Saturday, 4 June 2011

Solar Power Home System


Of course you do!
Solar power systems can provide a great alternative energy solution for your home and can generate most or even all of the power your home requires each day. These modern solar power systems are more efficient than ever before and require even less equipment to generate the power you need for your home. With energy resources dwindling fast and global warming changing climates across the globe, more people look towards renewable energy sources for reducing their carbon footprint. However, even the most environmentally passionate person cannot pursue such endeavors without the proper financial resources. Visit us at http://tinyurl.com/69fo8tb
Most of the improvements with these home solar power systems are in the solar panels used to generate their power. It can start off as weekend projects and a semi-serious hobby, but learning to build solar panels is something that will be beneficial to you in so many ways. It will save you money, and save the environment from being poisoned by greenhouse gases. It can also be a lot of fun.
There are only a few basic items you need to construct your own solar panels. The most important pieces are the solar cells themselves because these are what allow you to generate electric power from the sun. Once you have those, you need a shallow frame to house the solar cells and some basic wiring.
Buying new solar cells isn't easy or cheap. They're expensive when brand new, and finding a source you can buy batches of cells from is difficult. The best way to acquire solar cells for your panels is to purchase slightly damaged cells from online sources such as suppliers on eBay.
Solar cells are thin and fragile, so when one is chipped, scratched or damaged in some way it's referred to as a factory reject. These cells still work as well as brand-new ones do, though, and they're most commonly used by people who want to build their own panels.
When you find a source to buy your solar cells from, purchase extras in case you damage any while you're building your panels. It also helps to purchase solar cells that have tabs attached to them, because this greatly reduces the amount of soldering work you'll need to do when constructing your solar panels.
After purchasing your solar cells, you'll need to build the solar panel frame. This is just a shallow wooden box. Often it made of plywood for the backing and standard 2-by-4 boards for the frame. You'll also need a piece of glass or plexiglass for the frame's cover. This will protect the inside solar cells from damage and inclement weather.
A piece of peg board is recommended as well, because it makes mounting the soldered solar cells into the frame quick and easy.
Once the sides are attached to the back of your solar panel frame, solder the cells themselves together using the attached tabs that came with them. Attach the soldered cells to the peg board, then sit that down into the wood frame and run your electrical wires. You'll need to have a positive and a negative wire running through the side of the frame so that they can be accessed and used once your frame is sealed.
Attach the glass cover securely and seal the entire solar panel frame from weather and moisture. Your solar panel is now constructed and can be sat out in the sun and attached to a battery for charging.
There are so many resourceful individuals are turning to much less expensive resources that help you build your own solar panel. But this one is an easy to follow guide that will show you exactly how to make solar panels for much cheaper than retail cost.

                                                                modern solar energy

 

AC/DC Disconnects

Adding AC/DC disconnects to your home solar power systems adds an element of safety and flexibility to your system. The first thing to note is that the AC disconnect is used on the AC side of your system and the DC disconnect is used on the DC side of your system.
Installing an AC/DC disconnect allows you to isolate the system on either side of the disconnect. Why would you ever want to do this? Well maybe not you, but your installer or maintenance person will eventually have to repair some part of your system over the course of your home solar power systems’ life time.
The disconnects allow him to electrically isolate the part of your system that he/she needs to repair or troubleshoot without getting electrocuted from working on energized equipment.
To think of it another way you never screw a light bulb into a light fixture when the light is one right? Well its the same concept. The disconnect is a switch that stops the electricity flow at that point in the system.
More specifically the disconnect will open the circuit which ensures that no current is flowing past the disconnect from the source (your solar panels) to the load (your home appliances). This can also work when needing to isolate your home solar power systems from the utility grid if you have a grid-tied system installed or from your battery bank if installed.

Solar Power Inverter Basics

So what is a solar power inverter and why should you care? Well, it doesn't make your Home Solar Power System stand on it's head, that I can assure you.

The solar power inverter is a very important part of your system. Think of it as the key to the front door of your house. Without it you can't get into your house and enjoy the benefits of having a home. Without an inverter the electricity generated by the solar panels outside your house can't enter your home to power your appliances. Well, the inverter plays the same type of role in your Home Solar Power System.

The solar power inverter takes the direct current (DC) generated from your solar panels or battery and, using a lot of complex electrical components, turns it into alternating current (AC) that can be used by in-home appliances. Because all solar panels produce electricity in DC, an inverter is required to make the electricity generated by your home solar power system usable by your home appliances.

This means without an inverter your solar panels or batteries can't effectively transfer their energy into your home for you to use. That's why the solar power inverter is a crucial part of the system and a component that should not be overlooked.

Solar Power Battery Basics

A Solar Power Battery stores electrical energy in the form of chemical energy. When the battery is providing electricity, it is created by the chemical reaction occurring inside the battery itself that is generating the electricity. The materials used inside of the solar power battery have a specific natural electrical potential that is used to produce or store energy for use later.

There are two types of batteries: primary and secondary. Primary are your typical battery used in most electrical devices that cannot be recharged. Secondary batteries on the other hand can be recharged, and those are the type we will be discussing here.

A single electrochemical unit with in a battery is called a cell, and thus a solar power battery is made up of several of these cells. A battery bank is made up of one or more batteries.
A solar power battery's capacity is rated in amp-hours (Ah). Say you have a 100 Ah battery. It will be able to supply 10 amps for 10 hours.

There are several types of rechargeable batteries out there, but we will only be talking about Lead-Acid Batteries because they are the most effective for use in a Home Solar Power Systems.

Solar Panel Construction Plans

Free solar panel construction plans are available in a variety of places online. Some tutorials cover how a specific person built their own solar panels as well as step-by-step instructions that can help you build your own. The process is fairly straightforward, easy and inexpensive.

How To

o     There are only a few basic items you need to construct your own solar panels. The most important pieces are the solar cells themselves because these are what allow you to generate electric power from the sun. Once you have those, you need a shallow frame to house the solar cells and some basic wiring.
Buying new solar cells isn't easy or cheap. They're expensive when brand new, and finding a source you can buy batches of cells from is difficult. The best way to acquire solar cells for your panels is to purchase slightly damaged cells from online sources such as suppliers on eBay.
Solar cells are thin and fragile, so when one is chipped, scratched or damaged in some way it's referred to as a factory reject. These cells still work as well as brand-new ones do, though, and they're most commonly used by people who want to build their own panels.
When you find a source to buy your solar cells from, purchase extras in case you damage any while you're building your panels. It also helps to purchase solar cells that have tabs attached to them, because this greatly reduces the amount of soldering work you'll need to do when constructing your solar panels.
After purchasing your solar cells, you'll need to build the solar panel frame. This is just a shallow wooden box. Often it made of plywood for the backing and standard 2-by-4 boards for the frame. You'll also need a piece of glass or plexiglass for the frame's cover. This will protect the inside solar cells from damage and inclement weather.
A piece of peg board is recommended as well, because it makes mounting the soldered solar cells into the frame quick and easy.
Once the sides are attached to the back of your solar panel frame, solder the cells themselves together using the attached tabs that came with them. Attach the soldered cells to the peg board, then sit that down into the wood frame and run your electrical wires. You'll need to have a positive and a negative wire running through the side of the frame so that they can be accessed and used once your frame is sealed.
Attach the glass cover securely and seal the entire solar panel frame from weather and moisture. Your solar panel is now constructed and can be sat out in the sun and attached to a battery for charging