Douglas Taylor asked:


There are a number of reasons why you should be considering having an emergency back up power supply system installed in your home. Today problems with sudden power failures are now becoming quite common and can affect us at any time. However, by having even a cheap solar backup power system installed in your home or office can help to avert any major crises in the future.

Certainly a lot of businesses today rely on generators or inverters to provide up emergency power if the normal power supply is loss. However although they are convenient many of these do not actually supply sufficient amounts of power to operate everything that they have. Also in many cases these will only allow them to provide power to the essential items within the office for a period of no more than 8 hours.

The other thing with using either inverters or generators as an emergency back up supply for your home is that you need too have sufficient amounts of gasoline or other fuel to run them. Yet with setting up even one of the less expensive solar powered backup energy systems can be more beneficial not just to a business or a home, but also to the environment as well.

With a backup solar powered system it can be not only much more safe than other types of emergency backup as well as being far more efficient. The other reason why you should consider having a solar powered backup emergency supply installed at your property is that it offers you a continuous supply of power for as long as it is required.

However, the system does need to be installed properly and if it is, then it will supply all your power supply needs without any kind of interruption until such time as the normal power supply is resumed. The other advantage to installing such a system in your home rather than using a generator or inverter is that it requires very little maintenance.

With generators and inverters you need to make sure that they have sufficient amounts of fuel to run them. In addition, they will need to be regularly checked over to ensure that none of the major components that make them run is not damaged and replacing such parts can be quite expensive.

Whereas with a power supply backup system that is run using solar power it leads little or no maintenance. Occasionally you may need to give the panels, which are used to draw energy into the batteries a cleaning and check that the batteries are still holding their charge. But other than these there are very few other things that you will need to ensure that the system remains working effectively.

So if you are looking for a safe, efficient as well as reliable power supply for your home or office then getting even a cheap solar backup power system could be the right kind of investment you may. Then when the time does come that you need to use it you know it is ready and waiting and can be used just at the flip of a switch.

Jeffrey Langfels asked:


Radiation emitted by the sun can be captured and converted into useful forms of energy. This energy can be used to power electricity appliances in homes or heat water. The feasibility and economical operation of home solar panels depends on the availability of sunlight in the region.

Solar Energy

To get maximum benefit from home solar panels the ideal place to install it is on roof tops, ideally mounted to face south, but south/east and south/west are great too. PV home solar panels are electric generating solar panels, which are a little more expensive than solar thermal systems. PV solar panels have zero maintenance, and zero fuel cost. These panes have no moving parts. No one actually knows how long these panels will last as the very first PV panels are still producing electricity today.

The optimum size of home solar panels depend on how much energy in kilowatt-hours is necessary per month, and how much it costs per month. Shifting entirely to electricity generated from home solar panels will mean reducing the use of home appliances which draw plenty of electricity.

Home solar panels are becoming popular source of renewable energy for home owners. To have a hassle free installation, solar panels should be purchased from manufacturers who are leaders in this technology. The panels should have durable connectors on the module, as this is one of the items that give trouble. The connections should be sturdy as it is open to all weather conditions. The terminals should also be rugged.

Unlike electricity generated from finite fossil sources like oil, gas and coal, solar energy has no fuel price volatility. With no moving parts, home solar panels are ideal for small homes where solar power has negligible maintenance cost and are reliable. Solar cells generate electricity without air and water emissions. There is no noise pollution either.

The cost of solar electricity is higher than the cost of retail electricity from private power houses. This is so because home solar panels require relatively high up-front costs and low ongoing operational costs. The only obstacle for its mass popularity is its initial investment. As technology in home solar panels become mature, PV cell efficiency increases, manufacturing efficiencies better, and economies of scale improve, it will become more affordable to many more people. Another reason for its low popularity is its aesthetics. The present panels are bulky, heavy, rigid, fragile and non-modular. A flexible, lighter, modular solar panel which fits aesthetically into homes will be welcome.

Tim Phelan asked:


Is It Time For Solar Energy To Get Hot? By Tim Phelan

Solar energy has been around for quite a while and most people don’t think about it much except for the ones who are already into renewable sources of energy. Environmentalists have always loved the idea of solar energy but what has kept it from going more mainstream, being more widely used and looked upon as something someone wants to spend money to install on their property? There have been improvements in the technology of solar energy, but has there been enough? Isn’t the war on terror and the desire to be independent of foreign energy sources enough to persuade people to use solar energy? At what point will solar energy become the great and never ending source of energy many of envisioned many years ago?

Well, I, for one, think that the time has just about come for solar energy to really take off because of one reason: it will be economically the right and smart thing to do.

Last year I was driving to Las Vegas from San Jose and when I was just about three quarters of the way to my destination I passed a sign that said something about a “solar farm.” I glanced over and saw row upon row of solar panels sitting in the middle of the dessert. This is about the only farm that could survive in the dessert I thought to myself. Then I thought ” Wow. Why can’t I do that?” In a smaller fashion of course because of my limited resources. But I thought why not rent some land and buy some of these panels and start my own little farm? It made sense and actually it still makes sense to me.

I went home later and looked into the solar energy industry. I wanted to see if this was possible now and I thought if these people put all those panels out in the dessert and sold the energy to others why can’t a small businessman?

Well, what I found out is that it isn’t quite possible to do just yet. Why? Because the cost of the panels, property, labor etc.. wasn’t low enough to make a profit for what you can sell the energy for. The solar farm was more than likely subsidized by the government. So I looked into the possibility of using them on homes. This thought has been around for decades and you do see the panels on more homes than you used to so I was wondering if this was possible now. I found out that it just takes too long for the average consumer to get their investment back to consider putting solar panels on their homes.

The average time for a homeowner to get the money back on their investment is anywhere from 12 years to 20 years. For this industry to take off that figure I believe will have to go down to around 5 to 7. Not that far really. It could actually go below that.

Three things have to happen for the solar energy promise to become a reality and for homeowners and entrepreneurs to decide in large numbers to use solar panels to create electricity:

1. The price of the panels will have to decrease. 2. The panels will have to improve and produce more energy. 3. The cost of energy will have to increase.

Actually just one of these factors can happen to a great degree and the other two stay constant and the point will be reached where the solar energy industry will explode. But more than likely, all three will come closer together and at some point people will decide to start buying the panels in record numbers and we will see this way of creating energy from a clean and renewable source be common place.

Here is why I think the time is very near for this explosion to happen.

1. There is a bill in the state legislature in California now that will spend on rebates for solar energy. The governor wants to show that he is in the front of this movement and wants to be aggressive. Some don’t like the way the bill is written, but there is a good chance it will pass. Click here for the article

2. The panels are becoming more and more efficient at producing more energy.

3. The price may go down dramatically if contracts with China to produce the panels are put into place. Normally I don’t like our jobs going oversees to people who only get fractions of what the US worker makes but in this instance it will also create many jobs here to install the panels, sell them, warehouse them etc… Plus this is something the country needs I feel. Clean, renewable energy that makes us less reliable on foreign oil and gases.

Also, some companies are producing these new generation flexible solar energy panels that come in sheets and can be rolled up and then out onto surfaces. These may bring the cost way down and make the instalation much more easy and cost efficiant. Here is an article about this new product: Click Here

At what point will these three variables merge?

I predict in the next two to three years this industry will take off like so many of us were hoping it would many years ago.

If you want to know how to install a solar electric panel system to your house here is a inexpensive e-book that shows you how. Click Here People can act now, and many already are by buying and installing these solar panels. With the war on terror looking like it could last decades many look upon this investment as not only a clean green solution and a smart investment on increasing the value of their home, but as almost a patriotic gesture in a way to free us from the dependence on middle eastern oil and natural gas. Here is a link to a terrific site where you can get these panels at wholesale prices. This site has all sorts of renewable energy sources at great prices.

Altenenergystore.com

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James Bratley asked:


Over recent years, many scientists have been designing new and expensive technologies with the aim to save the earth, or reduce the effects from global warming. One of these ideas lies in a concept of giant solar shades.

Much like ordinary sunglasses you place over your eyes in bright sunshine, the solar shades in question block out some of the suns harmful rays, only with one major difference. These shades will rest a million miles above our heads.

The logic behind this invention is to provide the global population with one giant sunshade consisting of 16 trillion outer space solar shades. These solar shades are super thin and lightweight glass discs which act like a lens on your average sunglasses to divert the suns rays.

Dr. Roger Angel (the brains behind the glass optics) is one of the worlds most renowned experts in the field of glass optics. He is responsible for designing the mirrors on telescopes, and believes glass could the answer to solving global warming.

It is predicted that only 2% of the suns rays need to be diverted in order to save the planet from increased global warming. The solar shades will have to cover a distance of 100,000km in width. The proposed area for the solar shades to orbit at is known as the “L1 point”. This is the point of zero gravity between the sun and the earth.

The solar optics will have tiny solar panels attached which can act as rudders to provide a gliding ability for the optics to change direction if needed.

A huge problem associated with this invention will be the process of transporting these solar optics into space. Dr. Angel has calculated the total weight of the tiny sunshades to be around 20 million tonnes. Presuming if this method is chosen to save the world, and the space shuttle is still the best space exploration vehicle, it will take 870,000 trips into space to deliver the entire solar shade as the space shuttles cargo weight can be only 23 tonnes a go.

There are currently four other extraordinary ideas in play, competing against this one to be the saviour of our home on earth, it will be interesting to see whether any of these will ever make it to the production stage.

We need to look after our environment, and the use of natural energy (such as solar electricity) should be our first focus, along with any reduction of our fossil fuel intake and carbon emissions.

http://www.clean-energy-ideas.com

Jim Fritz asked:


One of the difficulties that solar and renewable energy have faced in the past is that it requires people to learn about it. People are busy and they are also reluctant to change and learn. It is much easier to get energy from traditional sources that seem to “magically” transfer power and electricity to homes through the wires of the electricity grid. However, we are becoming increasingly aware of problems with this entrenched attitude. We seem to hear almost daily about power blackouts and brownouts, along with warnings about dwindling energy supplies.

One way to begin to educate yourself and your children about energy and electricity is to purchase one of many different kinds of small solar energy systems. From solar toys to solar lights to portable solar panels, small solar electric systems make it easy to learn some of the basics of energy. You can learn about the generation of energy and get an idea of how it is limited by certain factors. Your kids can use a small solar toy or solar energy kit to see directly the relationship between energy generation and availability. From your solar light, you will learn that a sunlit day will make the light shine powerfully that evening. Conversely, you will notice a relationship between cloudy days and dimness or lack of light from your solar light. While a small portable solar panel provides energy for your boat or RV, it can also teach the need for energy storage (the battery) and conservation. Even a solar light gives you a micro-version of all electricity systems: the panel generates energy, the wires transfer it, a battery stores it and the light bulb uses it.

One of the unfortunate effects of the convenience of the energy grid is that people remain largely unaware of aspects of energy production and the need for its proper management. When we plug into a wall and get instant energy, it’s easy to forget that that energy is finite and inhibited by circumstances.

The effect of holding a small solar electric system in your hands takes some of the mystery out of energy and power. Energy is no longer something “made” at a distant generating station or power plant. The effect is, well, empowering. It’s similar to the way that personal fitness and some styles of alternative health give you a measure of control over your own health. Build on the knowledge you get from a small solar electric system, learn about generating your own energy and you will have increased authority over your household power, a vital area of your life.

Purchasing a small solar electric system like those found in solar toys or other gadgets can be a simple and efficient way to introduce both you and your family to solar energy. This knowledge just may come in handy in the coming years, as solar energy and other kinds of renewable energy systems become a bigger part of grid generation and more popular as the publicly owned “power plants.”

Sparksy asked:


Many people like the idea of ‘living green’ but generally shy away from the installation of solar power solutions at home because they imagine that it would be very be expensive and difficult to do yourself. But, nothing could be further from the truth. It’s actually very easy to employ these kind of solar power solutions. The added bonus is that these will help to lower your power bills. On top of lower bills and self sufficiency you can also rest easy in the knowledge that you’re doing your bit to save power for future mankind.

The purpose of article will look at the various solar power options available for home use.

Solar cooker: A solar cooker is generally a small box that you can use for cooking in much the same way as a conventional cooker except that it has no means of connection to any form of grid electricity or gas. On some of the larger models you can quite happily cook food for up to five people. you’re thinking that it can’t be much good without conventional means of power, you’d be wrong! You can cook the same kind of meals that you would have at home, you can boil,roast and bake just the same. I have to be honest though and say that it does take longer but given the fact that you’re using a free source of energy, this is a superb option for cutting down those ever increasing electricity bills and saving some power.

Solar home lighting: A solar home lighting system consists of a number of solar panels (dependent on the size of your home) and simply converts sunlight into electrical energy for you to use at home. It uses the same kind of energy cells that you find on a pocket calculator which you charge with solar energy except that these home solar panels store the electricity it creates for later use. With a calculator, if you move out of the light, they tend to dim or switch off. With home solar panels they hold on to the power for later use. Once you’ve installed the solar home lighting system in your home you can call up your local power company and thank them for all the years they’ve been robbing you blind and they can now put their bills where the sun don’t shine!

Solar heating system: Solar heating systems are rapidly becoming the norm these days with many of the new homes being built having the solar heating panels pre-installed, and many existing home owners carrying out an installation. The various companies providing solar power solutions for homes have now designed the solar panels to be more aesthetically-pleasing and I’m sure that if you’ve seen them on rooftops, they kind of look a bit like sky-lights.

Any of the above solar energy solutions can be expensive if you buy from a store and it gets even more expensive if you have the system fitted by a professional. However, despite popular belief (as perpetuated by professional fitters no doubt) it is not difficult to do your self and you can make a start from as little as a couple hundred bucks. That kind of money will see you making a big return on your investment in a very short period of time. Bye-bye power bills.

Gina Buss asked:


Public concern about global warming and rising energy costs has led to an increased interest in clean, renewable energy. Solar energy is a particularly attractive alternative to petroleum dependence. Solar energy is a clean, reliable and endlessly renewable energy source, and new technology has made it more affordable than ever to homes and businesses.

Even so, the initial cost of buying and installing a solar energy system can be daunting. A typical solar installation for a single family dwelling could cost $20,000. Though using solar power saves money on utility bills, eventually giving a complete return on your investment, the initial cost can be prohibitive to many consumers.

Fortunately there are numerous financial incentives at the federal, state and local level that can significantly defray the cost of installing a solar energy system.

Incentives are available from federal, state and municipal governments, from local and regional groups including non-profit and private organizations, and from local utility companies.

At the federal level, the Renewable Energy and Energy Conservation Tax Act of 2005 provided funding for tax incentives for residential and commercial applications. This Act seeks to support the development of energy efficiency and energy independence.

The Act provides two federal tax incentives for homeowners. The Residential Solar Fuel Cell Tax Credit is a personal tax credit which applies to solar hot water systems, photovoltaic, or PV systems (solar electricity), fuel cells, or other solar technologies.

Homeowners can receive a credit for 30% of the cost of installing a solar energy system, with a cap of $2,000 for a PV system, and an additional $2,000 for a solar hot water system; and a cap of $500 per .5 kW generated by fuel cells.

Excess credit, that credit which amounts to more than the taxpayer’s liability, can be carried forward to the next tax year. Installation must be certified by the Solar Rating and Certification Corporation, or SRCC; or by a comparable rating system endorsed by individual states.

Additionally, at least one-half of the residence’s energy needs must be provided by the solar technology.

The federal government also allows a Personal Exemption : the Residential Energy Conservation Subsidy Exclusion. This exemption applies to solar and other efficiency technologies, including solar hot water, solar space heat, and Photovoltaic.

Owners of single and multi-family dwellings can deduct any subsidies provided to them by public utilities for energy conservation. That means that any increase in a homeowner’s income due to a subsidy or rebate from a utility company as a result of the installation of an “energy conservation” measure, will not be taxed.

“Energy conservation” has not yet been explicitly defined by the IRS, though in practice it is understood to include solar technologies. It would wise, however, to consult with a tax advisor about this matter.

The federal government also provides federal loans, both residential and commercial. These are Energy Efficiency Mortgages, or EEMs, that home and business owners can use to finance energy efficiency improvements to existing buildings.

EEMs are available through the FHA and the VA. FHA loans allow lenders to add 100% of the costs of energy efficiency improvements to existing mortgages, by insuring loans of up to 5% of the appraised value of a home, or $4,000, whichever is the greater, with a cap of $18,000.

VA loans can be used to purchase an existing home or to refinance a mortgage for energy efficiency improvements.

EEMs are also available through Energy Star, Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac. Energy Star loans are not guaranteed by the federal government, but they currently provide a listing of 49 financial institutions that will provide loans specifically for energy efficient new homes or improvements to existing homes.

Private lenders such as Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac also provide conventional energy efficiency mortgages as well.

Federal grants are also available to commercial and agricultural entities to promote the development of energy efficiency and energy independence. Unfortunately, the Federal Renewable Energy and Energy Conservation Tax Act is due to expire at the end of 2008.

The most recent energy bill, passed in December 2007, did not extend funding for renewable energy. While the matter of funding for renewable energy will no doubt come up again, and be vigorously debated in the next budget, as of now, its future is in doubt at the federal level.

Luckily, federal funding is only one facet of the broad array of financial incentives available. At the state level, there are tax incentives, state loans, grants, and rebates, municipal, regional and local rebates, utility rebates and credits, private funding, and non-profit funding.

State and local incentives vary greatly. Some states have taken the lead in offering financial help to home and business owners who want to develop energy independence. Other states clearly lag behind, though in some cases, private, non-profit and utility incentives pick up the slack from state governments.

Each state has its own tax law, and tax incentives range from tax rebates of thousands of dollars for each system (for example Vermont offers up to $8,750 for a PV system and another $8,750 for a solar hot water system), to tax exemptions.

Two types of tax exemptions found are sales tax exemptions, a one time exemption; and property tax exemptions, which carry into successive years. Property tax exemptions allow any increase in the value of a property due to the installation of renewable energy systems to be exempt from taxation.

In addition to tax incentives at the state level, there are other sources of financial aid such as low interest loans, grants, and rebates from state and municipal governments, utility companies, and various private and non-profit organizations. Eligibility varies as widely as incentives do.

So how can a consumer find what types of financial incentives are available in his state?

The best source of information is the Database of State Incentives for Renewable Energy, or DSIRE. DSIRE is a comprehensive listing of financial incentives for renewable energy. DSIRE offers information about financial aid on the federal and state level.

To find information about your state, simply click your state on the map, and any incentives offered in your state are listed, including tax breaks, loans, grants, local or regional incentives, and rebates offered by public utility systems. Links to further websites and contact information are also provided.

Additionally, there is an easy link to federal tax information from each state page. DSIRE is the go-to site for determining what financial assistance you may be eligible to receive.

Don’t overlook consulting with an experienced solar energy installation specialist. He or she should be familiar with any funding that is available in your area.

Also, do consult with a tax advisor to ensure that you correctly claim the right credits and exemptions on your tax return.

With all the financial incentives currently available, installing a solar energy system is more affordable than it has ever been. There’s never been a better time than right now to invest in solar energy.

Introduction:

Global warming impact to our quality and cost of living is large and very catastrophic. Homeowners are well aware of the increasing energy costs to heat, cool and illuminate their homes. The increasing costs of oil and other fossil fuels are daily headlines. The insatiable demand for energy to fuel world growth guarantees that the cost of these limited fuels will continue to increase. Political/economic forces will determine the rate of increase for fossil fuels. In addition, the increasing cost of global warming using fossil fuels is slowly being recognized.

The world is slowly beginning to understand the urgent need for renewable energy sources. However, each of these alternative energy sources brings major advantages and disadvantages. An example is wind generated energy. Wind energy is available to the whole world and generates electricity competitively with fossil fuels. The technology is understood and easy to apply. But, there are big objections to a windmill in “my back yard”. Also, the number of birds and bats that will be crushed with wind power generation is not a warming thought. Wind technology will be a component of our energy solution. However, because of the above concerns, we need other major solutions to meet our demand for energy sources.

This search leads us to solar energy. The amount of sun energy striking our world in one day is sufficient to supply our energy demands for a year. We will not run out of this source in the foreseeable future. The major barrier to harnessing solar energy has been cost and convenience. For example, drying clothes in a dryer is easier than hanging clothes on an outside line, thus convenience precluded efforts to find more energy efficiency. We can convert solar energy to electricity but with a major capital cost. Greater acceptance and use of solar energy will lead to lower cost.

Solar Energy:

Energy from solar energy can be divided into two major categories:

Passive Solar Energy: This technology ranges from clothes drying in the sun to solar heating for hot water and many other passive techniques. All are important for our present and future quality of life. The technology is well understood and can be implemented as economics and space conditions allow.

Active Solar Energy: One of the active solar energy technologies is converting solar energy directly into electricity. It is called photovoltaic cell or PV. This is a device that converts light into electricity using the photoelectric effect. The first working solar cells were constructed by Charles Fritts in 1883. These prototype cells were made of selenium and achieved efficiencies around one percent. The silicon solar cell was created in 1954. The solar cell has benefited from the development of silicon semiconductors.

Physics of Active Solar Energy:

The physics of photon to electricity conversion is well understood by physicists. The basic model is of a photon from the sun which strikes the cell material and excites electrons that emit electricity. This model is simple compared to the complexity of modern day semiconductors. The major variables of PV electrical generation are cell material and impurities in the cell material.

Manufacturing Technology for Active Solar Energy:

Primarily single crystal, high purity silicon has been used to generate photon to electricity conversion. The manufacturing techniques for single crystal silicon and limited quantities of pure silicon impose a high cost for PV devices. Shortages of refined silicon have been hampering production worldwide since late 2004. This shortage persists to this date and has slowed PV growth. New materials are starting to come forward which should lower the PV materials hurdle.

Efficiency growth of Active Solar Energy:

Since the silicon PV invention in 1954, cheaper fossil fuel prices largely removed solar power from the public consciousness. Annual growth of electrical generation by PV ranged from 10 to 20% percent throughout the 1980’s and 1990’s. Worldwide installation of PV reached 1000 megawatts in 1999. Manufacturing costs for PV arrays has been dropping 3 to 5% over the recent years. This cost drop began to expand the use of PV electricity generation. Total peak power of installed PV was around 6000 megawatts at the end of 2006. Installed PV is projected to increase to over 9,000 megawatts in 2007. The average lowest retail cost of large photovoltaic arrays has declined from $7.50 to $4.00 per watt between 1990 and 2005.

PV materials have also been improving in recent years. The most recent materials approach is to process discrete cells on silicon wafers cut from multi crystalline ribbons which form thin films. This approach is the least expensive of known technologies. This group of technologies includes amorphous silicon cells deposited on stainless-steel ribbon, cadmium telluride (CdTe) cells deposited on glass, and copper indium gallium dielenide (CIGS) alloy cells deposited on either glass or stainless steel substrates. The efficiencies of these new materials are currently at 20%. Many researchers are working to improve the efficiencies. An added advantage of the new thin films is that they are flexible and are currently being used in roofing materials.

Current Trends in Generating Active Solar Energy:

Commercial businesses like Google, IBM, BJ’s Wholesale, Estee Lauder, Kohls, Target, Tiffany & Co., Wal-Mart are installing PV solar energy. From “big box” discount giants to high end commercial businesses PV solar energy is finding acceptance in 2007. The most recent retail-outfitter to become part of this trend is Macy’s, which announced earlier this month that it will install solar powered systems on 26 stores throughout California. These leading companies are turning to solar power because it makes good business sense and supports their environmental initiative. Creative financial arrangements allow these companies to afford the upfront capital costs and payback their loans with energy savings. So what does all this mean to the average home owner? PV Cost per Kilowatt (kWh):

In the California market, where state incentives and net metering are in place, PV electricity prices are dipping below 11¢/kWh, on par with some utility-delivered power. Moreover, according to the U.S. PV Industry Roadmap, solar electricity will continue this trend and become competitive by 2010 for most domestic markets. The outlook is very positive for PV generation of electricity. Once the capital investment is made, the cost of PV electricity is equivalent to fossil fuels and will continue to decrease.

Cost of PV Installation:

The cost of installation is the major barrier that has to be overcome for widespread PV acceptance. Around 59% of world solar product sales installed in the last five years were applications that are tied to the electricity grid. Solar energy prices in these applications are 5-20 times more expensive than the cheapest source of conventional electricity generation. This premium is well beyond the reach of the average home owner.

Fortunately, there are financial models coming forward to enable the consumer to finance PV solar installation and pay for this installation with the electrical savings. In order to make these financial models successful, federal and state incentives are needed and the installation should be connected to the electrical grid. These connections allow the home owner to sell back electricity when excessive amounts are available and to receive electricity when solar conditions do not allow sufficient electricity. Only fifty percent of our states have modernized to allow on-grid PV solar energy.

Berkeley, California is leading the way to enable it citizens to save electrical cost and meet environmental needs. Here is how their plan works. A property owner hires a city-approved solar installer, who determines the best solar system for the property, depending on energy use. Most residential solar panel systems in the city cost from $15,000 to $20,000.

The city will pay the contractor for the system and its installation, minus any applicable state and federal rebates, and would add an assessment to the property owner’s tax bill to pay for the system. The extra tax would include administrative fees and interest, which would be lower than what the property owner could obtain on their own, because the city would secure low-interest bonds and loans. The tax would stay with the property even if the owner sold, although the owner would have to leave the solar panels. The property owner would save money on monthly Pacific Gas & Electric bills because electricity generated by the solar panels would partly replace electricity delivered by the utility. After the assessment expired, the solar panels, of a simple technology that requires little or no maintenance, would continue to partly replace PG&E electricity.

The Berkeley plan is a map for the rest of the world to allow us affordable electricity and meet our responsibilities to the environment.

I have a BS and MS in Metallurgical Engineering. Thirty six years spent in the development of semiconductors. Business experience in start up business plan. Currently, an oyster farmer and interested in helping the environment by deploying solar energy. Please visit my Web Site http://www.charlestonenvironmentalhelp.com

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anonymous asked:


Solar power has been hyped for decades now as one of the best solutions to our energy problems. But in simple truth it hasn’t progressed the way many have hoped it would. Has that changed yet?

Installing solar power for your home is still incredibly expensive, even with government rebates, and earning your money back takes more years than most can stand to wait. So you can’t really say things have turned around quite yet.

But things are looking promising.

The technology is finally showing signs of improvement. There are companies such as Nanosolar which are changing the way solar panels are made. They’ve developed a printable solar panel technology which will be much faster to create. They hope to drive down the costs of producing solar panels tremendously.

Scientists have also developed solar panels that are more 3-D than the traditional ones. These capture more of the light that reaches them and are much more efficient than the standard flat panels. These are not yet fully developed, but it’s another step in the right direction.

Then there’s Citizenre, a company that is taking the direct sales approach to solar panel installation. While they haven’t launched as of this writing, their plan is to install solar panels onto home free of charge, and then homeowners pay them for the electricity they use, rather than the electric company.

The price customers pay for electricity generated by these systems stays fixed, no matter what other electricity costs may be doing. The idea here is that electricity prices are likely to keep going up, so customers can save a lot of money by fixing their rates at current levels. Add in the benefits of net metering for those who qualify, and it has the potential of being a great deal.

Then again, since the company hasn’t launched yet, no one knows how well it will all work.

So no, solar power hasn’t quite taken off yet, but it looks to be getting very, very close to it. There’s a lot more promise there than there has been for quite some time.

The question then comes, will anything come of it all? That’s much harder to say. The next year or so may well see some big changes in solar power generation, as these companies gear up and as the technology improves. But all that means little until proven. Still, these are very hopeful signs that the promise of cheap solar power is much closer to being fulfilled.

James Nash asked:


Some people enjoy baking cookies in the oven, some people enjoy baking themselves in the backyard. Even if oil-soaked sun-worshipping Saturday afternoons are the most direct experience most of us every get with the energy of the sun, we know picture of the sun instinctively that the sun is essential for life. It turns out it’s also essential for just about any type of energy you can think of.

Solar energy is free and inexhaustible, and has been for the 5 billion years or so that the planet has been in existence. In the broadest sense, solar energy supports all life on earth and is the basis for almost every form of energy we use.

1) The sun makes plants grow, which are burned as fuel or rot in swamps and are compressed underground for millions of years to become coal and oil.

2) Heat from the sun causes temperature differences between areas, causing the wind to blow.

3) Water evaporates because of the sun, falls on high elevations, and rushes down to the sea, spinning turbines as it passes.

But the term “solar energy” usually refers to ways the sun’s energy can be used as heat, lighting, and electricity.

One simple, obvious use of sunlight is to light our buildings. The sun can also affect a building’s heating and cooling costs: If properly designed, a building can capture the sun’s heat in the winter and reject it in the summer, while using daylight year round for lighting. With the exception of that guy down in the bowels of the Grinning Planet accounting department who seems to thrive on flickering fluorescent lighting, most of us prefer natural light.

Besides using design features to maximize use of the sun, some buildings have active systems to gather and store solar energy. Solar collectors sit on the rooftops of buildings to collect solar energy for space heating, water heating, and space cooling. Most solar collectors are large flat boxes, painted black on the inside, with glass covers. In the most common design, pipes in the box carry liquids that take the heat from the box and bring it into the building. This heated liquid, usually a water-alcohol mixture to prevent winter freezing, is used to heat water in a tank or is put through radiators to heat the air.

Oddly enough, because of the cooling effect moist air has when it evaporates, solar heat can also drive a cooling system. Such systems are currently at work in humid southeastern climates, like that of Florida.

By using mirrors and lenses to concentrate the rays of the sun, solar thermal systems produce high temperatures that can be used to heat water for producing picture a trough style solar energy system steam to drive an electric turbine or for industrial applications, like boiling water to sterilize soup cans.

Solar concentrators come in three main designs: parabolic troughs, parabolic dishes and central receivers. The most common is parabolic – long, curved mirrors that concentrate sunlight on a liquid inside a tube that runs parallel to the mirror. Parabolic dish concentrators and central receivers can produce much higher temperatures and produce electricity more efficiently but are more complicated and are not in common use.

In 1839, French scientist Edmund Becquerel discovered that certain materials would give off a spark of electricity when struck with sunlight. Solar cells work because the silicon substrate has a weak grip on its electrons. The cells are made of two layers of silicon, one with too many electrons (the n-layer) and one with too few (the p-layer). When light hits the first layer, electrons are knocked loose. As they flow toward the layer with too few electrons, they pass through an electric circuit, the current from which can be used to power equipment and devices.

In the 1970s, a serious effort began to produce photovoltaic panels that could provide cheaper solar power. Experimenting with new materials and production techniques, solar manufacturers cut costs for solar cells rapidly, as the following graph shows.

Many solar panels are used today to power cellular phone transmitters, road signs, and water pumps, as well as millions of solar watches and calculators. But most of the market for solar electric is concentrated in off-grid homes, in the villages of developing countries and the vacation homes of industrial countries. Developing nations see PV as a way to avoid building long and expensive power lines to remote areas.

Recently, even utilities in developed countries have been attaching photovoltaics to their power grids. In some locations, it is less costly and politically difficult to install distributed solar panels than to upgrade the transmission and distribution system needed to meet ever-growing electricity demand.

This distributed-generation approach provides a new model for the utility systems of the future. Small generators, spread out in a city and controlled cartoon drawing of a solar panel by computers, could replace the large coal and nuclear plants that dominate now.

As the cost of photovoltaic systems continues to decline, they will find increasingly larger niches. No other electrical generator is as easy to install or maintain. Even among the various types of renewable energy, photovoltaics have great potential. The cells are made of silicon, one of the most plentiful materials on earth, and they draw power from the everlasting sun, so they will never run into the problem of fuel scarcity. As PV prices continue to fall, solar power will become a significant source of electricity in the 21st century.

We now pause to remember our dear departed surfing Uncle Sandy, who once started a referendum in Beach City to annex “the warmth of the sun and all of the gnarly waves.” We suspect that all those years of sunlight striking his head must have knocked loose a few cranial electrons.