How would you build a Solar Panel that can convert Sunlight to Energy, just being on your house roof?

November 19, 2008 by · 4 Comments
Filed under: Blog 

Well, I am looking for a cheap way on building a solar panel, instead of buying by the manufacturing stores. I would like to stay in the budget up to 1,000 dollars. I want to have Solar Energy for my house because the sun is always shining. Is there a way I can make the Light power some of my house? What would I need? How much time would it take?
Where can I get the items I need?

You have a couple of options.

The first option is to put together a flat plate collector to generate hot water. If you live in a cold climate, you might have to use evacuated tubes and this will probably blow your budget. The hot water could be used as a pre-heater for your existing hot water system. Complete systems for domestic hot water will not likely fit into your budget.

The second option is a small solar panel to generate electricity. In order to fit into you thousand dollar budget, you will need something like this:
1) an 80W panel. This will set you back about $400. You can’t make the solar cells yourself, so it is just as well to buy a complete panel.

2) A small solar charge controller for about $100. This will take the power from the panel and make sure your storage battery is properly charged.

3) An inverter. This will take power from the battery and generate 120 volt AC power (like your wall sockets). A 120W unit will be less than $200.

4) A 12 volt deep cycle battery, perhaps $120.

5) A transfer switch to cut the power when the battery gets discharged and transfer to 120 volt utility power.

You should be able to put it all together for $1000. However, you need to treat this as a hobby. The power you will generate is worth less than $10 a year, and is about enough to power a DSL modem and router (i.e. your internet connection). If it lasts 25 years, your investment (or loss in this case) will be about minus 9%. Of course, the battery won’t last that long, but the other parts could.

The actual power you can generate can be estimated from solar insolation maps. I will post a link below to a few that might help.

Collecting heat is probably more valuable (e.g. using a heat collector rather than a photovoltaic collector for electricity).

You can probably find plans on the internet for do-it-yourself flat plat collectors using plumbing parts, and electronic circuit diagrams for things like solar charge controllers, but I think this will be too complicated for your first project unless you really like tinkering. Buying components and integrating them yourself (figuring out how that get everything interconnected) will be loads of work for you first project.

Don’t be discouraged by the economics. You will learn countless things in the process and knowledge is always a good thing. Someday as prices come down on silicon cells (perhaps a new thin film technology) and evacuated tubes are made by the hundreds of millions you will be able to use your skills to make a much larger and cost effective system.

Have fun.

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    My Pains, My Chiropractor

    Having low back pains has made me very familiar with Chiropractors.  As a health care discipline and profession, it emphasizes diagnosis, treatment and prevention of medical disorders of the musculoskeletal system, especially the spine thus I usually run to my Nashville chiropractor for my pains. 
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    My Nashville Chiropractor has been taking care of me for ages now and without his help, I would not be able to function properly nor write this blog post without pain. So, if you even need chiropractic care, do your research because getting a good chiropractor may just be your saving grace too. 

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    A great way to get menopausal symptoms under control is to use Hot Flash freedom, a natural and safe progesterone cream! It's so effective that thousands of people swear by it, including, Dr. Matazarro, a Quincy dentist and a respected member of her community. Why not try it? It just might be what you need to get rid of hot flashes and other menopausal discomforts!

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    Looking for something new to do? Why not get out of the humdrum of daily life and indulge yourself in a little treat! Take the family on a Disney Vacation, equipped with a complete Disney Guide! Get wet and wild at the water park captial of the world, Wisconsin Dells.

    Or why not pay homage to your local sports team and see a game? There are tons of tickets being sold online. With just a simple search, anyone can avail of Warrior tickets, Ranger Tickets, Leafs Tickets, Nationals Tickets, Celtic Tickets, Kings Tickets, Red Wings Tickets, Dodger tickets, Magic Tickets, Heat Tickets, Angels Tickets and so much more! Best sellers include Charger tickets, Cardinal Tickets, Packers Tickets, Giant Tickets, Seahawk Ticks, Raven Tickets, Clippers Tickets, Chief Tickets, Thunder Tickets, Redskin Tickets, Cowboys Tickets, Texans Tickets, Raiders Tickets , Viking Tickets, Dolphin Tickets and 49ers Tickets!

    I'm sure a pair of tickets would make for a fabulous holiday or even birthday gift. I'm even thinking of getting my brother some Ranger Tickets. I know he's bound to enjoy it! Why not do the same thing? I'm sure the recipient would be over the moon with your thoughtful present!

    Professional Water Damage Cleanup Can Be a Lifesaver

    I just found out first-hand how hard it is to deal with water damage. I own a little grocery store at our town, and it’s pretty much my family’s main source of livelihood. When a pipe blew in the building that our grocery store was occupying, the whole first level got flooded and there was a lot of damage done; including our store. I didn’t know how to get started on getting things back to normal, and the thought of dealing with insurance just made my head hurt. It was bad enough to go through the flood, now we had to deal with the water damage cleanup too. It’s a good thing that the nearby store shared a number for a water damage Orlando restoration company with us. Restoration companies help you recover from both water damage and fire damage. The company that I called even offered insurance billing services which were exactly what I needed. They got my grocery store back to normal a lot faster than I expected. I also found out that they offer their services 24 hours a day and have a 30 minute response time. This is very useful because we never know when disaster will strike. I’ll definitely call the same number in the future and I will also recommend that you keep a restoration services number on your fridge or in your emergency phone numbers list. You don’t want to be looking for a number to call when you’re already knee deep in water.