Has this ever happened to you?  You finally get home after a hard day of work.  Another day, another dollar that doesn’t stretch nearly far enough.  You pick up the mail on the way into the house.  Mixed up in the batch is your electric or gas bill.  You open it, prepared for the worst.  You take one look at it and shriek, “Holy Moley!  I’ve got to go solar!”

There are a lot of reasons to convert your home to a solar powered home.  Reducing your power bills is a big one for most families.  And with the expectation that power bills are only going to get higher as the years go by, a lot of families think that there is no time like the present.  Of course, environmental concerns also inspire many people to go solar or search out other renewable resources, like residential wind turbines.  Committed to leaving the earth as clean as, or cleaner than, they found it, many people feel a personal obligation to go off the electric grid.  And some are motivated by a sense of anxiety over potential geopolitical turmoil.  If oil producing countries are at odds with the United States, the availability of oil may decrease or vanish.  So, to ensure energy self-sufficiency even in those unfortunate circumstances, you may want to go off the electric grid now.

The most popular types of renewable energy for residential use are solar and wind power.  Since residential wind turbines require a windy spot and a lot of space, many people looking for an alternative energy source decide to make their home a solar powered home.  All you need is sun and a roof to put the home solar panel on.

Once installed, there are a few different components in a residential solar power system.  Maybe most obviously, a residential solar power system will have a solar generator.  The solar generator uses photovoltaic cells to turn sunlight into electrical energy and stores it in cells for use in the evening or on overcast days.  The solar generator will allow you to turn on your lights and run your electrical appliances.  That electric bill we were talking about at the beginning of this article?  Gone.

Another component that a solar powered home has is a solar thermal system.  The same sunlight that warms your skin when you step out into it will warm your home with the use of photovoltaic cells and a solar thermal system.  Neither rising fuel costs nor environmental concerns nor the actions of antagonistic oil-producing countries can make you shiver in your own solar powered home.   

The third component is a solar cooker.  A solar cooker allows you to boil, roast or bake a dinner to serve five people with no fuel but sunlight, leaving behind no emissions or residue.  Although it may take longer to cook with a solar cooker, the slow-cooked character of the food often causes it to be even more delicious.  Healthy cooking is easy with a solar cooker.

So, in short, you can get a free and reliable supply of light, heat and cooking fuel when you convert your home to a solar powered home.  Want to learn more?  Click here to see how you can build and install your own home solar panel for less than $200.

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