Thứ Bảy, 12 tháng 1, 2013

Discover Solar Energy Advantages You May Not Yet Be Aware Of

Solar energy is a renewable energy source created by harnessing the heat and light radiation emitted from the sun and converting it into electricity. Solar energy is immensely popular today. Because of the current concerns about global warming and electricity bills going up almost every day, it's no wonder people are looking for alternative methods to power their homes. In the last few years, soaring energy demands, increasing environmental awareness and declining traditional fuel reserves have made us aware of the many solar energy advantages and forced us look into this alternative energy option.
Solar energy is not a new idea by any means. The Greeks actually used solar architecture, hundreds of years ago. They constructed their houses at certain angles to get the greatest benefit from the sun's rays since the sun moves across the sky at different angles from summer to winter. Thus the sun's rays entered during the cold weather, but were blocked during the heat of summer.
The sun provides us with an unlimited source of clean energy which can be easily harnessed through the use of photovoltaic panels. Solar energy makes sense for numerous reasons. First of all, the sun's output of energy is constant day in and day out. Clouds may block sunlight so obviously this type of energy works better in sunny climates. It is much more practical than building expensive power lines into remote areas, where people may not have the money to pay for conventional electricity.
Solar energy can be used for water heating, cooking, drying, refrigeration, in fact everything we use conventional electricity for. Of all the solar energy technologies, photovoltaics (PV) is the most efficient. Some of the main solar energy advantages are that working photovoltaics have no moving parts, are very simple in design, require little maintenance and of course are environmentally friendly.
Installing a solar energy system doesn't just benefit the environment. It has other benefits like reducing household energy bills. One advantage not often mentioned, is you can actually increase your house value by installing your own photovoltaic panels.
Some homes use a combined power system that integrates the use of solar energy along with power supplied by an existing power grid. Although the house is not totally dependent on solar power, this type of system can reduce electricity bills and provide a viable backup system in case the local power grid fails.
We have listed several solar energy advantages, but there are also certain disadvantages we should be aware of. Photovoltaic panels will need periodic maintenance. The panels themselves will have to be cleaned on a regular basis to allow maximum performance. The angle or tilt of some types of panel may need to be altered a couple of times a year and back again to allow for the seasonal movement of the sun.
Solar, like all sources of energy does require valuable raw materials, whose scarcity can often increase costs. In the case of solar, one in particular is silicon, which is used to make the thin wafers for solar cells Solar energy in its raw form may be free from pollution, but making the devices that produce the energy requires extraction from mines and smelters, thus causing pollution.
Home solar power systems can be a great way to drastically reduce, if not totally eliminate, your monthly power bills. They can be designed to provide both electricity and hot water, and in most cases, are quite easy to install. Today, energy conservation is no longer simply a good idea. It offers a real alternative to outdated high-cost energy consumption.
There are many solar energy advantages and this renewable resource is being used more and more as electricity costs rise and our fossil fuels become depleted. To find out more about renewable energy, come and see me at Discovering Green Energy where you can learn ways to save on your energy. My name is Gail Dobson and I'm for the environment.


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