Renewable Energy Now! » solar

Why Should You Take Solar Energy Seriously?

Chris Scott — Wed, 28 Jul 2010 14:59:39 +0000

Ever consider that maybe you might take solar energy seriously? That thought has occurred to a lot of people. Some actually acted on that thought. Most just consider it for a while, then dismiss the thought. Frequently it’s because they don’t know how to start. In other cases it’s because there are so many unknowns. Still other times it’s as they do not know what are the requirements.

O.K. now, wait up a moment. We poked around a lot of negatives in the beginning of this, all the why nots. Let’s consider three reasons why you should take solar energy seriously.

First and foremost, on the “Pro” side, I might explain that solar energy is essentially free energy, no matter what the climate there is some amount of solar energy which can be captured. Fine, I acknowledge your objection, on the “Con” side, and I agree that you have a valid point as you say it may appear that solar energy cannot meet all your heating and power needs, which in many cases is probably true. But I want to additionally point out that we currently waste a great amount of energy, so solar can go a long way to meeting out heat and power needs.

Secondly, you truly should consider that our current sources of energy will not last forever, so what example are we leaving future generations. And, also, due to limited resources, the price of fossil fuel energy will only increase in the long run. Plus, better yet, by using solar energy and other forms of renewable energy, we can become energy independent.

Third and finally, you will get a feel good factor knowing you helped the environment and lowered your energy bills. And that will signify you have more money to spend on other more important things. What’s more, on top of that, in addition, you will avoid the green taxes, which governments are considering

Once you consider the reasons and evaluate them, I expect that you will have to admit that a compelling case can be made for thinking about how you can take solar energy seriously.

So now look at that for a minute or two. An excellent case has been made in favour of doing it. What if you actually could take solar energy seriously?

Want to find out more about Used Solar Panels, then visit Chris Scott’s site on how to choose the best Solar Blankets For Pools for your needs.

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Choosing The Right Mounts For Your Solar Panels

Susan E Freemont — Tue, 27 Jul 2010 17:50:47 +0000

When researching what type of solar panels to buy for your home, you should also do a little research on the mounts you will need for your panels. Solar panel mounts are incredibly important when it comes to the effectiveness of your whole solar system.

You should buy solar panel mounts that best suits your needs, and that will provide your solar panels with a strong foundation. You will find that mounts are made out of different materials. These materials include aluminum, stainless steel, angle iron, and wood. Each offers certain benefits and set backs.

Aluminum Mounts
Aluminum is lightweight and easy to weld and shape. It can also withstand tough weather conditions and is resistant to corrosion. It is however one of the most expensive materials.

Stainless Steel Mounts
Stainless steel is the most expensive material of the four listed above. It can be tough to work worth, not offering the ease and flexibility of aluminum. However, it is known for being able to withstand just about any type of abuse.

Angle Iron Mounts
Angle iron is cheaper than the other metals listed and is known for being easy to work with. Unfortunately, it is a cheap metal that will corrode very quickly when subjected to wet conditions.

Wood Mounts
Lastly, wood is the cheapest option. It is also the easiest to get. Wood cannot withstand various weather conditions like some of the other options. It must be treated before use, and even then it is not the most durable material. If it is not treated, you will have to replace the wood even more often.

In addition to making sure that you choose the right material for your mounts, you should also consider the wind load that your mounts and panels will have to deal with. The wind load must also be taken into consideration when you’re choosing a mount material. The wind load is a pressure force created when wind hits solar panels at various angles. It is recommended that you ask a contractor in your area what the wind load might be on different areas of your roof. This will help you make the best decision about which mounting material to buy.

Looking to find the best deal on Arizona solar companies, then visit www.solarelectricfreedom.com to find the best advice on AZ solar companies for you.

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The 27M Solar Panel Kit

Jordan Eske — Mon, 26 Jul 2010 12:05:04 +0000

The Nomad 27M solar panel is a convenient source of power made in mono-crystalline solar technology. This particular product uses 27 watts of electricity, and is rechargeable in all types of weather. When it’s sunny, it can take as little as four and half-hours to recharge fully. When partly sunny, it takes up to 7 hours and 15 hours in overcast weather. These times may vary depending on the battery you are using. For instance, the Sherpa 120 will take 10, 17 and 36 hours in sunny, partly sunny and overcast weather respectively. Others like Ranger 350 will take 31, 45 and 100 hours to recharge fully in the three different types of weather respectively. This is not a long time to wait considering there are no bills to pay for the recharge!

Using mono-crystalline solar technology, the Nomad 27M solar panel is by all accounts an outstanding source of free electricity. Not only can the unit be charged during all types of weather, but it also pumps out a generous 27 watts. As far as charging the batteries are concerned, on can expect a full charge within as little as 4 to 5 hours, providing you have sunny conditions. Even when it’s only partly sunny, a full charge will usually take no longer than 7 hours, and if it’s completely overcast, 15 hours is usually adequate. With that said, the actual time it takes for the batteries to recharge fully does also depend on the type of batteries being used. Even though some batteries can take 30 or 40 hours to recharge during adverse weather, it’s not really much of an issue, considering you’re getting electricity with having to worry about bills.

There are two main differences between the 27M and the 13.5M models. First and foremost, the 27M produces a higher wattage, and secondly, it can also store energy for a greater length of time than the 13.5M. The two key differences make the 27M noticeably more efficient than the 13.5M. On a slightly different note, both models use a charging voltage of 12V, although the 27M does have an open 18V circuit.

The Nomad 27M solar panel has been designed with functionality and practicality in mind. For example, the connector cord is housed in a built-in pocket of its own in order to avoid having loose wires, which or course can result in people tripping over them. Also, the unit comes with four strong grommets which make it possible for the solar panel to be positioned at different angles, and if stability is an issue, you’ll also find there are three aluminum stabilizing rods included with the kit.

Unlike many similar products, the Nomad 27M solar panel has been manufactured with durability in mind, and considering it’s also water resistant, it should last you for many years. Even if you leave it standing outside in the rain, the unit will continue working, although of course, if you’re not using it, then it should ideally be folded up and stowed away in the case which comes with the unit when you purchase it.

Jordan Eske has been helping people find solar products since the beginning of 2010. And the Nomad 27M Solar Panel helps people who want survival gear.

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Things You Need To Know About Solar Powered Fountains

Abel Alexander — Sun, 18 Jul 2010 15:21:27 +0000

My favorite place is next to my bedroom which is garden. When I have guests, I even entertain them there. I like to do some reading and writing there. Placing a fountain in the garden would be a really good idea because the sound of the water flowing relaxes me and permits me to have unwind a lot. I will not discuss much about green politics but I will reassure you to use solar power fountains if you decided to use a fountain and place it in your house. Here are the benefits of the solar power fountains:

In conserving energy, all you need to have is the sun that is why you will save a lot of it. At first, it is more costly but somehow, in the end, it would be definitely a great help.

If you are not that sure of transforming your domicile into a solar powered house, the solar powered fountains can be used to test the water. You can use it as an examining ground for the solar panels. You will then see how easy it is and be able to measure the consistency.

The whole system is noise-free because it will not utilize the electricity which is really good for the garden so that it will be a good place of Zen.

There are tips for putting up your solar powered fountain in the garden. So, here it is:

Position it in a place where there is much exposure of the sun and for some apparent reasons. Even if it is cloudy, the system will work. If you afford to buy a good quality solar panel it will be able to absorb the heat and energy coming from the sun even if it is cloudy.

During the night time, the solar powered fountain won’t work so you should supplement the system some electrical power.

Want to find out more about solar powered fountains, then visit Abel Alexander’s site on how to choose the best solar powered fountains for your needs.

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High Vs. Poor Performance Solar Panel Products

Susan E Freemont — Sat, 17 Jul 2010 13:56:27 +0000

If you are new to the world of solar panels, you may be wondering how you can make sure that you buy the best product for your money. It seems like there are always new developments in the technology used to create solar panels, which makes it even harder to choose the right product.

The first thing you will notice when researching solar panels is size differences. There are larger and smaller panels. Solar panels are typically priced in dollars per Watt. Generally the size of the panel is directly related to the amount of Watts it produces–the more Watts the panel generates, the larger the panel will be. Well, this is the case when you are looking at panels that are made out of the same material.

In addition to this, the type of solar cells used to create the panels can also determine size. There are three main types of solar cells: mono-crystalline silicon, poly-crystalline silicon, and amorphous silicon.

Mono-Crystalline Silicon
This is by far the most efficient solar cell material. It produces smaller sized cells. As a result, it also produces smaller sized panels. Even though they are smaller, they can produce the same amount of energy as larger sized panels that generate the same amount of power.

Poly-Crystalline Silicon
This is the next most efficient solar cell material. They produce slightly larger panels than mono-crystalline silicon solar cells.

Amorphous Silicon
These produce the least efficient cells and are composed of less silicon than the materials listed above. Because they are less efficient, the panels they produce need more area to generate the same amount of power as the examples above. This means that the panels they produce will be much larger. One advantage of this material is that it can be used on irregular or curved surfaces that solid panels would not be suitable for.

Knowing what solar panels are made of will give you a good idea of which panels may provide more quality. Remember too that it is important to calculate the amount of electricity you use before buying solar panels. This way you will know that you are buying a product that can produce enough energy to account for your energy use. Also, look for a good warranty. Reputable panels typically have a warranty of about 25 years.

Learn more about Arizona solar companies. Stop by Susan E Freemont’s site where you can find out all about solar companies in Phoenix and what they can do for you.

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Solar Powered Window Fans Will Slash Your Electric Bill

Verba Greiltz — Fri, 16 Jul 2010 11:39:40 +0000

Solar powered window fans are a huge asset when trying to dramatically reduce your energy costs. Just a few of these solar fans placed at strategic places will make a huge difference in your energy bill plus the comfort in the home.

With a few well placed window fans we found we could stay comfortable even in the hot months of August. So even though gable attic fans are very important to help reduce the cost of cooling your home, don’t forget the advantages of window fans.

There are a few tricks to doing this and we soon discovered that EVEN ONE NIGHT of missing a few important and key steps resulted in a hot house for a day until we could get it cooled back down.

Make sure you use solar powered window fans if you are really serious about cutting costs as well as cooling your home.

If you are using solar already and have a few solar panels attached to your roof then you will be all set but even if this is the first solar powered anything you try, there are some really simple solar powered fan units available on Amazon for pretty reasonable.

Tip#1: One window fan will be blowing hot air OUT and another fan will be blowing cooler air IN.

Tip #2: Important! The fan blowing cool air IN will need to be at the part of the house that gets the most shade.

Tip #3: The fan blowing the hot air OUT needs to be running all night. If it is cool in the morning, wear a jacket. You will not be sorry you cooled it down when the afternoon rolls around.

Tip#4: CLOSE your windows first thing in the morning and trap the cool air inside for as long as you can. Once the warm air starts forcing it’s way in then go back to running your solar powered window fans.

Before you buy any solar powered window fans online, make sure you check out the great deals Verba Greiltz has available thru her website at solar window fans.

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Back-Up With The Ranger Base Camp Kit

Michael Hesmin — Mon, 12 Jul 2010 12:51:11 +0000

Let’s face it, how often have you been away camping in the great outdoors, only to find yourself wishing you had more light and more heat at your disposal? Perhaps you and your family live in a remote part of the country where grid supplied power may not be readily available, and if that’s the case, you’ve more than likely often wished you had more power available, particularly during the cold winter months. If this sort of situation sounds familiar to you, then perhaps you need to start thinking about getting your hands on the Base Camp Solar Kit.

The kit, which includes solar panels, storage batteries, an inverter and four strong LED lights, must undoubtedly be the best such kit on the market nowadays. Another great aspect of this kit is that you’re able to build on it if you ever need to. In other words, if your aim is to someday go off the grid completely, you can start out with one of these kits, and then you can add to it at a later stage. Of course, even if you’re a certified city-dweller, with no intention of going off the grid, you can still benefit tremendously from this kit whenever you go camping.

Astonishingly enough, the Home Base Solar Kit is capable of powering an electric shower, a small oven, and yes you guessed it, even a small TV. If you’re not interested in watching all those soaps when you’re away camping, simply leave your TV at home, and use the kit to power your laptop instead. For those living in remote areas, this kit is an ideal “starter solution” in terms of their long-term electrical needs. In fact, if you already have a propane fridge and oven, the kit can provide you with enough power to live quite comfortably and that even during the winter months.

Another remarkable aspect of this particular kit is that it doesn’t take up a lot of space, and that it’s easy store away, thus making it ideal even for those who intend doing a lot of traveling. Obviously, solar power relies on sunlight, so when the days shorten and the nights get longer, you may find you require more power than the batteries hold, but the manufacturers have taken this into consideration, and as a result, the kit comes with a car lighter adapter, should you ever need to charge the batteries when there’s no sun in the sky.

Whether you’re a seasoned camper or not, it’s all to easy to get stuck without an adequate amount of power. The fact is that it’s no longer necessary if you go ahead and purchase the Base Camp Solar Kit. Also, if you get your kit now, you’ll be able to take full advantage of it by the time you go camping again, and if you’re too impatient to let the solar panels do their job, you can always cheat by charging the batteries yourself initially.

This kit is without a doubt the most effective solution available for those who need to have power available no matter how far from civilization they are. There is simply no better option out there at present, especially in terms of convenience, reliability, and of course, affordability. In fact, you should congratulate yourself, because you’ve just found the ultimate solution to your problem.

If you have thought about powerful back up power then you should take a look at these solar battery chargers. There are so many to choose but this power system comes as a complete kit.

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Solar Energy FAQ

Kristina Gardner — Sat, 10 Jul 2010 08:42:27 +0000

What can solar power be used for? Humans use solar power to produce renewable energy for different work environments or at home. But it is mainly used in producing electric energy with the help of solar panels.

What are solar power costs? The sun offers us free power. But the systems that capture it do cost. Using domain profit guides materials can get a resourceful person the needed money, others can find different home money alternatives.

How much do solar systems last ? Solar panels that are used to transform solar power into thermal energy can be used for almost 2 decades. Solar panels that transform sun rays into electricity can be used for more than a quarter of a century.

How long before I recover my investment? The investment will be recovered in time, but the exact period is hard to evaluate because it depends on many things. For people that live in the most favorable environments, the investment costs can be recovered in as less as 3 years. What happens if the sky isn’t clear or during the winter? The new technology solar panels can capture radiation that are not visible to human eye. Even if the skies are clear or when it’s night outside, it doesn’t mean that the sun does not emit any radiations just because we don’t see it’s rays. But, their performances are highly influenced by exterior conditions. So, if you want this type of system to be financially logical, the house where it’s installed must be located in a favorable area where solar radiation is strong, the medium yearly temperature is high and the number or sunny days is clearly bigger than the number of cloudy days.

Do solar systems assume independence from electric power providers? This would be possible only under the ideal conditions described above. In daily use, a backup system is necessary, like having a power generator or not giving up to the power supply subscription. It doesn’t mean that you will end up using the backup system too often, but it has to be present there just in case, and also because solar systems that can offer exceptional independence are far too expensive for the average person.

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Using Landscape Lighting To Great Effect

Owen Jones — Thu, 08 Jul 2010 17:25:09 +0000

Making your garden to look just the way you want it to is not only not easy, but it is an on-going fight against weeds, pests and disease, so once you have lovely garden, the next stage is how to show it off it in all lighting and weather conditions. This piece of writing is about just that: how to use landscape lighting to great effect.

One facet of landscape lighting is called accent lighting. This kind of lighting is used to subtly light up bushes or flowers along with other things. You can also light up a snow storm or rain, it gives a beautiful effect, but this takes more powerful lighting such as flood lights.

The issue is that you do not need to have the splendour of your garden on display for only the day light hours, you can also get great enjoyment out of it in the evenings and even at night; in the summer and in the winter.

There is a huge range of landscape lighting. For example, there are lamps, lanterns, floodlights and spotlights and they can be powered by grid electricity or by the sun. Obviously, if you want to use mains electricity, you will need to have an electrician lay armoured cable in your garden, which can be costly and is more or less permanent.

The other option is solar powered lighting, which is movable. If you put it somewhere and then change your mind, you can move it yourself and there are no electricity running costs. Solar powered light fittings are more expensive than standard ones, but all in all, taking into account the electrician’s costs and the on-going electricity bill, solar powered devices work out cheaper. Plus, you will be doing something for the environment that every gardener is doing his or her best to protect.

This piece is not concerned with security lighting, but landscape lighting does have a spin-off by adding extra security to your property. Before purchasing any landscape lighting, you ought to have a good idea of what you are looking for.

There are several ways of going about this. You could first of all draw a plan of your garden and photocopy it a couple of times so that you can commit your thoughts to paper.

You could take a walk around your local area and pick up ideas by observing neighbours’ gardens. You could go look at how the council lights its parks and public buildings and you could obtain a few landscaping magazines to get an idea of the latest items on the market.

It is also worth visiting a few gardening centres, because they will also be showing off their wares to their full advantage. As you get thoughts, pencil them in on one of your photocopies. If you want to test a few ideas very roughly, you could put a suitable flashlight under a bush that you think would benefit from landscape lighting and observe it. If you do not like it remove it from your plan and try something else.

Once you are happy with your sketch, go out and get the requisite lighting. If they are grid supplied you will need an electrician, if they are solar powered you do not. If you try some of these ideas you will soon learn how to use landscape lighting to great effect.

Owen Jones, the author of this article writes on quite a few subjects, but is at present involved with outdoor accent lighting. If you would like to know more or check out some great offers, please go to our website at Outdoor Wall Lamps.

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Solar Energy Advantages And How They Affect The World

White Thomas — Wed, 07 Jul 2010 16:39:40 +0000

People and the world can benefit from the solar energy advantages in general. Solar energy is the energy from the sun that is then taken and converted into thermal or electrical energy and it can be used to power an entire home or it could just be used for a light outside. These solar energy advantages can make a major difference in your life and also help the world around you. There are a few solar energy advantages in particular that you want to be aware of and which are sure to make up your mind in terms of whether or not it is going to be worth it for you to make the switch.

Of course one of the main solar energy advantages and one that affects the world is one that is in regards to how environmentally friendly it is. Unlike regular electricity and fuel, solar energy does not pollute and so you don’t have to worry about it doing damage to the environment in any way.

Global warming is causing an increase in the average temperature of the earth which, if it continues, means that eventually the world would come to an end. Solar energy uses the sun as its resource and so there is no pollution being caused and this is one of the most important issues because of how poor a state the environment is in right now.

Another of the most major solar energy advantages is that when you make the switch to solar energy you are able to save a bundle. When you take a look at the poor state of the economy today, it is easy to see that jobs are needed all around the world and as consumption of solar energy grows, so will the number of jobs that are involved with this field. In fact if you have your whole house running on solar power you will not get an electricity bill at all and that means extra money in your pocket at the end of each month. This is definitely one of the best solar energy advantages.

Also for the top three solar energy advantages there is the fact that there is little to no maintenance required for solar energy systems. The solar energy advantages definitely win over and come out on top. Think of it as an investment because of all the benefits that you will be receiving but also because you are going to more than make your money back. There are more people than ever before who are benefiting from solar energy advantages and you can too.

Get the latest use of the solar power like hot water cylinder and you can also know the good points about the heat pumbs.

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