Top 2 Things To Ask For When Shopping For Solar Panels
There are a number of ways to make your home much more energy efficient. Homeowners can invest in new appliances, water fixtures, tankless heaters, and even something as small as new light bulbs. But there is one environmentally friendly product that many homeowners have not researched, and that is solar electric panels.
Solar electric panels can be difficult to research. Instead of finding practical and helpful information, homeowners often find tons of technical jargon and staggering price information. Solar panels are still quite a financial investment for most homeowners, and depending on the size of the home and how much energy the home uses it can take anywhere from 10 to 20 years for solar panels to pay themselves.
However, this hasn’t stopped many other homeowners from investing. If you choose the right product, they will last you up to 40 years or more and many companies offer warranties up to 25 years. Plus, your electricity bills will become a mere fraction of what they used to be. Many homeowners actually see their electric meter spin backwards after installing the panels.
When searching for solar panels for your home, there are two top things to ask for:
First, you need to know the solar module efficiency for each solar panel product that you look at. Make sure that you are given information for the solar module efficiency and not the individual cell efficiency, as it is preferable to know the efficiency of the entire working unit.
Secondly, you need to know the minimum warranted power of each product. There is a negative tolerance rating for each product which is a percentage that tells you how much power the product is guaranteed to use. As indicated by its name, the percentage should be subtracted from whatever wattage is displayed on the product box. It you have a 200 Watt panel with a negative tolerance rating of 10 percent, than the product is only guaranteed to have a power rating no lower 180 Watts (so its minimum warranted power is 180 Watts). This is a little tricky, but when it comes down it this only means that you could be paying for 200 Watt solar panels and really only get 180 Watt panels. Because of this you should buy panels with a negative tolerance rating of 5 percent or less if you want more value for your money.
To obtain this information and information about the solar module efficiency, you can simply ask the salesperson to print you out a copy of the factory specification sheet. They should not be hesitant to do this, and if they are it is advised that you shop else where.
Learn more about Arizona Solar Electric. 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.
How To Build Your Solar Panels-Learn How To Build Your Own Solar Panels
Wanting to know how to build your own solar panels? If you are, then you are in great luck as this is just what we’re going to speak about. Here are some factors that may help you to install your own solar panel
1. Technical ability: Some basic technical abilities are needed if you are to install a solar panel yourself. A first acquaintance with sawing and working with wires would be required. If you are a DIY admirer, you would have the essential skills that’ll be essential.
2. Budget: You can either choose to give a contract to some specialized business for setting up a system for yourself or else you can build one for your own. Apparently; the budget you need to put aside would be much too higher if you hire a professional than doing it yourself. Set up of solar system by a professional would leave you poorer by something between $20000 -$30000; the same job can be done by you physically for a bit less than $1500.
3. Clear and unobstructed View of Sun: Make sure your house gets unhindered view of the sun. The quantity of sunlight that can be captured depends on this. If some braches of trees block the solar panels, trim them off a bit so the panels may be able to have maximum exposure to sunlight, as the quantity of electricity generated is directly related to the amount of electricity caught by them.
4. Tools and Equipment: If you’ve got a box of tools in your place you will find all of the equipments that you are going to need in the installation process, there is no need to buy any special equipments or tools. You need to have a saw, screws, nails, sand paper, a tape measure and a hammer and a few more that you’ll find in the tool box.
5. A step by step DIY Guide: It’s highly recommended to get an instruction manual which will show you the precise steps you will need to follow to build your own solar panels. These manuals contain complete plans and diagrams that may show precisely how to fix each part. It’s extremely simple to feel totally lost without a good manual.
Visit these sites: HOMEMADE SOLAR PANEL and Domestic Solar Panels for more information.
Wind Turbine Plans – The Simple Way To Choose It Is Best For You.
If you are considering changing your place or business over to wind energy, either to supply 100 percent of your energy wants or just to supplement your existing power supply to cut back your total energy costs, one of the first things you need to do is invest in a group of Wind Generator Plans, which should detail all of the points that you will need to take under consideration before deciding if it is a feasible offer for your particular situation.
With the continuous increase in the price of the fuels required to generate electrical power, together with the ever growing need for us all to cut back on our usage of normal fuels to help in the reduction of the effects of global temperature increases, now could be the perfect time for you to begin considering other strategies for powering your home.
One of the key points to think about is the area in which you live. Obviously a windmill will require wind; so the wind speeds in your neighborhood must be looked at. Ideally you will be looking for a median wind speed of 12 mph. Details of where to go to investigate this item would be included in your wind generator plans. Should you build that you don’t live in an appropriate area for wind energy, you might consider homemade solar cells as an alternative.
You’ll need to establish exactly how much power your house is using now. It may be worth taking this opportunity of having a look at your appliances and see if there are choices available that take less power, such as low power light bulbs and energy efficient fridges and freezers. This will scale back your overall power wishes which will, in turn, cut down on the costs of building your own generating plant.
Power generated from turbines will need some form of storage facility, particularly if you are proposing to be self adequate in your energy wants. This is not most of an issue if you are only intending using your home built system to help your most important power supply, as you can always fall back to this should there not be satisfactory wind available. The technique of storing the remaining energy is by the utilization of an array of batteries, which can on occasion be designed to store as little or as much power as you need dependent on your individual requirements. The way to figure out the power that you’ll need and the amount of storage you will require will be included within your wind generator plans.
Liked the above article? Another article at Do It Yourself Solar Panels on this website Diy wind generator plans
Ways To Conserve Energy In Your Home
While Canada is one of the best countries to live in, the fact remains that our climate is unpredictable and residents are forced to spend large amounts of money in the winter to heat their homes, and to spend just as much money in the summer to cool them down.
It is just early June and already residents of Canada have been forced to shell out cash due to intense heat waves. Not only is the heat incapacitating, it can be dangerous for the elderly and for those who do not remember to keep their bodies hydrated. Therefore, spending money on cooling costs is not luxurious spending. It is essential to the wellbeing of the average Canadian.
In addition to the extra spending, Canadians must remain conscious that the energy being used to cool their homes not only leaves a hole in their wallets, it also increasingly damages our environment by using up precious resources. The question remains as to how we can reduce our energy costs and conserve at the same time, while still maintaining a basic need.
There are some easy ways to reduce your cooling costs, and remain environmentally friendly at the same time. Canadians are now starting to follow these easy tips. If you live in a sunny home, close the blinds. While sunshine is lovely, it can greatly increase the heat generated in your home. If you want the sunlight, close the blinds during 12pm and 2pm, which are the hottest hours of the day.
Buy an air-conditioning system sized appropriately for your home. If you only have a small space you wish to keep cool, purchase a small system. Consult with the person selling the system and ask for their best opinions with regards to space and size.
Ensure that your air-conditioning condenser is not crowded or blocked by other pieces of furniture and that it is located in a shady spot of the room.
Awnings can be installed over sunny spots of your house. Turn off the air conditioner when you are not home. Maintain repairs to your unit, and change the filter monthly.
Make sure the seasonal energy efficiency ratio (SEER) is 13 or better. If a machine is less efficient than this, it will cost more to run. If you don’t use particular rooms of your house, close the ducts and shut the doors.
Make sure your ducts are not covered by furniture. Turn off your televisions and computers when they are not in use because they generate heat. When you are not using lights, turn them off, as they also generate heat. Most of your home’s heat is absorbed through the roof; make sure your attic is properly ventilated.
If Canadians follow these simple tips they can drastically reduce their energy bills in the summer.
There are also ways that you can calculate your cooling by going to Natural Resources Canada: http://oee.nrcan.gc.ca/residential/personal/cooling-ventilation/rooms-ac/cost-calculation.cfm
This will help you figure out how much you are spending, and how you can reduce you costs.
Adriana Noton is a freelance writer who writes on a variety of financial topics including personal budgeting and debt counselling. For more information about personal finance, ConsolidatedCredit.ca is a tremendous resource on the topic for Canadians.
