When beginning a solar energy DIY home conversions project, one question many people have before they start is: What will I need to complete the conversion?

Of course before you start with anything, you should get a good DIY solar guide, and you’ll be walked step by step through the process of setting up your solar energy solution. Aside from that though, let’s cover the basics of what you’ll need to go solar!

There are 7 main components you’ll need when wiring up a solar energy solution for your home. It should be noted here that we’re talking about converting a home, and not just creating portable solar energy solution (in which case you’ll only need 4 components).
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Before you install your home energy solution, you’ll need the following components. These are listed in the order they will be wired into your solar energy system.

1. Solar Panels – In most DIY applications these will be built by you. You order discount photovoltaic cells, and assemble those into 50W, 75W, or 100W Panels.
2. Array DC Disconnect – This simple device is basically just a switch. It allows you to cut the DC power from your solar panels should system maintenance be required. If you shop around you’ll likely pay less than $25 for this component.
3. Charge Controller – Most home systems will be built with a battery backup. The charge controller ensures that a consistent amount of power is sent to the batteries, and that the batteries don’t discharge at night. Again, if you shop around for this component, it won’t be a large expense.
4. Deep Cycle Batteries – To store the power from your solar panels, you will need deep cycle batteries. If you find reconditioned batteries, these can be obtained for fairly cheap. Better yet, you can get old batteries for free and recondition them yourself.
5. System Meter – This component is actually optional, but it is suggested so that you have a clear way to see how much power is being fed into your home from the solar panels.
6. Converter – Since your solar panels produce DC power, and your home runs on AC power, the converter makes the solar energy usable by your home. A 1500W converter likely won’t cost you more than $50.
7. Backup Power – Most systems will also include some sort of backup power. In an off grid application this would generally be a generator. In a city or town, the power grid itself provides the backup.

From there the system gets wired into your home breaker box. At this stage, unless you are qualified, you might consider getting a qualified electrician to install the system. At any rate, you now have an idea of what will be needed to get your home running on solar energy.

If you haven’t done so yet, you should also consider downloading a copy of one of the top guides to teach solar panel DIY. Doing so will ensure you have all of the information you need to get the conversion finished right – the first time!

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With the world’s ever-increasing demand of power being more than its supply, it is about time that we take concrete steps to save power. Apart from being conscious about the usage of power and water at home, one can employ pollution-free and cost-effective power solutions at our homes. Solar power solutions and wind power solutions are the two of the most efficient solutions that can replace the conventional power solutions employed at our homes.

These solutions can help you combat power outages, reduce your electricity bills, and also help the environment.

This article will explore the cost-effective wind power solution that you can employ at home.

Wind power solutions work best when the following conditions are met:
• You have a house or farmhouse spread over a big area. Typically, wind power solutions are employed in areas that spread over an acre.
• The average wind speed in your area is around 11 miles per hour. If you stay in a place that has little wind flow, your system will not work. Consult an expert before installing the wind power solution at home.
• You need to draw water from external sources. You can install a wind power system even when you do not need to draw water from outside. However, if you need to draw water from outside on a regular basis, a wind power system offers the best solution.
• Your house needs a lot of uninterrupted power supply. Combating those power outages is easy with the pollution-free wind power systems. You need no longer worry about a break in your work because of a power uncertainty.

A typical wind power system comprises of a tower and five blades to churn out wind energy. The length of the wind tower varies depending on the location of your house. You may need a longer tower if you are in low-wind zone; you can work with a shorter tower if you live by the beach. Using a wind generator, this wind energy can be converted into useful electrical energy to be employed at home for running various electrical appliances. You can even store the power generated for later use, making wind generators more efficient than convention power systems.

If you are confused with the wind power jargon, here’s a piece of information for you. The terms, wind mills, wind turbines, and wind generators are used to refer to the same machine.

Make power at home with solar and wind energy to eliminate your power bill. Get our complete guide at Click Here!

People may be feeling comfortable living in sunny areas but there are other advantages of the sunshine. One can build a solar home made heater and use it to hear the water instead of using those geysers that consume electricity. So why not plan to save some money, contribute a pollutant free greener environment with a small investment that will cost less than 100$.One can reduce the bill that comes due to the overall consumption of the home by using power extracted from free and renewable energy like the sunlight.

We can start with by buying the energy saving guide called DIY Solar heater. This book has become a rage because of its proven results in saving money for the common consumer. This self guided book contains all the required instructions neatly written that will guide you step by step in building a home made solar heater generator. Your overall energy consumption will reduce by 30$ after you have installed the solar home made heaters. This benefits more if the size of the family is more and all of them are used to have the habit of bathing with warm water.

The DIY guide suggests you on where to get all the required materials for building the solar water heater instead of purchasing the commercial ones that cost more than 1000$.The investment for a home made solar water heater as suggested by the guide is one time but the returns will be coming soon. The maintenance for such systems is very less as one may need to change the solar panels only. There are no moving parts in the system that requires oiling or monthly maintenance.

The project to build is very easy and one can install a home made heater in less than a week. Make sure the solar panels receive lot of sunlight. It is not suited for areas that receive more rainfall or less sunshine through out the year.

A solar water heater is an easy do it yourself project for the average homeowner, and one that can be completed in just one weekend.

Experts agree that the solar water heater system built at a home is the best investment that one makes in an aim to get long term returns. Few governments also give tax rebates for those consumers who are planning to install the solar heaters at their homes.So, why not find out how quickly you can began to install the solar heater at home by buying the DIY Guide now. Click Here! 

All batteries will fail at some point, when they have been in use for longer periods of time. But premature battery failure is one of the main frustrations people face.

Common thinking is that turning devices off extends battery life, but what happens is the opposite. Devices consume more power when they are starting up, so turning them off is not such a good idea if they are going to be switched on frequently.

Cars and Other Automobiles

It is important to protect the car battery from high under the hood temperatures with the use of a case or a heat shield. The battery life can be extended by keeping the battery charged at all times. Electrolyte levels will have to be checked frequently during the hot months. A recent study revealed that relocating the battery outside the engine compartment has increased its life by almost eight months. Car manufacturers are relocating the starting battery to the passenger compartment or the trunk to avoid under the hood temperatures. It also helps to use wet batteries vented to the outside or cells that do not produce gas when recharged. Based on the driving of each individual, some batteries are undercharged and this leads to sulfation, where lead sulfate gets accumulated, reducing the battery capacity. An external battery can be used for charging.

For any battery, the most important factor to consider is the temperature. Ensuring they are not exposed to too much heat can extend the life of a battery. It is common sense that high temperatures lead to faster chemical reactions. They need to be watered more often with only deionized or demineralized water. However, rain water is a good substitute in an emergency. In addition to the temperature, a reduction in the number of discharge/charge cycles significantly improves battery service life. In extremely cold climates, the car battery needs to be continuously kept fully charged when not in use.

Portable Electronic Devices

Battery life can be increased for iPods, cell phones, laptops etc. by lowering the brightness when not necessary. For example, when using these devices in a dark room, it is not necessary to set the brightness to 100%. The brightness can be lowered enough so that the screen can be seen without exerting any strain on the eyes can be done. The amount of time the backlight stays on can also be decreased. For iPods it doesn’t have to stay on for 10 seconds, 2 seconds should be good enough. Laptops can be set in hibernate mode when not in use.

One most important point that not many people are aware of is that turning down the volume increases battery life. Use headphones that are louder and leave the volume at 50%.

Background applications are power hungry monsters. Stop everything that is not being used. Defragmenting the hard drive once in a while helps decrease file scatter on the hard drive and uses up less power. Send the computer into standby mode after a certain period of inactivity as it conserves battery. Although, standby resume also uses some power but not as much as starting up. Interestingly, leaving a CD or DVD in the drive can decrease battery life, as it hogs power whenever the drive spins up.

In Wi-Fi Applications

Battery life in Wi-Fi apps can be prolonged by either increasing battery capacity or reducing Wi-Fi product power consumption and through control methods. It is easy to increase battery capacity; however, due to technological limits, it may lead to an increase in cost and size of the battery. That brings us to the option of reducing power consumption, which can be done by prolonging the standby time and shortening the time of the active cycle. You can also turn off the WiFi on the iPod when not in use as it consumes a large amount of life.

These techniques of low power consumption can improve battery life dramatically. Most of them are common sense usage techniques and can easily be made part of our daily lives. Click Here!

The first thing to look at, before you ever consider converting to wind power, is the area where you live. A windmill solution obviously requires wind. More specifically you want wind speeds that exceed 8MPH on average. Even 8MPH is considered a low-wind-speed area for wind turbines. 12MPH average is ideal.

To start, take the time to look at the wind speed charts that fit your area:

If You Live in the USA:  http://www.ncdc.noaa.gov/oa/climate/online/ccd/wndspd.txt

If You Live in Canada: http://www.wunderground.com/global/Region/CN/WindSpeed.html

If You Live in the UK or Europe: http://www.xcweather.co.uk

If you live in Australia: http://www.wunderground.com/global/Region/AU/WindSpeed.html

Assuming that the average wind speed in your area is above 8MPH, then continue on to the other considerations listed below. If you don’t live in a suitable area, then you should consider a solar power conversion instead.
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Wind Turbine Considerations

Once you’ve determined that wind power is suitable for your area there are a few other things you need to consider.  Really this is just about asking some questions and then answering them. Taking the time to do so will ensure you choose a wind power system that fits. Especially if you are planning to live off the grid, you should take the time to answer these questions before you start.
Your Power Needs

The first thing that needs to be considered is your power needs. Are you simply looking to reduce your power bill with a single small windmill? Or, will you want to power your entire home?
If you’re looking to power your whole home, you should take the time to calculate your actual power requirements. If you take the time to download Earth 4 Energy, their guide comes with a calculator and instructions on how to do this (you’ll need this guide anyway).
Storing Power from Wind Turbines

From the answer to your first question you then need to consider building a storage system for your wind turbine. A simple array of batteries can be designed to store as little or as much power as needed.
If you’re only building a small wind power solution to reduce your power bills then this is likely less of a concern.
On the other hand if you’re looking to live off the grid, you will need to consider energy storage. You should use your calculation for your power needs to design this part of your system. Take into consideration how much power you will need to store and for how long.
If you have weeks where there is less wind than usual, ensure that you have a large enough battery array to compensate (or better yet work to reduce you energy needs by using high efficiency bulbs and appliances).
Having a Backup Plan

Finally, for those who plan to live entirely off the grid, you should consider your backup plan. For most of us consistent power is a requirement. Ensure that you design your wind turbine solution with a backup plan. Generally a small gas generator is enough to ensure you have power if something goes wrong. Click Here!

The trend toward homes that are powered by alternative energy sources, ranging from wind turbines and solar collection cells to hydrogen fuel cells and biomass gases, is one that needs to continue into the 21st century and beyond. We have great need of becoming more energy independent, and not having to rely on the supplying of fossil fuels from unstable nations who are often hostile to us and our interests. But even beyond this factor, we as individuals need to get “off the grid” and also stop having to be so reliant on government-lobbying giant oil corporations who, while they are not really involved in any covert conspiracy, nevertheless have a stranglehold on people when it comes to heating their  homes (and if not through oil, then heat usually supplied by grid-driven electricity, another stranglehold).

As Remi Wilkinson, Senior Analyst with Carbon Free, puts it, inevitably, the growth of distributed generation will lead to the restructuring of the retail electricity market and the generation, transmission and distribution infrastructure. The power providers may have to diversify their business to make up for revenues lost through household energy microgeneration. She is referring to the conclusions by a group of UK analysts, herself included among them, who call themselves Carbon Free. Carbon Free has been studying the ever-growing trend toward alternative energy-using homes in England and the West. This trend is being driven by ever-more government recommendation and sometimes backing of alternative energy research and development, the rising cost of oil and other fossil fuels, concern about environmental degradation, and desires to be energy independent. Carbon Free concludes that, assuming traditional energy prices remain at their current level or rise, microgeneration (meeting all of one’s home’s energy needs by installing alternative energy technology such as solar panels or wind turbines) will become to home energy supply what the Internet became to home communications and data gathering, and eventually this will have deep effects on the businesses of the existing energy supply companies.

Carbon Free’s analyses also show that energy companies themselves have jumped in on the game  and seek to leverage microgeneration to their own advantage for opening up new markets for themselves. Carbon Free cites the example of electricity companies (in the UK) reporting that they are seriously researching and developing ideas for new geothermal energy facilities, as these companies see geothermal energy production as a highly profitable wave of the future. Another conclusion of Carbon Free is that solar energy hot water heating technology is an efficient technology for reducing home water heating costs in the long run, although it is initially quite expensive to install.  However, solar power is not yet cost-effective for corporations, as they require too much in the way of specialized plumbing to implement solar energy hot water heating. Lastly, Carbon Free tells us that installing wind turbines is an efficient way of reducing home electricity costs, while also being more independent. However, again this is initially a very expensive thing to have installed, and companies would do well to begin slashing their prices on these devices or they could find themselves losing market share.

There is a lot of energy that we can  harness if we only seek to research and develop the technologies needed to do so. We can get away from the fossil fuels and the old electrical grids by turning to alternatives to these energy sources.

One of these alternative energy resources is wind power. Wind turbines continue to be developed that are progressively more energy efficient and less costly. “Wind farms” have been springing up in many nations, and they have even become more strategically placed over time so that they are not jeopardizing birds as former wind turbines did.

Another alternative energy resource is the one that is most well known: solar energy. This involves the manufacturing of solar cells which gather and focus the energy given off directly by the sun, and translate it into electricity or, in some cases, hot water. As with wind energy, solar energy creates absolutely zero pollution.

Ocean wave energy is seen by governments and investors as having enormous energy generating potential. A generator in France has been in operation for many years now and is considered to be a great success, and the Irish and Scots are running experimental facilities.

Hydroelectric power has been with us for a while and where it is set up, it is a powerful generator of electricity and cleaner than a grid. However, there are certain limitations to the availability of the right places to set up a large dam. Many run-of-the-river, or small and localized, hydroelectric generators have been set up in recent times due to this limitation.

Geothermal energy is extremely abundant, since it lies directly beneath our feet, just a few miles below the earth’s surface. This energy is produced by the heating of water through the actions of earth’s fantastically hot molten core. The water turns to steam, which can be harnessed and used to drive turbine engines which in turn generate electricity. Great amounts of research and development should be put into geothermal energy tapping.

Waste gas energies, which are essentially methane, reverse the usual energy-pollution relationship by creating energy from waste that lies in the dumps and from some air pollutants. This gas is used in fuel cells and can be used in standard gasoline generators.

Ethanol is a gasoline substitute and is created from such things as wheat, sugarcane, grapes, strawberries, corn, and even wood chips and wood cellulose. There is controversy over this fuel with regards to its ever becoming truly economical or practical except in very localized areas, but technologies for its extraction and admixturing are continuously being refined.

Biodiesel energy is created out of the oils contained in plants. So far, the commercial stores of biodiesel have been created using soybean, rapeseed, and sunflower oils. At the time of this writing, biodiesel is typically produced by entrepreneurial minded individuals or those who want to experiment with alternative energy, but commercial interest from companies is on the rise. It burns much cleaner than oil-based diesel.

Atomic energy is created in atomic energy plants using the process of nuclear fission. This energy is extremely efficient and can generate huge amounts of power. There is concern from some people about what to do with the relatively small amount of waste product atomic energy gives off, since it is radioactive and takes hundreds of years to decay into harmlessness.