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09 June 2012

Investing In Solar Energy

By Jerry Donofrio


If you've ever touched a dark object that's been sitting in the sun, you've experienced solar power at work. At its very core, solar power is simply using the energy from the sun to do something useful for you. This is of course beyond the most basic use of keeping all of humanity from freezing to death. If you are considering setting up a solar system in your home you may wish to know just how the system uses light to produce electricity.

If you have a 2kW photovoltaic installation on the roof of your household, it can be safely assumed that you will use half the amount of electricity generated and feed the other half to the national grid. The government pays you an amount for every kW/h fed into the grid and as a result the conventional electricity charges reduce because of the self generation.

There is another, slightly more advanced way you can put your roof to work: solar power panels. These are high-tech devices that use chemical reactions to convert sunlight directly into electricity. As you can imagine, the potential savings are significant, especially if you live in a climate that's well-suited to solar power generation. As technology advances and solar panels grow more efficient, though, more and more homeowners will be able to take advantage of them and cut down on the amount of power they have to buy from the electric company.

In order to use solar panels effectively, you have to know how to properly use them. Solar panels are not overly complicated, but there are many things you must know in order to take the best advantage of them. Try researching different ways to use solar panels so you can save energy as well as save money.

This energy that is stored in the panels in the form of electrical energy is then brought to your home through wires. These wires are usually easy to connect. The kit that you buy will typically have instructions on how you can connect the panels to your home to effectively begin powering your residence. Once it is all connected, you can sit around in your home watching as your property is powered by the sun. Pretty neat!

Passive solar power is perhaps the easiest and cheapest option you have; it does not use any mechanical or electrical equipment. It basically depends on materials that you will use in different areas of your home such as your water storage area, windows, or chimney.

There are other things you can do to help the environment without investing in an expensive solar power system. You could for instance get a more affordable solar power system, such as a hot water solar system or solar-powered outdoor lights. With these systems, solar power is used to generate a small portion of the energy you use but you will still save a lot of money on your bills. If you do not live in an area sunny enough to justify investing in solar panels, explore other solutions. Perhaps you could get a small wind turbine on your roof or rely on geothermal energy instead.

Solar panels and solar powered equipment can save you thousands of dollars and help to save the environment. But before you install anything, make sure that you read the information above very carefully.




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