Home Solar Power

Introduction

The Efficient Planet guide is not just one book, it’s 3! With 71 pages on how to build a home home solar power system, 51 pages on how to build a home wind turbine, and another 50 pages on how to enjoy efficient living at home, this is one comprehensive set of instructions! It almost hit our #1 spot, over-taking Earth4Energy, but its lack of video instruction put it at #2.

What we like about it:

1 - Comprehensive Instructions

Efficient Planet is by far the most complete and content-rich renewable energy guide available. It has over 175 pages of simple, easy to follow plans and recommendations, and is definitely value for money at a price of $49.97.

2 - Additional free gifts

Efficient planet has a whole host of bonus items for its customers - this includes a 50 page guide on efficient living. Just this guide alone is worth the $49.97. Also included are audio and video interviews with fellow DIYers that have built their own home solar and wind power.

Additional, but irrelevant bonus items included is: ‘Project Wealthy’ - a kit that teaches you everything about running your own efficient home business. And what they call “Undisclosed bonuses”.

3 - Solid plans:

A useful feature of Efficient Planet, is that is has been broken up into 3 separate guides:

The first guide speaks solely on home solar power, with a set of instructions on how to make your solar electric system at home. It also contains information on other home solar power options, such as solar air and water heating, and solar roofing.

The second part provides step-by-step instructions, with diagrams on how to make your own home wind generator. It also goes to talk about the 10 false rumors about wind power, and how to use it effectively at home.

The final part is devoted to showing you how to easily save power at home and thus reduce your power bill. Although we knew most of what it tells you to do, it really complemented the rest of the Efficient Planet series, with the goal of becoming more energy efficient.

Why it is not the best guide:

1: Lack of video instructions

Initially we thought Efficient Planet is the most complete set of solar and wind power instructions. But we noticed that is has no video tutorial, that show a working system being built in real-time. This make a harder for the average, everyday person to build their own working solar and wind power generator, without getting stuck. Yes, the diagrams did make it easier, but it makes more sense, in this day and age to provide step-by-step video instruction.

2: The same old rehashed information

Efficient Planet seems to be the same old rehashed information. Diy energy guides are appearing all over the place these days, and this guide does not seem to be any different to rest. However, with that being said, where Efficient Planet excels is that gives it customers a number of free extras, that make it better value for money as compared to Homemade Energy or Homemade Power Plant.

Overall Rating:

Efficient Planet provides some of the most complete, and useful step-by-step instructions on making your own renewable energy and saving power at home. Yes, you will eventually build a working solar and wind power system with the plans, but it will take you a little longer than if you used the Earth4Energy guide (which has free video instruction). The free extras make it well worth the $49.97 price, so it comes in 2nd place.

Tim McDonald is an enthusiastic DIYer that has been living off the grid since June 2008. He recommends you Try Earth4Energy for FREE if you are serious about making your own solar and home wind turbine, saving bucket loads of cash on your electricity bill, and living a greener life.

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What would you do if you figured out a way to have energy in your home and not have to spend your money for it?

Finding ways to save more in this down economy is of interest to many of us who want to waste less.

I remember as a child when my mother would hang the clothes outdoors on a hot sunny day on the clothes line.

What a good idea my mother had I would think to myself. The energy bill was much less than usual. Clothes pins and a line for hanging clothes is what mom used. The clothes hung in the hot air as the wind blew them dry. Once taken of the line the clean natural scent of the clothes was a treat to the nose.

The clothes were safe to wear and were dried to perfection; almost better than what the actual dryer that sat in the basement would have done. What my mom did as many other mothers also did was create a system that produced free electricity to drying clothes.

Self-sufficient alternative power sources was born as a result of the clothes hanging concept. There are a multitude of reasons to turning your home into receiving electric for free. Spending less dollars is the first reason.

Our mothers and grandmothers figured out a way to get the clothes dried for free; there is a way to create free power in your home. Without renewable or non-renewable sources powered by a generator that can be buillt from magnets and a battery.

Without the use of a solar, heat, water or coal; batteries and magnets can be used to construct a power generated machine that can adequately deliver free electricity in your home danger free.

How would you like to learn more about how you can use alternative power sources with a battery and magnets to provide your home with free electric energy visit http://www.alternativeenergymanagement.blogspot.com for more information.

Want to find out more about alternative energy resources, then visit www.alternativeenergymanagement.blogspot.com and discover how a battery and magnets can give you power in your home

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During the process of researching an article about green products on photovoltaic cell systems (solar panels), I came across another way to convert the sun’s light into electricity. So let’s take a look at another type of solar energy system.

This system is not new; it was originally conceived in 1816 as an industrial rival to the steam engine. It has been largely underutilized for the past century. With the need for renewable energy sources caused by the overuse of the fossil fuels interest has resurged in solar designs, and it is now being designed into many new solar collector systems.

The Stirling engine has many different designs, some more efficient than others. Some designs use the two cylinder Alpha design, some the Beta single cylinder design and some the Gamma design (a variation of the beta for use in multiple cylinder applications). The beta Sterling design has a single chamber with two pistons and uses a highly efficient regenerator gas as the thermal conductor.

The operation of the Stirling engine is not complex, it only requires an external heat source. Some heat sources have been fuel, while some solar designs use a Fernell lens, and the latest source is large parabolic mirrors.

The basic operation of this thermal engine is really quite simple. The engine has two chambers, one hot and one cold. When an external heat source is applied the hot air expands moving a piston and flows to the cold chamber. A flywheel is attached to maintain movement.

The system is ideal when a concentrated heat source is applied, in this case sunlight. The sunlight is collected with parabolic mirrors and focused on to the surface of the hot chamber, causing the chamber to be heated and the engine to start. This temperatures can be very high. You know this from, when as a child, you took a magnifying glass and focused it on a piece of paper. When done correctly the paper would get dark and then a flame would appear.

With better-designed engines and new types of material, a movable (tracking) parabolic mirror, and a single Stirling engine you can produce 25 kilowatts of electricity.

In a future article about green products I will list the different solar technologies and how they compare to the competition.

Michael

See more of Michael’s concern for your carbon footprints at Green Products

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