent thin film barrier commonly used to protect flat screen televisions from moisture for making flexible solar panels.

These flexible panels are made into shingles and can be installed on roofs. This technology is known as building-integrated photovoltics (or BIPVs).

BIPVs can replace the boxy solar panels we know today. Instead of using rigid glass and aluminum frames, we can now integrate photovoltaic material on the surface of construction materials.

When engineers first presented this technology to the world, consumers were concerned about its reliability. However this type of solar shingles are easy to install and can last at least 25 years.

Regardless of rain, hail or harsh ultraviolet radiation, both the solar film and substrate continues to function.

The most important aspect of this technological breakthrough lies in the manufacturing process. Engineers are hopeful about finding a cost-effective process to reduce the cost of solar energy to less than $1 per watt of power.

This will be quite competitive compared to the rate (per kilowatt-hour) that a utility would charge. Hopefully this can be an important catalyst to create a widespread use of residential solar panels.

Currently there are 2 major factors that prevent homeowners from installing PV panels on their property:

1. Cost

It is quite expensive to install a full-scale solar power system on your property. You need to incur at least $25,000 and systems that cost $70,000 (and more) are not unheard of. Even with rebates, you still have to pay several thousands of dollars upfront.

Thankfully solar panels require little maintenance. If you install the correct type of PV panels for your house, the upfront payment is about all you have to cough out.

This is good for people who use a lot of energy since oil prices is set for a long-term increase. Your solar power generator can help you hedge against the risk of (ever) increasing utility cost.

2. Complexity of Installation

Installing PV panels on roofs is not a straightforward job. It requires special skills. Thus the cost of solar installation is not cheap.

On the other hand, most contractors will know how to lay solar shingles on roofs. As long as they overlap the shingles correctly, they’ll work. It is also quite impossible to make mistakes that cannot be remedied in a short time.

With flexible solar shingles, home owners can have the opportunity to install solar panels on their roofs without the exorbitant cost and complex installation.

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