Solar Power for Homes -
Power from the Sun!
Can the Sun Power Your Home?
Yes it Can!
Easy Solar Power for Homes
Today, many people are investing in Renewable Energy Solar Power for homes. The solar panels on their roof or back yard are a fashionable addition that not only saves money, but also is good for our planet and the generations that will follow us into the future.
Adding renewable solar power for homes is a simple process, though you should do the proper research and follow some simple steps and guidelines that are readily available to make sure you get both the best performance from the solar power for homes and the quickest return on your investment.
There are three basic areas in which energy from the sun can help:
- Home Electricity
- Home Heat
- Home Hot Water
You may also want to consider solar heat for your swimming pool.
In many respects, the benefits that you can gain from the sun depend on where you live. Folks closer to the equator will get more benefit from the sun, but they, many times, need more energy so support air conditioning. Farther from the equator, there is less need for costly air conditioning, but there is less sun.
One interesting consideration is hours of daylight. Many people naturally believe that the closer you live to the equator, the more hours of sunlight you get every year, consequently, the more you can benefit from the sun. Actually, it doesn’t work that way. The latitude with the most hours of sunlight every year is further north – pretty close to the Arctic Circle. The folks closer to the equator, however, benefit from the sun’s more direct radiation. So if you live north or you live south, you can still benefit from the energy that our sun provides.
The first step to adding solar power for homes is research into your local regulations and what tax incentives and other rebates are available from the various governments that affect you. The internet, of course, makes it VERY easy to do this research.
Next, you will want to evaluate how much energy you can realistically create with the space you have available, either in your yard, or on your roof. You can expect approximately 20 watts of electricity from each square foot of solar collecting cells. So, for example, if you are able to install a 10’ x 20’ solar array (collection of solar panels) you could expect to generate about 4000 watts of power (20 watts x 200 square feet), enough to power 40, 100 watt light bulbs – as long as the sun is shining on your solar array. An average refrigerator may consume 1000 – 1500 watts, so you may even be able to run your refrigerator from your solar array, but only when the sun is shining... more about that later.
The electricity that comes directly from the solar panels is Direct Current (DC) and at low voltage which will not run your electric lights or anything else in your home – except for charging batteries on your cell phone, MP3 player, and other battery operated devices – which is a good thing..
Between the solar cells and your home lights and appliances comes the Inverter. This converts the low voltage DC coming from the solar array to the normal Alternating Current (AC) voltage that is used in your home. So the sun actually can supply some (and in some cases all) of the electric power needed for your home. But, only when the sun is shining on your solar array.
This brings us to the third element of a typical home solar system, the battery... this is usually a group of batteries wired together to store the energy from the sun during the day, and actually supply this stored power to your home during non-sun hours.
An additional component which is sometimes added allows surplus energy that you create from your solar array to actually go BACK to the electric grid – effectively running your electric meter backwards and lowering your bill from the power utility.
Overall, a very good system, and well worth the investment, both for reducing your utility bills, and reducing the drain on our earth’s natural resources. Everyone wins.
|Today, there are many good programs available to take you step by step through Do it Yourself addition of solar power to your home. Here is one of the best.
Ready for solar? Vital steps in preparation will bring you solar savings. Take the complexities out of your project and follow these recommendations. Check out ask-solar-bob.com. You'll find straightforward answers to help you get it done right.
One of the critical factors as you switch some or all of your home to solar (or wind) power is to make sure your home is as energy efficient as possible.
David Anderson has a great kit for those looking for their own "Do It Yourself "Home Energy Audit. It is not not only has complete instructions, it also includes "calculators" for you to track the results of your energy saving improvements room by room and year by year to watch your savings mount up.