How to make Home Solar Power Systems
The day is coming, hopefully in the not too distant future, when homes will be energy self sufficient, free from the tentacles of the local electric power company. Home solar power systems will be the standard. Energy usage and energy costs will be completely under the control of the homeowner, and the damaging environmental effects of burning fossil fuels will be minimal.
The Benefits of Solar Power
Solar power’s most compelling characteristic is its inexhaustibility. The sun has been shining continuously for billions of years, and promises to continue for billions more. Everyone on Earth could use solar power for all their energy needs, with no negative environmental effects. The sun provides more than ten times the energy that the world will ever need. That should be more than enough time to satisfy the energy demands of the average household. All a homeowner needs to exploit this free and readily available resource is a collection of solar cells assembled into a home solar power system.
All solar power system designs and their construction are similar, with some small design differences that are determined by the conditions in the geographical area in which they are being installed. There are two major types of solar collectors: concentrating solar collectors, which have panels that are positioned or angle to ensure that they receive the optimum amount of sunlight; and non concentrating solar collectors, which are designed for use in area where access to direct sunlight is not easily available requiring the panels to process both direct and reflected sunlight.
The many benefits offer by solar power home systems, plus the availability and reasonable cost of the power generating components would seem to indicate that these systems would be in wide scale use; but, this does not seem to be the case. One wonders why, in a world clamoring for alternatives to the environmentally destructive use of fossil fuels, solar power systems for homes are not being more readily exploited.
One reason is that the cost of energy derived from fossil fuels, although increasing in cost, is still affordable to a large segment of the population. Geographical location is another consideration. Some areas, which do not get as much sunlight as others, would require larger solar power system designs to process enough energy to be effective.
Nonetheless, the benefits of using home solar power systems have made an impact on our national thinking. One simply has to measure the free, abundant, and inexhaustible characteristics of solar power against the costly, scarce, and rapidly depleting characteristics of fossil fuels. Its geopolitical impact is another great benefit. No country can control the energy source. It’s ubiquitous. The sun shines on everyone.
Home solar power systems are reliable and safe. As more homeowners install solar power systems, equipment costs will go down and the efficiency of components will increase. We already know for sure that the cost of fossil fuel will continue to increase until the supply is exhausted.
Enjoying Free Solar Power in Your Home
Home solar power systems convert sunlight to electrical power that is stored in batteries. The DC output of these batteries is converted to AC power for use in operating electrical devices in your home. Depending upon the size and capacity of your solar system, you can save money each month by operating a few of your appliances from solar power, or with a large system, supply all the electrical power needs for your entire home. Either way you’re saving money and helping the environment.
Once your system is installed and up and running, you’ll be generating free electrical power for the life of the solar panels. In time you may update you system to free you forever from the electrical power grid. Solar power generates no heat or harmful emissions, and will never contribute to the planet’s increase of greenhouse gasses. Your only maintenance might be to clean the panels and remove any bird droppings that can cause light gathering inefficiency. This maintenance is a small price to pay for free, abundant, and clean power.