Ways to Make Energy at Home

Solar panels

Solar panel technology is certainly growing up – although it is quite an expensive investment to start with. PV (photovoltaic) cells convert sunlight into energy that can be stored or used directly. They are made by taking silicon crystals (grown from sand) and impregnating them with a chemical substance called a semi-conductor to create oppositely charged layers. The layers are covered with glass to make a PV panel. The sun hits the layers and frees electrons that make an electric current. Several PV panels can be linked together to increase a local energy supply.

Some of the energy gets lost in this process and the most common PV panels still only convert somewhere between 4% – 13% of the sun’s energy into electrical energy, although this is improving with the technology. PV solar panels are ideal for lighting needs and can even supply 25% of a household’s needs in the winter and about 75% in the summer. Although they can be expensive to buy and install, there are sometimes sizeable grants available to help with this. Be careful about installing your own panels if you are applying for a grant.

Solar Water heaters

Solar water heaters use the sun’s energy to pre-heat cold water that is then stored. Even raising the temperature of your water a few degrees using ‘free energy’ creates a saving on your domestic fuel bill. Solar water systems can supply about half the energy needs for hot water in an average household. It is quite easy to make and install your own.

Passive Solar Energy

Passive solar energy is created by the way your house is laid out. It is a ‘new consideration’ in energy efficient homes although it can be incorporated into existent builds. One way to do this is to add on a greenhouse or conservatory to a south facing wall. The sun heats the air in the greenhouse and you open the door between the house and the greenhouse and let the warmth flood in.

Purpose-built, passive solar windows are windows installed at a carefully chosen angle. These reflect the excess heat in the summer and absorb the maximum in winter. The space between the front and internal windows acts as a buffer zone, insulating the inside. These spaces are sometimes used to grow plants that process waste water from the building.

Wind power

You must have seen small windmills on boats and vans by now. The micro-generation of energy through wind is ideal for 12 volt lighting systems and once again this is a free energy source that nearly anyone can tap into. Wind power is used to turn an electricity-generating turbine, from huge windmills on the landscape to smaller localised versions; they can vary from a few hundred watts up to several megawatts. Household sized wind systems are usually two or three kilowatts. Once again grants are available to help install localised wind turbines but there are other issues such as efficient siting, localised noise and planning regulations to consider.

Heat exchangers

In some areas of the world heat from under the ground is captured (thermodynamic energy) and used to provide central heating and hot water. An electric pump is used to bring up the heat and for every energy unit this pump costs to run, it gives up to 6 units of heat. This is still a very expensive technology to set-up and is used for large buildings or building complexes and designed in at the building stage.

Some people who live by water use heat exchanger technology to extract and store heat from streams or rivers, a sort of modern equivalent of a water wheel. Others actually have heat exchangers fitted to their baths to reclaim heat from bathwater before pulling the plug. Some properties have a very warm roof cavity at various times of the year and heat exchangers can be used to redistribute this heat around the house or store it to water.

We all know home energy costs are spiralling upwards and that global warming is a problem. I want to help you save energy now and save yourself a load of money in the process. Please start now by going to ‘Save Energy Expert‘ to save yourself a heap of energy and a load of money. You could find yourself a lot better off and I’ll be a whole lot happier.