Solar Energy And Going Off The Grid

By Christina Starkits

Everyday people are tossing money in the garbage without even realising it. Nobody really thinks about electricity, we just pay for it and think thats the price of living nowadays. Why not change this mentality? "Going Green", we hear about it all the time but is it easier said than done? Absolutely Not. With a little knowledge and awareness we can save money and preserve our planet. Instead of generating power from outside sources, keep your money in the bank and create your own solar power system within your very own home.

First, when it comes to saving energy, start with the big ticket items. For most households, the biggest draw on their electric bill comes from the refrigerator and air conditioner, followed by the water heater. All of these can be upgraded to save electricity, with energy star certified appliances. Air conditioners can be replaced with evaporative coolers in a lot of places, and there are plenty of good do it yourself kits for making solar water heaters.

Becoming more informed on how to save energy is only the beginning. Making your own source of solar power is the next piece of the puzzle. Contrary to popular belief, making your own solar power at home is not as expensive as people think. With more importance being put on being more environmentally conscious there are great methods out there to produce your own solar power from home allowing you to spend a few hundred dollars rather than a few thousand.

Most people know Albert Einstein as one of the smartest men of all time but few know what earned him his Nobel Prize. Photo-electric effect is the reason Albert recieved his Prize which is also the basics of how solar enerergy is generated. Also refered to as the photo voltaic process, this is basically the process of converting the suns rays (including ultra violate radiation) into usable energy.

The solar panels that are set up for absorbtion of the suns ultra viote rays are not only made to grab the energy and convert it to elecrity but also to store energy for use at a later time. There are also systems out there that serve two purposes in one such as a solar energy system combined with a solar thermal water heater that is a sure fire way to save electricity. There is no need to start out by getting everything all at once, you can start out with the smaller systems available and work your way up from there.

This is a fairly substantial investment in time, and often times in money though it can be done piecemeal. The calculation you need to do is how quickly the solar cells will pay for themselves in reduced electrical bills, and surprisingly enough, this is turning into 'pay out' dates of under a year from installation.

There's more to solar energy and learning how to save electricity than this " this article is just the highlights, and the bare beginnings. Going into renewable energy offers a lot of benefits; generate enough of it, and you'll be selling excess capacity back to your power company. Beyond this, you also get the satisfaction of knowing that you're helping to mitigate our species footprint on the planet, keeping it in better shape for our children.

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