Residential Solar Power

Residential Solar Power

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Solar panels are large flat structures, rectangular in shape, available in various sizes. Solar panels consist of individual solar power collectors (solar cells) - covered with a sheet of glass. A solar cell is usually octagonal and blue-black in color, about the size of your palm. Theyre intended to produce electricity in the same way a batterys cells are. However, instead of creating electricity from chemicals as battery cells do, solar cells use the sun's rays. These cells are also referred to as photovoltaic cells - "photo" from the Greek word for light and "voltaic" from Alessandro Volta an electricity pioneer.

An growing number of households are being fitted with home-made solar panels. With installation costing between $7,000 and $40,000 for the average American home, DIY solar panels have become extremely popular. Lots of people find theyre easier and less complicated than they may have thought. Theyre safe and highly effective provided you follow the instruction guide. Going the DIY route means you dont need to have thousands of dollars available for the initial investment, and you still get to benefit from the on-going utility bill savings.

Any excess electricity you create using your solar panels, if youre connected to the grid, will be paid for by the utility company. 30 states allow the use of net meters, which account for electricity generated by solar energy systems, and enable excess electricity to be sold back into the grid. The meter commonly found is a single, reversible one. On-site power demand is filled first, as the solar power system produces electricity. Any excess electricity is fed into the grid, reversing the electric meter, instead of being stored in a battery. After each metering period, the utility company will credit the solar power system owner for any extra kilowatts, and will usually send out a payment each month or each year.

Some Hollywood superstars, like Cate Blanchett, Daryl Hannah and Orlando Bloom, have gone further than recycling and driving hybrid cars. In a bid to lower their carbon footprints, these stars have decided to use solar panels instead of conventional energy sources in their homes. And Johnny Depp has plans to use only solar energy to provide energy to his island in the Bahamas. Larry Hagman (of Dallas fame) has one of the biggest private residential solar systems in the US and has managed to make a great saving on his electric bill, slashing it from a hefty $37,000 per year to a mere $13,000.


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