4 Ways To Use Solar Energy At Home

For centuries we have used the sun’s natural energy to our advantage. For example, it has been used in ancient times to provide natural lighting in temples, for photosynthesis and natural heating for growing crops, to desalinize and purify water, and it has been magnified and intensified to heat thermal power plants.

But, more importantly it can also be used on a domestic level, as a clean source energy for various households.

So far people have discovered how to solar power their homes in 4 ways:

Solar Ovens:

Solar cooking is the cleanest and cheapest way to prepare food. Although it is widely used in third world African countries, where fuel and electricity is not readily available, there is no reason we cannot use it during summer at home.

With solar cooking, the oven has a number of reflective panels arranged in a parabola, where they focus the sun on a single pot, in which the food is placed. Depending on the design, the cooker can make a variety of dishes from bread to steamed vegetables to fried eggs to a roast beef, and it typically caters for up to 5 people.

The disadvantage of using a solar cooker is that it can up to four times longer than a conventional oven to cook your food. But if you think that the food it cooks is healthier, cheaper (since no power is used) and it is portable, that extra time should not be such a big issue.

Solar Water Heating:

Solar water heating has a number of uses, and thanks to technological developments, modern solar water heating systems can be used at home to completely replace conventional boilers or geysers.

How it works is water passes through solar panels that convert the sun’s energy into heat, that is then used to heat the water. This water is then stored in a cylinder for use in the home. With the larger solar water heater, the water can get extremely hot and has to combined with cold water to cool it down.

Natural Heating and Lighting:

Over half of a household’s power bill is spent just on heating and ventilation. So it crazy how few people think of trying passive solar living to save power and ultimately money.

Passive solar design is the strategic use of the sun’s energy to heat, light and ventilate your home naturally. For example, having a home that faces the sun, that has large, low-emissivity windows, and that is built from heat-retaining materials will tend to be naturally warmer in winter.

With the right placement of windows and mirrors and even white walls in your home, sunlight can be effectively used to light your home, instead of you having to resort to electric lights.

If your house tends to get very hot in summer and rather cold in winter, one solution would be to plant a deciduous tree that provides shade in summer, but loses it’s leaves in winter.

For free ventilation, you could make use of a solar chimney or solar attic fan, where hot, stale air is sucked out of the home and replaced with cool, fresh air from outside.

Solar Electric Power:

Also known as photovoltaic power, many homes are starting to make their own power at home with solar electric panels. These panels are made up of small silicon cells and need to be directly aimed at the sun to be most effective.

How sunshine becomes electricity, is as the sun shines on the panels, the cells become charged and generate a current that is then stored in batteries. From there, the current is passed through an inverter, where it can then be used to power your household, and even be fed back into the power grid.

The good thing about solar power is that as long the sun is shining, you will get free power, technology is bringing down the costs and there is little effect on the environment. What’s more is, if you cannot afford to spend thousands of dollars on an expert system, you can learn to build your own solar panel system for a tenth of the price.

And these are the 4 ways how to solar power your home. If your are willing to learn how to use these methods at home, you will not only be living a greener life, but you will reduce your power needs and costs, receive renewable energy tax incentives, and lower the burden on our vanishing energy sources. So take the initiative and enjoy the sun’s free, clean, abundant energy now.

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