Solar Energy Basics
Facts about Solar Energy

Both active and passive solar energy have a place in alternative energy power and there is a huge amount of solar power that is unused!

As advances are made in solar technology and solar panels become more efficient, solar power is becoming a more viable alternative for producing electricity and heat.

With no end in sight to rising energy costs, many people are considering alternative energy for their homes.

In addition, Green Living is coming into its own, as more and more people become ecologically aware and look for ways to save energy and have less impact on the planet.

Solar Energy Basics

An interesting fact about solar energy is that more solar energy hits the earth in one hour than is used by everyone in the world in an entire year.

With this much available Free energy, people all over the world are working on ways to tap into this abundant power source.

However, even though solar energy will be used more extensively than in the past, it will not become the primary source of energy anytime in the near future. Solar power is still too inefficient to provide all the energy for a community.

To understand the solar energy basics one needs to understand how it is used and what is available.

Passive Solar Energy Basics

For example, in architecture, it is a fact that the south side of a building in the United States receives the most sunlight. Therefore, a building designed to take advantage of passive solar energy will have large, south-facing windows or doors that will bring in the most sunlight possible. A passive solar home often also uses skylights to capture sunlight.

Inside the passive solar home, materials (like a tile floor or a brick or stone wall) are often used to absorb and store the sun’s heat and then release this energy at night when it is needed the most. This is passive solar heating at its simplest—and it can be quite effective.

Another passive use of solar energy is in the form of sun-spaces or lighting tubes. On the inside of the house, a lighting tube actually looks like a recessed light (which is always “on” during the day).

Lighting tubes can provide a good amount of light in your home during the day, without the downside of losing heat—which can be a negative for skylights.

While this may sound overly simple, proper consideration of passive solar lighting can save hundreds of dollars each year—and you never have to change light bulbs!

Active Solar Energy Basics

In a round about way, you can heat with active energy also. Here’s how that would work. A liquid (like antifreeze), circulating in the solar panel is heated by the sun. That liquid, in turn, heats water—which then circulates in your baseboard heating system or in your radiant heating system in the floor.

To generate electricity, photovoltaic (PV) cells in solar panels are used to convert light energy from the sun to electricity. PV cells were discovered in the mid 1950s when scientists discovered that silicon creates an electrical charge when exposed to sunlight.

You may even be using a tiny solar cell every day right now. If you have a solar watch or solar calculator, you have a tiny solar panel that powers it.

On a larger scale, solar panels are used to generate electricity for homes and businesses. These solar panels are often mounted on the roof of those buildings. Scientists are searching for materials that will be even more efficient than silicon in order to improve the efficiency of solar panels.

Basic Facts about Solar Energy

However, if you’re not in the market for a new home right now, there are still options open to you. Even if your home won’t be totally energy self-sufficient, you can still supplement your energy usage by using passive and active solar energy.

Knowing the solar energy basics will help you make the most of your situation—and help you use some of that green energy that we are all wasting!

Solar Energy Basics to Facts about Solar Energy

Solar Energy Basics to Alternative Energy

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