With rising fossil fuel energy prices, more people are looking for ways to reduce their carbon footprint. Solar energy is an infinitely renewable source, and a great alternative to traditional energy sources. Solar energy also offers great flexibility, in that, anywhere the sun is shining you have a possible energy source. You are not restricted to electrical grid access, or transporting stored energy to your needed site.

There are a variety of solar powered devices available today, some you might not
expect. There is a solar powered bike capable of speeds up to 18 mph. There are portable lightweight solar panels available, weighing only 9.5 lbs, which can be used to power any device up to 13 watts, for example a laptop computer or GPS system when you are in the field.

The website http://www.outdoorstuff.eu offers a wide variety of solar products, from traditional solar panels for your home, to portable solar panels, and solar chargers and other gadgets. The “Scotty Pro Portable Solar Charger” (http://www.outdoorstuff.eu/departments/solar-panels-and-chargers/solar-chargers-and-gadgets/item/280/Scotty-Pro-Portable-Solar-charger) is a very handy little device that fits it the palm of your hand and can be used to charge small devices like cell phones, digital cameras, hand held GPS units, and MP3 players. Basically, anything that is typically charge via USB on your computer can be charged with the Scotty Pro.

While some alternative energy solutions for the home, such as complete solar energy systems, require a major investment for their initial installation, there are others which are not so complicated.

Solar lights are relatively simple to acquire and install, and are powered by clean energy. Since they usually require no wiring, they are very simple to set up.

Solar garden lights (or solar landscape lights) are one example of this. Solar garden lights have solar panels embedded into them at the top, facing the sun. Of course one drawback of these is that they might not stay lit forever. The amount of sun they receive will influence how long they last. The specifications of these lights can give you some idea of how long they will stay lit in the dark. But 8-12 hours is not an unusual estimate for a reasonably priced light, which should be plenty of time to get through the night in most circumstances.

Furthermore, these lights usually have sensors so that they turn on automatically at dusk and turn off when the sun starts shining again. This means that you don’t have to run your lights the whole night through, if you don’t need to. Motion sensors are also used in some solar lights, such as those that would be placed along pathways or near the front door, so that the lights turn on when an person or animal is present. This is good for security, and its also good for just seeing where you are going when you walk in a garden or path, or approach a home in the dark.

Solar lighting can also be used in Christmas lights. One might not think that December is the best time of year to utilize solar energy, but I suppose Christmas lights don’t require too much voltage. Since solar powered Christmas lights are not hard to find.

Solar powered spotlights and floodlights are used in gardens and landscaping, among other things. These are used to set out and highlight the best features of a garden or landscape, and again, no wiring required means they are much easier to install than electrical lights. Not to mention cleaner and cheaper.

Again, with solar powered lights, one disadvantage can be the fact that they only stay on for as long as their stored solar electricity permits. In most cases, however, they should last throughout the night if they are receiving sufficient solar energy during the day. You could run into trouble if they are placed in a shady area or if you live in a cloudy climate. They will probably still work, but not as well. Snow can also block sunlight when it covers any photovoltaic surface. But solar lights are often designed in such a way as to let snow slide off of them more easily.

There are plenty of other uses for solar lights. And they aren’t all for the home owner.

Street lights can be run with solar power. It will be interesting to see how that concept develops, as the world turns its attention more and more toward clean alternative energy solutions. Admittedly, it would be dangerous if street lights went out early, on days when the power of the sun wasn’t sufficient.

But a simple solution would be to use a hybrid system, with a backup battery, a backup power generator, or the like. That way, if the energy from the sun weren’t sufficient one day, the lights would continue to shine nevertheless.

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For more information on Solar Lighting and how it works, see this article on Solar Lights

Anna is a photographer and a traveler, with an interest in green energy solutions. She educates others online, on alternative energy and solar power solutions.

Anna Williams is a photographer and a traveler, with an interest in green energy solutions. She educates others online, on alternative energy and solar power solutions.

Visit Anna’s website to learn more information about Home Solar Power Products and Portable Solar Power Products.

A Solar Powered iPod Charger
With incomes dropping, it’s important to remember that one thing will always rise: the sun. As our nation searches for ways to battle climate change and a recession, both the eco-friendly, and the wallet tightener have turned to different types of alternative energy. Solio has created a solar charger for the iPod. Simply leave it in the sun and allow the internal battery to charge. No need for the busy individual to have to wait for an iPod plugged into a wall to charge! In an hour, you’ll have forty minutes of time to listen to music on your iPod. If allowed to fully charge, this solar product will give you a full fifteen hours of play time! Even if left uncharged for a whole year, the solar charger’s battery will retain that charge. The charger allows you to cut back on your eco-footprint while charging your iPod just as quickly as a wall charger (though you can use your home socket to charge the iPod charger, as well.) Want to charge other things, too? Solio has a wide range of adapter tips that allow you to charge your phones or other mp3 players, like USB cords, mini USB cords and even a 12 volt adapter. The charger even comes with four free phone charging tips.
Take advantage of one of the few free things in life: the sun in our sky. It’ll reduce your electric bill and your eco-footprint, all while being incredibly convenient.

The most advanced type of chargers called the solar chargers are a modern form of producing the power that are made using the advanced technology ( the products designed in such a way to produce power or current or charge which can be utilized in both residential as well as industrial units). This is a special form of energy conservation that forms an alternative form of energy generation. In fact a form of conversion of the radiation of the solar heat and the rays to another form of energy called the electric energy that is a requirement in the present situation. A serious as well as an admirable product that plays an exclusive role of power supply. The solar powered products are the products that support the production of electric energy from the sunlight (Radiation of light rays coming from the Sun directly). The basic type of chargers that are used as an alternative power supply is the solar chargers which are used to charge the electronic devices outdoor. This is a new eco friendly form of charging. The Solar panels are a new implementation that are the main part of absorbing the solar radiation or the light energy and forward them for conversion into light energy. This is the basic instrumental setup. There are different types of solar panels such as the Permanent Solar panels, Portable solar panels, Marine Solar panels, General purpose solar panels. The solar products are the basic materials that are made or designed in such a way that they are empowered to absorb the light rays from the Sun and convert them into the required electric energy thereby works as a energy conservator. A special and an important device being designed to new the electrical energy requirement of this world.

You can go where ever you want to, and not have to stay in a hotel room, with a recreational vehicle. In principle you can go anywhere you please, but the reality is that your need for electricity limits you to certain camp sites.

Even if batteries are used as power for appliances, they have to be recharged occasionally, and sometimes more than you thought. Just a word to the wise: the battery’s lifespan will be negatively impacted if the battery is constantly being drained. There are generators on-board most RV’s, however, they can be loud and polluting. However there is an option available that allows you the freedom to go wherever you please.

You can be the owner of an RV and yet be unaware that there are solar panel options available for you. One benefit for using an RV solar panel is that electricity can be generated in remote areas. For instance, if you visit Yellow Stone National Park by car, once there you can generate electricity using solar panels without causing pollution. Dependent on how much output of energy you require, the cost of an RV kit can be between $400 to $1000. A variety of RV solar cell packages are available, including starter kits, or an RV solar panel extension that can be added to an existing RV solar electricity system and you can how to build a solar panel.

Fixing RV panels to the roof is the most common way to connect them. You can do this by screwing mounts into the roof of your RV.

The disadvantage of this method is that it involves drilling holes into your vehicle, and this can be a difficult thing to do if you have not done this before if you have then you may want to know how to build a solar panel yourself.

A mobile RV solar panel electricity kit is a different choice for solar panels that are mounted on the roof. The problem with this option is the storage space required, not to mention the assembly time when you arrive where you’re going.

Mobile solar panels can be simply stored if foldable, and they have an inclination to be quite light so are simply moveable too. About 75 to 100 watts can be generated from one 4 foot by 2 foot solar panel, or about equal to two batteries used in golfing carts. In most cases, this would be sufficient to supply the necessary electricity for a typical 24′ RV, but it would, of course, depend on your personal electrical consumption.

Maybe start with two solar panels, and fit some more as required. This is where you can get more information, on how to accomplish this how to build a solar panel.

This technique is much better, for a number of reasons, the main reason being that you don’t have to drill holes into your RV roof, that means when you come to sell it, the price isn’t reduced by the “do it yourself holes” in the roof.

A solar car is an electric-powered vehicle that runs on solar energy obtained from the solar panels on its surface. The solar panels are commonly found on the roof of the vehicle.

This type of vehicle is not entirely practical as of this moment, for obvious reasons. It needs to harness the power of the sun in order to run. Without sunlight, it runs on the reserve power which is stored in its batteries.

Photovoltaic cells convert the sun’s energy into electricity, which runs the vehicle. That’s why solar cars are limited by the energy input from the sun, their main source of energy. This type of vehicle is usually manufactured for participation in solar car races.

Just like a typical race car, a solar race car has room only for the driver, although there are some designs that include room for a navigator. It does have several features similar to a normal car, such as an accelerator, a brake, rear view mirrors on the camera, and ventilation. It would also have a radio which would be used by the driver, in order to communicate with his support crew.

The Electrical System

Probably the most important component of a solar car is its electrical system. The electrical system controls all the power that comes in and out of the car. It doesn’t have a gas tank, but its battery essentially functions as one. The battery stores energy produced by the PV cells. There’s a wide range of batteries to choose from, but the most common ones are lead-acid batteries, nickel-cadmium batteries (NiCd), nickel-metal hydride batteries (NiMH), lithium polymer batteries, and lithium-ion batteries. Most solar cars have gauges which monitor the entire electrical system. Among the things that one keeps an eye on, are the battery voltage, and the current.

The Design

The mechanical design of a solar car prioritizes on keeping friction and weight to a minimum, while maintaining sufficient strength so that it doesn’t disintegrate. These vehicles are typically made out of titanium and similar composites, in order to get a good strength-to-weight ratio.

Commercially Available Hybrids

Hybrid cars using solar power are commercially available, in limited quantities. The Toyota Prius is said to be able to generate up to 240 watts of electric power from its solar cells. That results in a 15 km drive, on a sunny day.

One practical application for the solar car would be to use its technology for golf carts, which are lightweight, are mainly used during the day, and are usually parked under the sun.

Our future will be bright when cars roam the streets using renewable energy such as solar power.

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Visit Anna Williams’ website and blogs, to find out more about Solar Energy and Renewable Energy.

Source Article: A Solar Car and how it Runs

A glacier, known as the Trotting Glacier, melts more water in a day than NY City uses in a year and has receded 9 miles in 5 years. The evidence is the ice core records that include CO2 and temperature levels reaching back 650,000 years. Each fume from a smoke stack and combustion engine output contributes to the seventy million tons of CO2 that people release into the air every day. Reducing our CO2 levels is the only option for lowering the effect of releasing CO2 into our atmosphere.

About one third of a family’s energy budget is used for heating water for normal use.

Gas or electricity purchased from utility companies is used to heat water for various purposes, including bathing and laundry. In any case, these resources used to make this gas or electricity are becoming increasingly harder to locate, as they cannot be replenished and more natural resources are used up. This puts the pinch on the average household customer that is finding power and water bills continuously going up at above inflation figures. This can only continue as carbon-based fuels get harder to find and extract. For almost 100 years, a solar panel has been used to successfully heat up water.

The easier method of solar energy use available today is water heating through solar electricity. It merely requires using the principle behind the sun’s thermal rays to heat up water.

The solar panel is referred to as the flat plate collector and batch collector systems. Flat plate collectors are just a chain of pipes that are positioned in an area of the house where they have access to direct daylight (often a southern exposure on the roof). Water is passed through the pipes and is heated by the heat of the sun in contrast to any chemical chain reaction. The pipes are constructed to soak up the most heat from the sun.

A solar panel batch collector system is a tank of water that has been altered to use the most of the energy from the sun. Surfaces of black that absorb thermal energy are included. Close to the home, and in an area that receives a lot of direct sunlight, is where the tank is located. The water given by either one of these systems can be used for the typical plumbing system of the home, where it can be used for regular uses like showers, dish washing and cooking. Buying and installing each system will cost a lot of money but the upkeep cost is low and the system will last anywhere from ten to twenty-five years.

Dependent on how much hot water you use and how effective your house is in storing hot water, you might get back the purchase and installation costs inside 5 to seven years. You would also be contributing to the reduction of the amount of greenhouse gases that enter the atmosphere. Just to mention a few of the advantages and disadvantages of solar power.