solar energy blog

Friday, April 17, 2009

The Importance Of Solar Energy Advantages

It has always been obvious that the earth is capable of producing a lot more energy than we think. In fact, most of the fossil fuels are depleting, and some people are worried about where our energy is going to come from when the inevitable happens.

However, there is a way that each of us can get the energy that we need, with little or no trouble. It is called solar energy advantages, and if everyone used it, there would be not need to ever use any other types of resources.

How Does It Work

There are many ways that solar energy advantages can work for you. First of all, the easiest way for you to take advantage of solar energy advantages is to install solar panels on your home. You can easily install these on your roof or put them in when you build a new house.

The only thing that might take a little doing is making sure that the home is wired to understand the solar energy advantages and where it is coming from. You will need to install, as well, a generator that can harness the solar energy advantages and turn it into usable power.

After you have made the installations, you don't need to worry about using your solar energy advantages only when the sun is out. First of all, the panels will catch the energy from the sun, even when it is overcast.

Also, the panels will catch much more energy than you can use in a day, so the energy is converted and stored in the solar energy advantages generator. This means that you can use it on your own, during the night and other very stormy or cloudy days.

One of the best things about using solar energy advantages is that you are doing your part to help out the earth. If everyone was to use solar energy advantages, our dependence on other types of energy would be completely gone and we'd find ourselves in a much cleaner and happier world.

It might be expensive to install solar energy advantages panels and to convert the energy at first, but once you have the system up and running, it means that you no longer have to pay for any of your electricity or even your heat. Imagine not having those bills to pay.

Also, the best thing about using solar energy advantages is that it is excellent for the earth, and if you have enough panels, you will make enough energy to actually sell some back to the electrical companies. Imagine being able to do that!

Home Solar Energy In Tucson

Solar energy is gaining in popularity, with more people asking questions about converting to home solar. Home solar is clean. Home solar is green. Home solar is free, once initial installation is complete. Home solar is almost entirely maintenance free.

Home solar energy in Tucson, Arizona can be a very effective means of saving on energy costs. In fact, it is said that a 100-square-mile piece of desert near Tucson, if covered with solar panels, could generate enough electrical power to meet the needs of the entire U.S. So Tucson would be a good site for home solar. Consider these facts.

Home Solar Energy in Tucson Makes Sense

Tucson, Arizona receives plenty of sunshine, so home solar energy in Tucson makes a lot of sense. Tucson never dips below receiving at least 78 percent of the possible available hours of sunshine in a given month. The one month when it dips to 78 percent is July – monsoon season. The remainder of the year, home solar energy in Tucson can count on receiving between 80 and 93 percent of the available hours of sunshine.

The Arizona Energy Office and the National Renewable Energy Labs say that home solar energy in Tucson needs a 4 KW photovoltaic (PV) system. That's for an average sized home. A larger home would presumably need more, a smaller home less.

Cost of Home Solar Energy in Tucson

As with many products and building projects, home solar costs can vary tremendously in Tucson.

It is reported that a builder in Tucson installed $50,000 worth of home solar equipment in a 1700 square foot home. That included the recommended 4 KW PV system. He also installed a number of expensive, high efficiency energy appliances. He connected the home to the local power company, so the home solar was not critical, but it was expensive. At the end of the day, he said the new house would be able to produce all energy needed on a "net average annual" basis. In other words, it would even out over a year. You might have days when your home solar produced all the energy you needed, and other days when it did not.

By way of contrast, another report tells of a couple in the Tucson area that helped design and equip their own house, including a home solar system. This couple did not have the option of connecting to the power grid unless they were willing to pay $10-15,000. Their home was a mile or so off the beaten track where the power lines ran. Instead of a mere 1700 square feet, this home was 3700 square feet. The couple spent, on home solar equipment, the $19-15,000 they would have needed to connect to the power lines. They were on their own, and could not afford good and bad days. Their "stand-alone" home solar would have to provide energy for peak usage as well as average usage. It would have to provide on sunny days and cloudy days.

Comparing the two homes, we see that home solar energy in Tucson can come in vastly different packages.

1. Home #1 had a 4 KW PV system – Home #2 had a 1.2 KW PV system

2. Home #1 was 1,700 square feet – Home #2 was 3,700 square feet.

3. Home #1 paid $50,000 for home solar – Home #2 paid $10-15,000.

4. Home #1 was not self-sufficient – Home #2 was totally self-sufficient.

By the way, Home #1 was occupied by only 2 people. Home #2 was occupied by 5 people. It is easy to see which home would have the greater energy demands.

Home solar energy costs need not be as high as many builders place them.

Cutting Home Solar Energy Costs

Homeowners in Tucson, or any other place, who choose to use home solar energy, can reduce costs greatly through building design.

Mud adobe houses are popular in the southwest, and when made with 16" walls, can greatly reduce the need for air conditioning and/or heating. Houses with larger windows facing south can collect warming sunlight during cool winter months. Hot summer sun will find only smaller windows on the building's north side. Overhanging roofs can also shield windows from hot sunlight.

Increasing Use of Home Solar Energy

In the years ahead, we can expect to see increased use of home solar energy in Tucson and throughout the nation. Do we have enough sunlight? One has only to look at a country like Germany that, despite its cloudy climate, is leading the world in home solar energy.

By: Anna Hart

Read More → Home Solar Energy In Tucson

An Overview Of Solar Energy And Other Renewable Energy Sources

When we talk about renewable energy we are referring to power that delivers energy from resources that will not be depleted because of our use of them. Renewable energy is an alternative to non-renewable fossil fuel energy for reasons other than the factor of non-depletion.

One basic benefit of renewable energy, and the reason environmentalists all over the globe are advocate its use, is that it does give off greenhouse gases and other harmful pollutants as do the by-products of burning fossil fuel for energy. Renewable energy such as solar power, water power and wind power, while the widespread discussion of which is new, are anything but new.

In both newly developing and highly developed countries wind, sun and water have long been used as power sources, though not to the extent of providing the primary energy source for large metropolitan communities.

The mass production of such renewable energy is become commonplace in recent years as more and more people come to realize how climate is changing due to the pollution of fossil fuel gases, due to the exhaustion of the availability of these fossil fuels and the political and social concerns of energy sources such as nuclear power.

Many countries and non-profit environmentally-conscious organizations are encouraging the use of renewable energy sources by passing legislation on tax incentives for their use and subsidies to offset the added expense of converting from fossil fuel to renewable energy.

The flow of renewable energy involves phenomena that occur naturally in our world. Tides, sunlight, wind and heat derived by geothermal occurrences all provide renewable energy. Each of these energy sources is unique both in where we can use them and how.

Most technology that converts renewable energy into power sources we can use are powered at least in part by the Sun if not directly at least indirectly. The earths atmospheric system stays in such equilibrium that the heat that it gives off radiates into space to an amount equal to the radiation that comes to earth from the sun.

The result of this energy level within the atmosphere is roughly translated to the climate of the earth. The water of the earth, also referred to its hydrosphere, absorbs a lot of the radiation that comes to us from the sun.

Most of the radiation gets absorbed at the lower latitudes of the earth that exist around the equator. This energy gets dissipated all around the globe, however, in the form of ocean and wind currents.

The motion of the ocean waves might have a role in transference of mechanical energy between the ocean and the earths atmosphere by way of wind stress. Solar energy also provides the means by which precipitations is distributed and then tapped by hydroelectric energy projects as well as plant growth that then creates biofuels.

By: James Copper -

It’s Time to Consider Solar Energy

By: Dynamic Blue Link

There is no doubt that solar energy is a very popular form of alternative energy.

Many people base their ideas about Solar energy upon information that is old. Many people still believe it is a weak energy which could hardly be utilized the way our current energy sources are used. This is not true.

Solar energy has been researched and worked on to the point where it is far more advanced than ever before. The uses for solar energy are expanding fat as researchers develop more and more ways to utilize it, store it and generate energy from it.

In fact, solar energy is being utilized currently to produce many things our current energy sources do, including, to heat homes, run water heaters, and provide electricity. There are even some uses you may never have considered before and some uses that are very obvious, but that you may not have considered for one reason or another.

Use as a Battery Charger

Solar energy is a great source of energy. As mentioned, it is plentiful and easy to get. That makes it ideal as a battery charger. Solar battery chargers can be found for a variety of uses.

They can be used to charge everything from a cell phone battery to a lap top battery to charging other batteries. The fact they operate off solar energy means they can be used almost anywhere, even outside.

Uses Outdoors

Since solar energy is gathered from the outdoors it is no surprise that there are many uses for it as a power source for outside use.

Using solar powered lights, pool heating systems and even solar fountains are perfect. There are no worries over electrical lines or possible shock hazards. The solar item is simply placed and the solar panel is set in the sun. It is easy and much cheaper than using electricity.

One of the reasons that many people overlook solar energy is that in the past it was not a very good energy source. It had problems. It was not easy to store, so creating enough power was a problem. Additionally, the products that operated off solar energy were often of bad quality and were not comparable to electric products at all.

Today, however, there has been a lot of work that has went into improvements. Solar energy is now able to be stored so it can be a dependable energy source. Additionally, products are now of high quality and very comparable to electric counterparts.

Solar energy is said to be one of the energy sources of the future. It is being improved upon at a rapid pace and the uses for it are growing everyday. It is something worth looking into if you are concerned about the high energy prices or the fact that current energy sources are depleting quickly.

Solar Energy Is Clean, Natural Power

The most powerful form of renewable energy on earth is solar energy. So what is solar energy exactly? It is the energy that can be harnessed from the heat that's found in the suns rays. The sun produces so much energy, that if harnessed, it would only take one minute to have enough to provide the earth with sufficient energy to last at least 12 months!

What is solar power? Energy radiated from the sun is harnessed and changed into electricity, this form of energy is call solar energy. More and more products today come with the ability to use solar power.

The sun's solar energy can be used with solar panels to generate electricity, or it can be used with thermal panels that will convert the power of the sun into heat

Silicone is used inside solar panels to collect the sun's rays and the atoms and electrons are divided. Once divided, the electrons continue through the silicone and are changed into electricity. This electricity then must pass through a converter to be a usable voltage for use in our homes.

The use of home solar power can meet many of your energy needs. It can both heat and cool your home and also operate many appliances. Solar power can also provide lighting, hot water and even heat your pool among other things.

Residential solar power kits can be installed to convert most of your energy use over to solar power. There's a variety of styles to choose from, making it easy to find the one that will keep up with your homes specific energy needs.

Useful resources can be found in a number of places. For example, established in 1954, The American Solar Energy Association is geared toward increasing solar power usage. The associations many members are working to promote solar energy in helping with environmental pollution as well as providing a lower cost energy source.

For any information you may need on using solar power you can contact The Solar Energy Association, chapters of which are located in several states. With a goal of increasing awareness of solar energy, they hold workshops and publish newsletters to promote widespread usage.

With the never ending rise in the costs of conventional energy and the damage these energies are doing to our environment, the use of solar energy is becoming more widespread and more and more popular.