This is a Green DIY Energy review, my pick for the best DIY solar panel guide. Green DIY Energy is priced the same as other solar panel guides but offers a lot more in the way of clear and concise directions. They also offer more videos and illustrations than the competition.

With Green DIY Energy you can build a decent solar panel for about $200 or you can do the bargain version which runs about $100. As a bonus, you can also learn how to power your home with a windmill that you can build yourself for less than $200.

They also have a new option to get your video downloads on cd, which I found to be a great and handy idea. The competitors do not have a cd option at this time.

I was most impressed with the level of personal support and attention that this site offers. I emailed the owners of the site and they replied back to me quickly and efficiently the same day that I contacted them. The company that runs Green DIY Energy is Better Business Bureau accredited and I could not find any complaints filed against them.

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After testing dozens of DIY solar products, this one stood out head and shoulders about the rest.

Click here to see my top pick

Earth4Energy is another provider of solar energy guides. A few Earth4Energy customers were able to make a solar panel successfully. However, many others did not. An online search turned up 9 complaints against this company on the major anti scam sites. The complaints were due to poor customer support and strict return policies.

Not recommended.

Click Here To Check Out Earth4Energy

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After testing dozens of DIY solar products, this one stood out head and shoulders about the rest.

Click here to see my top pick

Home Made Energy is a solar energy kit by a guy named Bill Ford. While his course does do the job, his level of customer support does not seem to be nearly as good as Green DIY Energy. Additionally, Green DIY Energy offers more videos and a cd option and Home Made Energy does not. I could not find any major complaints filed against this company.

Note: There is a rating embedded within this post, please visit this post to rate it.

After testing dozens of DIY solar products, this one stood out head and shoulders about the rest.

Click here to see my top pick

After testing dozens of DIY solar products, this one stood out head and shoulders about the rest.

Click here to see my top pick

Kingsley Modozie asked:


You can discover how a solar panel does work by reading the content of this article. Solar panels are multifaceted component of photo-voltaic cells that gather sun energy and convert it to electrical energy. Looking at its technical aspect, its structure may appear complex to build but it isn’t as hard as you feel. Depending on your choice, the solar panes have various sizes according to the amount of photo-voltaic components integrated into it. Its components are merged jointly using a particular wiring method and they act as a field element. Materials like metal, fiberglass or plastics are applied to cover the photo-voltaic cells and creating the outer side of it with solar panels. Click here to learn how to build your own solar panel.

You need to make some realistic setting before the solar panel can begin to work adequately. First and foremost, you need to link the cells in the solar panels to one another to build up and transfer electric charge. You should also guard the solar panel from its external surrounding, this is due to they are very sensitive to excess external forces like wind and rain. You should see that things like heavy snow, wind or even hail are shielded from your solar panel if you can’t coat it with the material that can prevent this. This is even more serious if your solar panels are created with wafer-based silicon cells that break easily. All of these depend on the kind of materials used to build your solar panel; some panels can withstand all these climatic conditions.

It is possible for you to enhance the functioning and existence of your solar panel by coating it with insulator wrapper to avoid humidity. Your ability to prevent your panels from metal rust will be able to maintain it in good form. Considering its kind of component structure, it can easily crack if it was made with thin film cell, which is usually used for modules. You should not border about the possibility of the cells of the solar panels to heat up excessively due to it is made up of diodes, which are incorporated into the composition of the solar panel, this helps to stabilize its hot temperature mechanically. Nevertheless, make sure you add special ventilation stuffs in the building of your solar panel.

The most effective solar panels utilize a mixture of lenses and mirror to divert solar energy to its cells, thereby lessening energy creation cost. Firms, these days, are making improvement to solar panels due to the high request for solar panel that have soared in recent years. With the source of energy declining quick, and high contamination power plants polluting our environment, people are anxiously looking for better energy sources which are green. You can use solar panel to power 80% of the heat and electricity requirement of your house.

Earth 4 Energy is a manual that contains both ebooks and video instructions you can use to easily build your own solar panel for under $250. If you want to live off the grid, this is your best alternative source to start generating your own electricity from today.

You can find more about it at http://modospot.com/review/earth4energy.html

After testing dozens of DIY solar products, this one stood out head and shoulders about the rest.

Click here to see my top pick

John Mackinnon asked:


Solar panels that capture the abundance of energy sent to us each and every day can be just the relief we need from the high cost of electricity. It almost seems like a crime to turn our backs on this wonderful gift of more free energy than we can possibly use. This is especially true today because it is possible to build your own solar panel with simple tools for less than $200. These homemade solar generators are capable of reducing household electricity costs by 50% or more.

How Do Solar Panels Work?

Photons, the energetic particles found in sunlight, strike the individual solar cells and bump electrons out of place. The electrons are, in effect, pushed out of the cell and into the wires that connect all the cells together. Ideally each cell will generate about .5 volts of electrical pressure. 80 solar cells wired together in one panel should generate about 100 watts of power.

The Secret Of Making Cheap Solar Panels

The secret to making an inexpensive solar panel is in scrounging low cost or free solar cells. The lower the cost of this project the faster it will pay for itself. Using your own labor to assemble free solar cells into just one panel should pay back the original costs in just a few months. Buying a brand new pre-assembled and installed panel for over a $1000 might take 5 -10 times longer.

The Parts Of The Complete Solar Panel System

Plan A: This is the simplest system. The direct current DC electrical output from the solar panel goes to a bank of deep cycle batteries for storage. The batteries are then connected to an inverter that converts the DC Current to the kind of alternating current that most household appliances require. This is then wired to directly power a specific group of appliances completely separate from the house wiring.

Plan B: Takes the above system a step further by connecting to the electrical wiring in your house at the main fuse box. Legally, this step almost always has do be performed by a certified electrician. Some power companies will actually pay you in the form of energy credits for sending excess energy back out into the grid.

Plan C: This system works completely off the grid for homes that have no electric power coming to their home at all. The key element here is to have back-up sources of power interconnected with the solar panels for supplying power on days that there is no sun. Windmill generators and gas powered generators often serve as additional sources of power.

The Advantages Of Solar Panel Systems

Besides providing almost free electricity, solar panel systems are quiet, non-polluting, low maintenance, safe and if properly weatherproofed could last up to 50 years. They can also be a life saver if you live too far from the electric grid to economically afford to extend the transmission lines to your location.

If you tie into the electric grid, it is even possible to get paid by the power companies for any electricity generated over and above your personal needs.

The Need For A Good Plan

Despite the simplicity of a building your own solar panels, it is important to have a complete set of plans. Good plans should, at the bare minimum include the following:

1. Ideally these set of plans will originate from authors that have successfully built and used solar panels themselves. 2. The plans should give a brief background of simple electrical terms like watt, volt and amps. 3. A detailed explanation of the different types of solar cells and exactly where to find them. 4. Wiring diagrams for understanding how to wire the individual cells together. 5. How to build a protective case. 6. How to run this power into your house directly to certain appliances or to hook up to the current household wiring.

The simplicity of capturing the sun’s daily gift of free energy to reduce or even eliminate your electric bill is almost unbelievable. Equally amazing is the fact that we live in an age of abundant free and low cost used solar cells. Don’t you think that it is time to solve your own energy crisis instead of waiting for our Government or the Power Companies to fix it? Take the easy first step and grab a set of plans for building your own solar panels.

After testing dozens of DIY solar products, this one stood out head and shoulders about the rest.

Click here to see my top pick

Jenney Pan asked:


Energy crunch is on, fuel prices have hit the roof and they are slated to break through the roof soon. Days are not far when utility companies will jack up the electricity rates to a point where you will have to run for cover. Everybody is looking for ways to install some alternative energy system at home. Solar power system is one of the popular alternatives. A solar power system comprises of three basic components, apart from the mandatory disconnects and safety accessories:

1. The solar panel;

2. Battery, for storing the energy generated, and necessary charger;

3. Inverter, to convert stored DC power to AC power.

Cost of a solar power system capable of supplying power to all household appliances can be quite substantial and solar panel makes a significant proportion of it. Fortunately the solar power system can be made in a modular fashion; you install the basic requirement and gradually as the time and the cost permit, carry on adding to it. Your own solar panel can be assembled by you; the other components mentioned above will be procured as required from the local suppliers.

What you need

The actual process of assembling your own solar panel is not very difficult. You need a certain amount of guidance on some aspects such as:

How to assess the solar panel power rating to meet your needs Where to buy the solar cells from

How to interconnect the cells to obtain the desired voltage and current capacity

How to assemble the solar panel

How to install the solar panel, etc

There are many guides available to provide such information. These guides cost about $25 to $40. A small search on the internet will get you website addresses at which these guides are available. These guides give step-by-step assembly and installation instructions with pictures/photographs where necessary. Obtain one of these guides, study thoroughly and now you are ready to get going! To assemble your own solar panel you require the following materials:

Solar cells

A sheet of plywood of suitable size

Sheets of glass

Copper wires

Few simple tools such as pliers, screwdriver, hand-drill machine, a soldering iron (with solder, flux, etc) will suffice.

Solar panel assembly:

• Arrange the solar cells in rows on the plywood sheet, with the back of the cells on the plywood and in the configuration suggested in the guide book.

• Drill holes in the plywood sheet so that the wires connecting the cells can be taken through to the back. Interconnect the cells as per the instructions.

• Put a backing board on the back of the plywood so that the interconnected wires are held in place and sealed

• Place the sheet of glass over the top of the solar cells

• Put a framing piece over this assembly (as would be done in framing a photograph)

• Seal the edges of the assembly, and your solar panel is ready.

The assembly procedure described above is the basic process of assembling your own solar panel. Of course you can improvise on it so as to make your assembly more sturdy, make it impervious to ingress of dust, water, etc, make it strong so that its installation outdoor will not cause any problems. A self assembled solar panel can bring about a substantial saving. You can save about 50% or more of the cost of solar panel by doing your own assembly.

Learn How to Make Solar Panels & Save Up to 80% Electricity Bills. Get the Details Now!

After testing dozens of DIY solar products, this one stood out head and shoulders about the rest.

Click here to see my top pick

Calamitty asked:


I just bought a solar fencer for my horse, and was wondering if you noticed a decline in your electric bill? I bought it due to the conveince of no electirc cord running my yard all yr, can’t do much about winter for the hot water tank heater, wish they would come up with a solar for that as well.

After testing dozens of DIY solar products, this one stood out head and shoulders about the rest.

Click here to see my top pick

Anna asked:


What are thin film solar panels, and what could possibly be so exciting about them? Why are they so important to the future of alternative energy and solar power on this planet?

Thin film solar panels operate in the same manner that regular solar panels do, the only difference being that they are a lot thinner and require far less materials and energy for construction.

This might not sound extremely spectacular, but in fact it is. It’s a major breakthrough in solar technology.

Why Thin Film Solar Panels Are So Important?

Thin film solar technology is considered to be a major breakthrough because, up until now, the two barriers that have prevented solar energy and solar technology from becoming mainstream energy providers have been the 1. the cost to produce them, and 2. the problems in rapidly mass-producing them.

Both of these problems have been solved. This paves the way for rapid expansion of clean energy in the form of solar power.

What is Thin Film Solar Technology?

Thin film solar technology is a method of putting extremely thin films of photovoltaic material on to a thin layer of backing for support.

This is made possible through new inventions, such as solar ink. A photovoltaic material is dissolved into a solution, that is then printable as ink. It is then printed out, similarly to how books are printed.

Because of the invention of solar ink, it is possible to print photovoltaic material onto thin layers of plastic fabric or metal. This printing process is extremely fast, and thus it allows you to mass-produce solar panels at a high speed and at only a fraction of the cost.

Whereas, in the past, solar panels were bulky and weighed a serious amount, thin film solar panels weigh almost nothing and take up almost no space. This means that solar panels can now be produced at only 5 percent of the cost, as compared to our old bulky solar panels.

Uses of Thin Film Technology

The ability to literally print solar panels onto fabric, plastic and metal has opened up new horizons in the application of solar power.

Some of the uses now possible are as follows:

Construction:

Metal roofing Membrane roofing Architectural fabric



Consumer:

Rollable solar chargers Foldable solar chargers AA battery solar charger Cell phone chargers Satellite phone chargers Laptop chargers GPS chargers PDA chargers Handheld game chargers Radios



Outdoors/Camping:

RVs Campers Boats GPS devices

Military, Police and Emergency Services:

Solar field shelters Foldable solar chargers Rollable solar chargers AA battery solar charger Communications systems Medical refrigeration systems Water purification systems

Remote Locations, etc:

GPS asset tracking Highway/transportation lighting and signals Weather stations Wildlife feeders Remote sensors and data transmitters Security lighting Warning/safety lights Water pumping systems

The above are just some of the ways that solar power can be and is being used, with the advent of thin film solar panels. I am sure that many more uses will be added, now that the price and manufacturing barrier of solar power have been broken.

After testing dozens of DIY solar products, this one stood out head and shoulders about the rest.

Click here to see my top pick

John Mahoney asked:


The use of solar panels in residences has proved to be the best and most cost-efficient alternative for utility power. However, the use of solar power has yet to reach its full potential in the residential market.

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The use of solar panels in residences has proved to be the best and most cost-efficient alternative for utility power. However, the use of solar power has yet to reach its full potential in the residential market. Recent advances in technology can possibly change this, as the industry has seen opportunities to create solar panels with new designs, in terms of both aesthetics and functionality.

Aesthetically-pleasing designs

Solar power has only recently been given a great deal of attention. As a result, residential homes built 10, 20, or 30 years ago were not constructed in such a way that solar panels could be later added if the resident family decides to install some.

Previously, solar panels were very thick and had to be mounted with out-of-place brackets on top of existing roofs. Fortunately, the solar panel manufacturer industry has recently realized that poor aesthetics is one of the main reasons why solar power has not completely made its way into the residential market.

New panels are hardly noticeable. The tiles are seamlessly integrated into the existing roofs of residential homes, which achieve a very elegant look. The rise in number of solar installations in the U.S. rose by an amazing 45% in 2007 is widely attributed to the creation of more aesthetically-pleasing panel designs.

There are a number of companies that have already come up with more aesthetically-pleasing solar panel designs. The Sun Power Corporation, for example, the leading U.S. solar panel manufacturer, has created some panels that are compatible with Mediterranean-styled clay tiles and flat roof tiles. Lumeta, another manufacturer, has design panels that are awaiting industry certification.

The panels made by both Sun Power and Lumeta are made from silicon. The market will soon see thinner panels made of copper indium gallium selenide (CIGS). As of now, however, such panels are less efficient than the currently existing silicon ones. Sometime in the near future, these thin-film panels are expected to dominate residential use by becoming a standard part of the building process.

Highly functional designs

One example of a new, more functional solar panel design is that recently designed by the Georgia Tech Research Institute. This innovative design allows the panels to absorb more sunlight, enabling them to produce up to 60 times more current. This new design makes use of nano-towers that add significant surface area to the solar panels, giving the particles of light from the sun more chances to strike the part of the cell that produces electricity.

However, these new panels still have a couple of kinks yet to be worked out. These new panel designs have too much resistance in their cells, resulting in an inability to generate the kind of electricity needed.

Jud Ready, senior research engineer at the Georgia Tech Research Institute and creator of this new solar panel design, is determined to work on the design and modify its features to resolve the difficulties within it. The US Air Force is currently partially sponsoring the research in high hopes that these smaller and more efficient solar panels will replace old, bulky ones and can eventually be used to power satellites and spacecrafts in the future.

After testing dozens of DIY solar products, this one stood out head and shoulders about the rest.

Click here to see my top pick