The Past Of Solar Power

Click Here To Learn How To Build Your Own Solar and Wind Power System. Recollecting the history of solar energy brings us back to the 1970s energy crisis and oil embargo which caused long lines in gasoline stations, high gasoline prices, and even caused panic among consumers and investors alike in the United States. Knowledge about oil being a non-renewable resource has been around since the 1800s. But it was only during and after the 70s energy crisis that people really began to realize the consequences of depending too much on an already depleting energy resource.

However, utilizing the sun’s energy is not really a recent development. It has been used by ancient civilizations for warmth, for food and crop preparations and various agricultural purposes. What’s new are the technologies involved in harnessing this energy and utilizing it for man’s daily use.

The technology began in the 1830’s when Edmund Becquerel made public his studies on how solar light can be harnessed into usable energy. However, nobody followed up on this idea nor explore any practical use. The next breakthrough on solar power came after thirty years Becquerel published his works.

In 1860s, the French Monarch commissioned Augusted Mouchout to find other sources of energy. And Mouchout looked up in the sky for inspiration. His series of solar powered contractions were quite impressive back then. His inventions included a motor that run on solar energy, a steam engine that uses the sun’s light, and an ice maker that fully rely on solar power.

After Mouchout, there were several other notable achievements in the line of solar power. Among these is the works of William Adams in the 1870s which utilized mirrors to channel the power of the sun to make a steam engine run. Adams’ power tower design concept is still in use today. Another notable work is by Charles Fritz in the early 1880s. His studies were attuned on turning sunlight into electricity, which he later accomplished.

But one of the most significant development in modern solar energy occurred in the 1950s. Early in the decade, R.S. Ohl discovered that sunlight produces large numbers of free electrons when it strikes silicon. Then in the mid-1950s Gerald Pearson, Calvin Fuller, and Daryl Chaplin was able to capture those free electrons and convert them in electricity. Today, silicon cells are used to make solar cells and solar panels for harnessing the sun’s energy.

Immediately these solar cells were made into good use and the first among to use them was the field of space aeronautics. These silicon based solar cells were used to power satellites that orbit the earth. The satellite Vanguard I was the first one launched out to space which rely on solar cells for power. More satellites followed.

Nowadays, more and more research and studies are being conducted on how best to utilize the sun’s energy. Especially today where it is said that about 30-50 years from the now, the world oil reserves will be totally depleted. Until they are make sure you pay as little for you car by visiting low cost auto insurance quote. Thus, the search for alternative sources of energy continuous. The sun is expected to die out in a couple of thousand of years, it’s to long to worry about and man can have all the sun’s energy until that day.

The challenge today is creating solar energy power in more efficient and cost effective e way. Admittedly, the costs of those photo cells are not that cheap to be accessible by most of the ordinary consumers. The movement today in the science and technology committee is to be able to provide cheap alternative source of energy. If you do have them installed in your home be sure to look at homeowner insurance quote.

How Does Solar Energy Work?

Click Here To Learn How To Install Your Own Solar Energy System. Ever wondered how solar energy is converted into electricity? Well, this will give you an idea how it works.

First, solar panels are installed over a flat surface like the roof of your home (just be sure to consult compare home insurance quotes online before doing anything). Once activated, it absorbs the sun’s rays since the panels are made of semi-conducting materials such as silicone.

Electrons are then knocked off loose from their atoms so it can produce electricity. This process by which light is converted into electricity is better known as the photovoltaic effect.

From there, you now have direct current electricity and when this enters an inverter, it is converted into 120 volt AC which is the electricity needed to power the home.  Of course this is connected to the utility panel in the house so the lights and the appliances will work when these are switched on.

If you are not using that much electricity from the solar energy generated, it is stored in a battery so will be able to supply the house with power during a power outage or at night. Should the battery be full, the excess electricity is then exported to the utility grid if your system happens to be connected to it. When your solar energy runs out, utility supplied electricity kicks in.

The flow of electricity of solar energy is measured using a utility meter which spins backward and forward. It will go backward when you are producing more energy than you need and forward when you need additional power from the utility company. These two are only offset when you pay for the additional energy from the utility company. Any surplus is sod back to what is known as net metering.

A smaller version of this is used to power a water heater inside the home. Using the same principles, homeowners get to convert sunlight into heat to get warm water.

As you can see, transforming sunlight into solar energy is very easy. But why do countries like Germany and Japan use it more often than the US? The answer is because it is much cheaper for them to use this form of alternative energy compared to oil.

Also, although the US initiated this during the 1973 oil crisis, it is not as popular as it was back then because the government neither increased the budget in research for alternative forms of energy nor gave incentives so people will be encourage into doing that again.

Most state regulations also prohibit individuals from installing their own devices even if this is used to give you warm water (It can also affect your insurance rates so look at quick insurance quotes). Chances are, you won’t even find anyone to do it so you will probably have to do it yourself. Just remember that if there is a problem with the plumbing, your insurance will not cover it. Should the state allow you to install such a system, you will not be entitled to the rebate.

Using solar cells is just one way to make the most out of solar energy. Your other option is passive solar energy which helps avoid heat loss so those inside will not feel too cold or too hot throughout the day. This is used by a lot of homeowners living in the southwest since they do not need that much insulation compared to homeowners who live in other parts of the US.

Solar Powered Homes You Can Own

Click Here To Learn How To Create Your Own Renewable Energy Power System. Do you like to live in a home that is energy efficient? The good news is you can given there are technologies these days that can make that happen and one good example happens to be solar energy.

Solar energy is the process of using the sun’s radiant rays to power your home. For this to work, you will need to get some solar panels and then have this install by a contractor. Make sure to look at cheapest home insurance quote to make sure it is ok.

Ideally, you will need a flat area measuring about a hundred square feet. This is good to install between 10 to 12 solar panels that can produce about a kilowatt of power.

If you think 1 kilowatt is small, think again because this is equivalent to 1,600 kilowatts of hours per year. That translates to 5.5 hours of electricity per day if you are using it to the max. Otherwise, excess power will be stored in the battery which will help bring electricity to the house during a blackout or at night.

Aside from the solar panels, you will also need the inverter, battery, charge controller, wires and support structure. Each of these parts are important since the system will not work without the other so whoever you choose as a contractor should have everything ready prior to installation.

Once everything is set up, you can already enjoy your solar powered home. Since it requires minimal maintenance, it can last up to 20 years before you have to replace anything.

If you have a larger area to work with, why not invest in a solar thermal roof? The difference between this and the first one mentioned is that you convert the entire roof into a giant collector. It is quite expensive and takes a couple of days to complete but worth every penny.

The only reason why not that many people invest in such a system is because most roofs are not oriented towards the south with the steep pitch needed to maximize solar energy especially during the winter. You will have to do some major construction work to make this happen.

Solar energy is just one way for you to stop relying on power coming from the grid. When the sun isn’t shining, you have to be ready by preparing other ways to generate electricity. One example that can be used at home is wind energy.

Here, you use fans to collect the wind’s kinetic energy similar to windmills that you see in the farm. The only difference is that the blades are connected to a drive shaft that turns an electric generator to produce electricity.

You just have to do some research to find out if solar energy is feasible for your home. You should know how much power you consume on a monthly basis and also where exactly is your house located. Should your study show it is possible to live on solar energy, it is best to apply for a home equity loan to pay for the installation costs because you will surely get  a return on your investment later on in the form of tax credit and a utility bill that won’t exceed $10.

So what are you waiting for? If you don’t want to rely on power from the electric company, go ahead and invest in solar energy. However, for your car you are out of look. The good news is that you can visit automobile insurance quote online.

What is Solar Energy?

Click Here To Learn How To Build Your Own Solar and Wind Energy System. Solar energy is a form of renewable energy as it utilizes the radiant energy coming from the sun. This is done by converting sunlight into electricity using solar cells.

Solar cells or photovoltaics were invented in the 1880’s by Charles Fritts. Although it did not convert a lot of sunlight into electricity at the time, this started a revolution that continued on to the 20th century. The greatest example is perhaps the Vanguard 1 which was a satellite fitted with solar cells that enabled it to transmit back to earth after its chemical battery was exhausted.

It success prompted NASA and its Russian counterpart to the same with other satellites including Telstar which continues to serve as the backbone of the telecommunications structure today.

The most significant event that stimulated the demand for solar energy was the 1973 oil crisis. Early on, power companies would charge the consumer a hundred dollars per watt. In the 1980’s, it became only $7 per watt. Unfortunately, the lack of government funding did not sustain its growth so the growth of solar energy was only 15% annually from 1984 to 1996. But you can still on your home by checking out house insurance quotes.

There have been a decline in the demand for solar energy in the US but this increased in Japan and Germany. From 31.2 megawatts of power in 1994, this increased to 318 megawatts in 1999 and world wide production growth increased by 30% towards the end of the 20th century.

Next to these two countries, Spain is the third largest user of solar energy followed by France, Italy and South Korea.

There are three basic approaches to get the most out of solar energy. It is namely passive, active and solar photovoltaic systems.

1. In passive, it has to do a lot with the building design. This will enable the building to avoid heat loss so people inside will feel a great degree of comfort with the help of controlled ventilation and day lighting. Homes that apply this will greatly reduce their heating requirements by as much as 80% with minimal cost.

2. Active solar heating is used to convert sunlight into heat which provides space or water heating. Used extensively in Europe, getting the right size will cover 50% to 60% of your hot water heating requirements.

3. Lastly is photovoltaic which converts solar radiation into electricity. This is done by installing solar cells in the ground and the greater the intensity of the light, the greater the flow of electricity. These are available in different sizes and some are installed in consumer devices like calculators and watches.

Some vehicles are now powered using solar energy. Cars although not yet produced commercially compete in the World Solar Challenge which invites competitors from around the world to compete in this annual event in Australia. So to save on your car the best you can do is look at Get The Cheapest Car Insurance Quotes Online. There are also unmanned aerial vehicles and balloons. To date, solar energy has only been successful in passenger boats.

Many of us take the sun for granted and if we are really serious about preserving the environment and reducing our demand for oil, solar energy is just one of the options we have on the table. We have to lobby and convince our government leaders to do more because it is the cheapest means of providing our home with electricity compared to rechargeable batteries, kerosene or candles.

Analyzing The Benefits Of Solar Energy

Click Here To Learn How To Build Your Own Solar and Wind Energy System. We all know that using solar energy is a good thing to do. We have heard, and there are quite a number of them, all about the benefits of solar energy and we can’t agree why we can’t turn this alternative form of energy source to a primary one. But despite the advantages, solar power has yet to fully make it in the mainstream. Let’s go back and discuss a couple of the advantages of solar energy and see why keep going back to fossil fuels for energy resource.

In the long run, solar power saves money. Initial costs of installation and operations may be more expensive that other energy forms but after settling the expenses, you have an energy resource that is free. Nobody charges for using sunlight, right? The return of investment can also be shorter depending on how much energy you use. You won’t spend too much on maintenance either plus those photovoltaic cells can last for 15 to 20 years. There are no mechanical or moving parts to oil and maintain nor are there parts that need to be replaced yearly. Just be sure to check out cheapest home insurance quote first.

Of course solar power is environmental friendly. First its renewable not like fossil fuels which according to studies will be gone in four to five decades. The process of converting energy to usable electricity does not involve the release of toxic chemicals which can harm the environment. Carbon dioxide, nitrogen oxide, sulphur dioxide, lead, and mercury emissions will be a memory of the past when everyone goes solar. Relying on the sun for power also helps reduce global warming.

Aside from the toxic wastes and pollutants, using solar power will limit other aspects of the energy industry like hazards of working with and transporting oil or natural gas. Also, other health risks are present in the use of other fuels like kerosene and candles which are still popular in third world countries. With solar energy, these risks will be minimized if not totally eliminated.

The use of solar panels is also good for remote areas where providing basic electricity services is troublesome if not totally impossible at all. Solar energy can be transported to far flung villages and once installed they can be left alone for years with little or without maintenance. Communities in Asian countries have successfully installed solar panels in their community and have been enjoying the benefits of clean and reliable power for years.

For a poor country, producing electricity through solar energy can mean independence from oil producing countries which controls the supply and prices of oil. With such independence, new policies on energy can be created which will maximize the benefit for its citizens. Countries will also not be wary on natural disasters which hampers delivery of oil. With this new found independence, countries can invest its national budget on other programs aside from purchasing oil from foreign sources.

There are several disadvantages of using solar power and one of which is the costs. But thinking about it in the long run, you’ll see that the benefits of solar energy outweigh the disadvantages. Plus, with the current development in the field of science and technology, solar power is becoming more and more convenient and it would not be surprising to find solar energy as a primary source of power in the next few years, even for your car. Until that happens be sure to instant on line car insurance quotes.

Solar Power and Your Home

Click Here To Learn How To Build Your Own Solar and Wind Energy System. The sun is a great source of energy. It would be great to use solar energy in your homes especially nowadays when the prices of oil and gas continue to increase. Because of the high fuel and gas prices, more and more people are experimenting on the use of solar energy in their households in their attempts to minimize the costs of basic utilities.

The sun’s energy can be harnessed in different ways depending on how you would utilize the end product. There are so called solar collectors which are placed on the roof tops or used in buildings. The main purpose of these solar collectors is to provide heating and even ventilation for the houses and buildings. These collectors harness the sun’s energy by magnifying the sunlight several times and transferring that heat to air or water. That heated air or water is stored and will provide the building or home heating and hot water whenever needed, but you need to look into how this will affect your insurance quote online.

The only problem here is that not all places have equal amounts of sunlight. As you go farther from the equator, the strength of the sun is reduced. But still, this is a much better solution than relying on electric grids which do not reach remote areas. It is just a mater of storing the heat generated from the solar collector properly. For example, some buildings in Sweden utilized an underground storage facility where solar energy is stored resulting to savings from heating the building and their water.

In areas where gas and fuel are out of reach of the pockets of poor communities, residents have to rely on solar cooking for their meals. They use this bowl shaped discs equipped with mirrors or reflectors which directs all the sunlight on the middle where a pot is placed. The same technology is being used in India, Sri Lanka, and Nepal. This serves are a good alternative from conventional fuels like coal, firewood, and gas. They can use these solar stoves during a sunny day and use traditional fuels when the weather is not that good.

This reliance by communities on solar cooking should encourage more studies on how to make photovoltaic cells cheaper for an ordinary household. At this time, the use of solar cells is not economically friendly for a single household. However, the approach here is to install a series of solar panels which would be shared by the whole community. This could be a good idea depending on your usage, but for basic lighting purposes these could work in small poor communities.

In some areas, community cooperatives have found ways to bring electricity to households out of reach of power grids. In the Philippines for example, a local cooperative provided households loans to enable them to install a basic solar power module which can produce enough electricity for three light bulbs. This ay be laughable in our standards but to these people who have been living all their lives with the flickering light of the candles, three electric light bulbs make a great deal of a difference.

The story is the same in other countries. In Israel, the high costs of photovoltaic cells have clamped down the growth of solar energy in the country. It if fortunate, therefore, that the Israeli government is now providing incentives for households that would use solar energy.

However, according to industry analysts, the costs of solar cells production will go down as the demand increase. Also, most are hopeful that recent discoveries and advancement in technologies will find a way to bring down costs of using solar energy.

Ordinary households using solar energy is an ideal scenario that we should all strive to achieve.However, always be sure to look at home insurance quotes to find out about hidden costs.

What is Solar Energy?

Click Here To Learn How To Create Your Own Renewable Energy Energy System. Solar energy is a form of renewable energy as it utilizes the radiant energy coming from the sun. This is done by converting sunlight into electricity using solar cells.

Solar cells or photovoltaics were invented in the 1880’s by Charles Fritts. Although it did not convert a lot of sunlight into electricity at the time, this started a revolution that continued on to the 20th century. The greatest example is perhaps the Vanguard 1 which was a satellite fitted with solar cells that enabled it to transmit back to earth after its chemical battery was exhausted.

It success prompted NASA and its Russian counterpart to the same with other satellites including Telstar which continues to serve as the backbone of the telecommunications structure today.

The most significant event that stimulated the demand for solar energy was the 1973 oil crisis. Early on, power companies would charge the consumer a hundred dollars per watt. In the 1980’s, it became only $7 per watt. Unfortunately, the lack of government funding did not sustain its growth so the growth of solar energy was only 15% annually from 1984 to 1996. But you can still on your home by checking out fast house insurance quote.

There have been a decline in the demand for solar energy in the US but this increased in Japan and Germany. From 31.2 megawatts of power in 1994, this increased to 318 megawatts in 1999 and world wide production growth increased by 30% towards the end of the 20th century.

Next to these two countries, Spain is the third largest user of solar energy followed by France, Italy and South Korea.

There are three basic approaches to get the most out of solar energy. It is namely passive, active and solar photovoltaic systems.

1. In passive, it has to do a lot with the building design. This will enable the building to avoid heat loss so people inside will feel a great degree of comfort with the help of controlled ventilation and day lighting. Homes that apply this will greatly reduce their heating requirements by as much as 80% with minimal cost.

2. Active solar heating is used to convert sunlight into heat which provides space or water heating. Used extensively in Europe, getting the right size will cover 50% to 60% of your hot water heating requirements.

3. Lastly is photovoltaic which converts solar radiation into electricity. This is done by installing solar cells in the ground and the greater the intensity of the light, the greater the flow of electricity. These are available in different sizes and some are installed in consumer devices like calculators and watches.

Some vehicles are now powered using solar energy. Cars although not yet produced commercially compete in the World Solar Challenge which invites competitors from around the world to compete in this annual event in Australia. So to save on your car the best you can do is look at cheapest car insurance quotes. There are also unmanned aerial vehicles and balloons. To date, solar energy has only been successful in passenger boats.

Many of us take the sun for granted and if we are really serious about preserving the environment and reducing our demand for oil, solar energy is just one of the options we have on the table. We have to lobby and convince our government leaders to do more because it is the cheapest means of providing our home with electricity compared to rechargeable batteries, kerosene or candles.