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I Want Self Sufficient Living!

By
Toby Chacone
Published: July 23, 2010Posted in: solar energyTags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

With pollution on the rise and economic troubles mounting, more and more people are becoming interested in self sufficient living. Let’s take a look at what it means to be self sufficient as well as things to keep in mind when considering transitioning to that lifestyle.

A Definition… Self sufficient living refers to depending on renewable resources for the needs of everyday life. This means choosing to utilize those resources as opposed to depending upon municipal systems for our power, water and fuel needs. It also involves learning to grow our own food, along with preserving and storing that food. As people become more and more accustomed to sustainable living, many also learn how to make a variety of the items they use everyday – like soap, clothing, etc..

The hectic pace many people live is causing them to look for a better way. For many, that better way is found in self sufficient living. They’re concerned about their health – both physical and emotional. Others are concerned about being prepared for the unknown – things like natural or even man made disasters.

Here are the major things to think about when considering the option of self sufficient living.

Alternative Energy – There are numerous solutions to getting off the grid. Some are happy with a simple, generator and battery setup. However, this still requires gasoline, diesel or propane to sustain the system. A far better method would be something like solar power, which is low maintenance and powered by nature. While it can cost around $10,000 for a small system, that investment will be payed back over time. Other choices include wind and hydro power.

Food – There has been increased interest in gardening in recent years as evidenced by an increase in garden seed sales. This is truly a part of self sufficient living that anyone can start right away. While there are many helpful books on the subject, this is one area in which it largely comes down to experience. Thus, the sooner you get started, the better. Even if you only have a small patio, you can start gardening in pots, even during winter months, you can grow some things in the house. The other aspect of food involves learning to preserve and store food. This is something that people used to be better at, but with the convenience of supermarkets, many do not consider just how fragile a family’s food supply can be. Natural disasters remind us of this when interruptions in transport result in shelves being emptied in only a matter of hours. Methods for food preservation and storage include canning, dehydrating, air vacuum sealing, and use of air tight storage containers.

Water Sources – Another important consideration involves water. Where are you getting yours from? Sustainable water sources include springs, wells, and even creeks or streams – in which case you’d need to consider a filtration method. Keep in mind that there may be legal limitations pertaining to the use of surface water where you live. Many overlook the importance of this issue. Furthermore, it’s wise to consider the volume of water required to sustain not only your family, but also additional needs such as agriculture. You can see that there may not be a whole lot you can do about this unless you’re in a country setting with a considerable piece of land with water on it. This takes us to our final point.

Country Living – When considering what is involved in becoming more self sufficient, it becomes clear that living in a metropolitan area makes it more difficult for the average family to pursue a more sustainable way of life. While the subject of locating and purchasing country property is beyond the scope of this article, families are finding that with careful planning and perseverance, making such a transition is possible. Rural living is ideal in terms of becoming more independent.

Conclusion – Self sufficient living is within the reach of most individuals and families if they’re willing to invest the time and energy into making it happen. Furthermore, such a way of life positions people to be better equipped to not only take care of themselves in times of need, but also to be of help to others. In this sense, it is truly a responsible way to live, and thus a noble pursuit.

self sufficient living can be your way of life. Learn more at http://www.selfsufficientlivingblog.com.

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Why You Should Consider Solar Panels In Your House

By
Simon Hereford
Published: July 2, 2010Posted in: Solar PanelsTags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

So you think you know all about solar power and think it’s inconvenient and awkward? You don’t know just how useful it can be. Take solar rings, for instance. These are small rings that hook together and cover the surface of a swimming pool.

During the day, these rings transfer heat from the sun to the water. There’s no danger — they break apart if they are touched – -and they are very inexpensive.

When was the last time you were out somewhere and your cell phone ran out of charge? Or your laptop started winding down, and there was no outlet handy to charge it back up? If you had solar powered chargers for your cell and laptop, that would not have been an issue. You can even get special cases for laptops that have solar energy cells built in, and you can charge your laptop right in the case.

You should also definitely check out a solar powered attic fan. This fan uses solar power to run a fan to cool your attic. Because the attic is so cool, the rest of your house stays cooler as well. And it only takes a single solar panel to run.

If you have one of these fans, your air conditioning will be more efficient and also therefore less expensive. Your air conditioning unit won’t have to work to cool the attic.

You can run nearly anything in your house on solar power. It ends up being less expensive too. Maybe now you are seeing how useful and efficient solar systems are.

There is a higher upfront cost with these systems. You have to have your electric system revamped to run on solar. The cost of this should be made up by your savings on your electric bills within ten years. After that it is just pure savings for you.

Some people object to the panels because they think they are ugly, or worry that the mounts can cause roof leaks. You don’t have to reject solar power if you share this opinion. They now have special singles that are designed to look like your roof. They are still as effective, but are inconspicuous.

Check out more of this author’s work regarding products including installing metal roofing and metal roofing colors.

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An Overview On DIY Solar Panels

By
Barry Colemen
Published: July 2, 2010Posted in: solar energyTags: , , , , , , , , , , ,

If you’ve ever considered using solar panels to power your electricity, then you will be very interested to know that you don’t have to part with the thousands that they cost if you learn how to build them yourself. There are many uses for the electricity which is generated from the sun, you can use it to power up all kinds of things from refrigerators to ovens.

Whatever the reason, now you can build your own small solar panels for an extremely affordable price.

DIY Solar Power guides are now readily available online and will show you how to build your own customized solar panels for around fifty dollars. These guides are usually delivered via eBook and video and come with email support.

By finding a quality guide and following the instruction you can finally cut down on your electricity costs and have the additional power to power up whatever you like. I’m going to avoid pointing out any specific guides in the following paragraphs itself as there are many different types aimed at different people who want to accomplish different things. But a few quick searches and you can easily find the best guide for you.

One of the many benefits that you get from making your own, is that you don’t need to be stuck with the sizes that they are mass produced in. You can choose what shape and size you would like and whilst using the plans that you find online, can build the solar panels you like.

You will be amazed how simple it is to build your own small solar panels, you’ll be hooked, they are a lot of fun to make and you will find yourself revisiting the guide again and again as you add more solar panels to power your everyday energy needs.

I have heard of many success stories online about many people who are using solar and literally not paying a dime for electricity every month! Just imagine what you could do with the money you save from paying for your power! Enough for another yearly holiday I’m sure.

For those that want to take this further and get the benefits of the sun, you should start by joining a message board. This is one of the best places to begin because you are there with a bunch of other people who have either done this or are researching it. From there you can discover all kinds of great information that can be used to help you build your solar panels.

Visit our renewable energy solar power blog.

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Applying Solar Power In Your House

By
David Versilles
Published: June 30, 2010Posted in: solar energyTags: , , , , , , , , , ,

As our environment and society are getting more involved with going green, it is only natural that more and more people are opting to have their homes powered by alternative energy sources instead of the traditional ones. That said, the easiest way you can start doing that is actually not turning your current home into one, instead it is getting a new home.

Why a new house?

There are several reasons for you needing a new house solely powered by solar electric, firstly would be your home appliances. The reason for that is because old home appliances generally require more power as compared to newer type of home appliances.

As we embrace newer technology, home appliances makers have found out new ways to construct appliances that requires far less energy than when using their old technology and solar electric power can only supply you that much power, so switching to newer ones can be more effective and saves you more power.

Thus this is the most important thing you have to consider when trying to apply alternative energy source into your home, make sure that your appliances and windows are power saving enough so you do not have to worry about running out of electricity.

The next reason is the insulation factor. As mentioned, today’s new technologies have made insulation of your home into a more efficient one. Your old house might be very costly to maintain in terms of power supply, as most old houses are not meant and designed to be heated effectively, costing you more power to do so.

Having a brand new home also provides you with the chance to effectively design your house to incorporate those solar panels. You can easily have the area where you get the most sunlight as the area to install those solar panels. This is a physical thing which your old home might not be able to accommodate.

Solar panel aside, getting a new home also allows you to install hydro electricity and wind turbines which can also help generate electricity, this is beneficial especially when days you do not have enough sun to power your solar panels.

Looking for a beautiful and strong tv stands for your newly purchased tv set? Get the alphason tv stands in your houseas they are pretty and functional! Get more shopping information and bargains on various alphason tv stand here!

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The Benefits Of Using Solar Power For Homes

By
Greg Purnell
Published: June 28, 2010Posted in: solar energyTags: , , , , , , , ,

You don’t need to be rich and famous anymore to use solar power, since solar systems are more affordable these days. There’s nothing wrong with being environmentally friendly. In fact, the Earth needs it because of the many problems it is currently facing, such as global warming. To generate electricity, fossil fuels are needed, but with the continuous burning of fuels, global warming will also become worse. Because of this fact, people are already opting for solar powered homes today.

There are several advantages to using solar power for homes. How much are you charged for electricity every month? Many homeowners are hurting because of the high cost of electricity. One way to lower your bills is to opt for solar power.

You don’t need to use any wiring when you use solar power systems. For example, for your garden lights and water fountains, you can use solar power. Many of these systems already have light sensors, so you don’t need to worry about turning them off. Solar lights are readily available and you just take them out and place them wherever you want to get some good light.

Solar power is environmentally friendly. It is a great source of renewable and clean energy. You won’t contribute to pollution with solar energy, unlike fossil fuels. By using solar powered systems like a solar cooker, solar thermal systems, and solar generators, you can work without creating emissions. And, you will help in saving the environment.

During the initial phase of using solar power, you will have to spend some money. Just think of it as an investment where you will benefit in the long run. For under $300, you can use solar power in your home. Solar power is free to use, since you will use the sun’s energy to create electricity. You can make use of solar lights, solar panels, etc.

Don’t cut off your conventional electricity supply, though, even when you’re using solar power. It’s not sunny all throughout the year and so you will need to use traditional electricity during rainy days. The best thing about solar power is that you can decrease your monthly electric bill. If you can convert your home into a full solar powered house, you can benefit greatly and you won’t worry even if fuel prices increase.

Power outages occur when there are electrical problems, but with solar power, you can enjoy using your electrical appliances without interruption. For those who want to use solar power, you can start with a simple project like the water features and lights in your garden. These items are easy to install and you don’t need any wiring.

In everything you find here on earth, there are advantages as well as disadvantages. True enough, solar power has many advantages, but you also need to consider the disadvantages. You need to weigh things first, before you consider opting for solar powered homes.

Today, you can easily purchase solar powered devices like flashlights, pool purifiers, ventilators, mosquito inhibitors, heaters, fountain pumps, radios, lighting, and many other types. Prepare to spend a little money upfront for the solar power devices, but don’t worry. After several months, you will start saving a lot of money on your monthly bills. Think of it as a one-time investment, which in the future, will surely pay off in huge savings.

Learn more about the advantages of solar power. Stop by Greg Purnell’s site where you can get a Free Report on home solar power kits and how you can easily get started.

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Geothermal Heat Pumps: Cost Effective And Environmentally Sound

By
Ryan McCall
Published: June 25, 2010Posted in: Green EnergyTags: , , , , , , , , , , , ,

A device that extracts heat from beneath the Earth is called a Geothermal Heat Pump (GHP). The GHP functions based on the principle that heat will move from higher to lower temperature materials, by either conduction or convention (air currents). These pumps absorb energy from both the ground and bodies of water and uses it to provide space and water heating. This is able to occur because the Earth absorbs 50% of the suns heat that reaches the Earth’s service.

Ground source heating and cooling provides high-comfort and cost-effectiveness with an environmentally friendly technology that makes use of the Earth’s capacity to store energy in the form of heat. Geothermal Heating Systems move heat from the earth or water into a building, or from a building back into the earth. A small amount of electricity is used to operate pumps, fans, controls, and small compressor.

The temperature of the ground a few feet below the surface is relatively constant, to GHPS use it as a source of heating a cooling. GHPs can be used for either retrofit or brand new homes, and they can also provide hot water with no extra cost, just by moving heat around instead of creating it. GHPs are new, but they can save you a lot of money.

It can cost several times to install a geothermal heating and cooling system, compared to the traditional kind. However, those costs are recovered over the next five to ten years, in the form of saving on energy costs. The interior components of these systems can easily last twenty-five years, and the piping in the ground can last fifty years. These systems are practical in most areas, and about 50,000 new systems are put in every year. They heat in the winter, and cool in the summer.

Many new residential systems are equipped with desuperheaters which transfer excess heat from the geothermal heat pump’s compressor to the home’s hot water storage tank providing very efficient water heating. However, the desuperheater will not provide hot water during the spring and fall when the geothermal heat pump system is not operating. But because the geothermal heating system is so much more efficient than other means of water heating, some manufacturers are offering ‘full demand’ systems that utilize a separate heat exchanger to cost-effectively provide for hot water needs.

Even though the cost of installation of Geothermal Heating Systems can be several times that of traditional heating and cooling systems, the additional expense are returned in energy savings in 5 to 10 years. This is because of the very high efficiency of Geothermal Heat Pumps.

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Solar-Powered Lighting

By
Owen Jones
Published: June 25, 2010Posted in: solar energyTags: , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

Mankind desires light. We humans are reliant on light unlike some other species. Our whole world existed only in the day time for millions of years. We woke up with the sunlight and went to bed when the sun went down. Later, we learned to produce our own light, but we were not totally successful at it until we commenced using electricity to produce light.

This has worked well for almost a hundred years, but now we realize that the main fuel used to produce our electricity, namely oil, is becoming too difficult to get hold of and more and more wars are being fought to ensure the West’s supply of oil.

Not only that, but greater and greater risks are being taken by oil bosses, which has lead to more and more catastrophes like that of the deep sea rig off Louisiana in the USA.

Consequently, the time has arrived, some even say that it is long overdue, that we rely on a different source of power and less on oil. The easiest and least risky way to produce electricity at the moment seems to be solar power. The technology has been with us for decades, but it was not practical for households to use it because it was too expensive, but that is no longer true.

The ability to use solar power to produce electricity for our lighting and indeed all our needs is there, already on hand. The only difficulty is that there are many oil baron billionaires who do not see this development as being in their interest. And they are right, in a way, it is not in their selfish interest to decrease our dependence on oil, but it is in the planet’s and its population’s interest. That is mankind’s predicament at this moment.

Solar panels can be utilized to produce electricity for immediate use either inside or outside the home and the excess generated can either be stored in batteries or fed back into the electric grid for which you will be remunerated (and remunerated at a very high rate, in some countries).

If you are not ready to come off the grid just quite yet, you could still use solar panels to power some of your external lights. In fact, there is a broad choice of outdoor lighting that provides its own power.

These external lights use mini solar panels, which the manufacturer has built in to the casing of the light to create power from the sunlight during daylight hours and then stores it in internal batteries to be utilized later.

These lamps also have a capacity to run the light on battery power from dusk until dawn. The solar unit determines whether to charge the batteries or supply light by the intensity of the ambient light. This solar power set up is perfect for exterior security lighting and accent lighting in the garden. They are just the thing for lighting up the fish pond or the drive too.

Solar powered external lighting has come a long way and it is well worth you finding out more, if you would like to decrease your dependence on electricity produced by oil from the grid.

Owen Jones, the author of this article writes on quite a few topics, but is at present involved with outdoor accent lighting. If you would like to know more or check out some great offers, please go to our website at Outdoor Wall Lamps.

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What Are The Benefits Of Using Solar Panels?

By
Fred Martimes
Published: June 8, 2010Posted in: solar energyTags: , , , , , , , , , , ,

Solar energy is an incredible source of power available to us. It can quite easily be produced and can be used to run all kinds of devices like light bulbs, heating systems and more. Take a look at what you can do with solar energy and how you can make use of a couple of solar panels in your back yard.

Solar panels can help you provide your house with hot water for the whole year. The panels will collect the solar energy and will turn them into heat energy that will quickly heat the water and keep it hot for the whole day.

Even electricity can be generated from this energy. By installing the solar panels on the roof top you can easily generate adequate electricity which is required to run some of your household equipments thereby reducing the cost in the electricity bill.

Solar energy is now also used in cars to operate the small electric cars through changing the solar energy into the needed electric energy to propel the car. Make sure that you are using the right amount of solar cells in order to generate the right amount of electricity.

Of late, one can also use this energy for running smaller equipments by generating the required energy. The interesting feature of these devices is that they will work every day throughout the day and you don?t have to worry about recharging them.

Nowadays, the best thing to do will be to add some solar cells on the roof top, which is not expensive and which would help you save money in the longer run. The energy required will be collected by these panels and will be transformed into the energy you need.

There is no limit to the imagination when you have electricity at your command as there are many things one can do with this energy. It is important that you check the required electricity to meet you needs and accordingly install sufficient quantity of solar panels.

To ensure that there is no leakage whatsoever, you will have to get solar panels of best quality.

You can find out more about this subject at this solar power blog.

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How To Make Solar Panels

By
Andrew T. Co
Published: May 18, 2010Posted in: solar energyTags: , , , , , , , , , , , ,

There is no question that more folks are excited over the utilising of the sun to generate clean electricity that’s strong enough to power up the entire house. For that reason, even the govt.is making its way to permit folk to understand that they should do the shift right at the moment. This is seen thru the undeniable fact that lots of grants and kickbacks are given by the governing body simply to convince folk to select solar power instead of stay using the fossil energy. If ever you are one of those fellows who would like to start the change then this text is going to lead you thru the method on the paths to know how to make solar panels.

The internet is your best resource when it comes to knowing the process to build solar energy system within your backyard. If you try to look around, you will see that there are wide ranges of guides which will open up the way for you to attain your own solar panels. These guides may come in the following forms:

Books- One of the most noted option to find out more about the method on how to make solar panels is to buy books available in a kind of hard copy or soft copy like ebooks. This is the least expensive fashion that these guides are available with and this is the thing that those people that are trying to find a meticulous step by step guide should try. There are so very many resources online that it’s possible for you to have a look for one in simply a blink of an eye.

DVD- Another choice is to go for DVD lessons. The method on how to make solar panels can be found in a video format which makes it more comprehensible by folk who don’t love to waste much of their time in perusing books just to understand about the method. Be certain though the DVD you’ll get is formed obviously so you do not finish up getting something which you will not be understand in the final analysis.

Professional Help- It is possible for a professional to be eager to teach other people about the ways on how to build these solar panels. Just be sure that the professional won’t charge you with an escalating fee in exchange of his or her service, particularly if you don’t have much cash to spare.

What you learned about how to make solar panels is just the beginning. To get the full story and all the details, check us out at Review of Power4home.

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Divulge Into The World Of Homemade Solar Panels

By
Andrew T. Co
Published: May 18, 2010Posted in: solar energyTags: , , , , , , , , , , , ,

Because of the increased of energy demands while there is a decrease of natural resources, homemade solar panels becomes the answer of our needs. However, some people are still skeptical to dip their fingers into the process because they don’t think whether this is really the answer to their energy problem. They don’t wish to take the risk because installing this system on top of their roof isn’t actually cheap.

Solar power is not new. In fact, it has been around for ages. The problem is, not all people are informed about the reason why they need to shift to this energy source, and it is probably because they don’t know the real situation of the earth. If only people will know that the earth is extremely suffering these days. There is now an irregularity when it comes to the world’s weather which triggers the presence of El Nino and El Nina. This is so alarming because this can lead to more and more calamities that may take the life of people again. Because of this, the need for homemade solar panels is a must. Furthermore, some of the benefits of going for solar energy are the following:

1. Opting for homemade solar panels can have extensive selection of benefits and the most typical of them is the business reason. Oil is a wonder substance, you can not find it anywhere. Due to this, why don’t you go for a source of energy that comes in wide selection which is the sun instead of select fossil energy which is awfully costly and may come in minute quantity?

2. Another reason why you have to go for solar energy more than the other is because with the rise of technology, the panels that we put in our house to gather the rays of the sun are now more efficient and they look even better.

3. The commonest reason is that homemade solar panels can free us from the difficulty of spending an arm and a leg solely to pay our electricity bill. This is excellent reports because the general public are living a meager life nowadays so if they can save on their energy then they’re going to be ready to spend their money on more critical things.

There are other benefits you can get from this power source that it’s impossible to list them here in this piece.In brief though , you’ll be awfully pleased when you go for this electricity alternative.

Lowest prices ever on homemade solar panels, grab yours now while they last at Solar Power House Guides. Better hurry because supplies are limited.

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