he future is clean energy, and it doesn’t get any cleaner than the sun. Solar energy accounts for 1.6% of electricity generation in the US, and solar power offsets a whopping 70 million metric tons of carbon dioxide annually. This is equivalent to planting an average of 1.2 billion trees.
That’s how awesome solar energy is.
Solar energy is something everyone should be invested in. If you want to know how it’ll benefit you, we have listed some of the top benefits to help you understand how to use solar energy at home.
- Solar Water Heater
If you are looking forward to replacing your gas or electric-powered water heater, a solar-powered water heater may be the option you’re looking for. There are two types of solar systems you can use for this application, which are active solar hot water systems and passive solar hot water systems.
The former uses mechanical circulating pumps to circulate water from the rooftop collection panels to the storage tanks and throughout the home. You can also opt for indirect circulation, which uses a non-freezing fluid.
The liquid circulated through the solar collectors and into the heat exchanger, which then transfers that energy to the water flowing into your home. This option is more suitable for areas prone to freezing temperatures.
The latter is considerably cheaper, but not as efficient because it has no mechanical pump. You could opt for the integral collector storage systems if you have a substantial need for hot water. The solar collector will be integrated into the storage tank, and the sun will warm the tank directly.
Or, you could go for the thermosiphon system where the solar collector will be installed lower than the tank. Initially, there are significant costs in installing a solar water system, but when you consider long term cost-effectiveness, it’s totally worth the investment.
- Solar Heated Swimming Pools
Swimming pools are some of the best past times, and you can have tons of fun in yours until it gets too cold to even dip a toe. What if there was a cost-effective way for you to heat your pool and have fun whenever you want? Cue solar swimming pool heaters.
The basic solar heating blanket works by absorbing the heat emanating from the sun and heating the water passively. You can get more high-tech than this and install a solar water heating system instead for more long term use.
This means having solar panels installed on your roof so they can collect heat and transmit it to the water through a series of tubes. The water essentially circulated from the swimming pool to the solar water heating panels, then back again, increasing the temperature in the process.
- Solar House Heating
Solar energy can also heat your entire home, and if you truly want to embrace renewable energy, this is the way to go, though initially expensive. First, you can install a big-scale whole-house water heating system instead of a water heater to provide for all the hot water faucets in your home. They are not much different, though, because a whole-house water heating system requires solar panels and tubes that lace through all collector panels.
Instead of having the hot water stored in a tank, this system circulates the water through the tubes, providing warmth to the radiators throughout your home, and serves the purpose of heating your home at the same time. Most of the time, you’ll find these systems in commercial properties, but you can use one in your residential home as well. You just need to find out how many solar panels are needed to run a house.
- Hot Air Solar Systems
You don’t have to settle for the whole house water system if all you need is to heat your home. You can opt for the hot air solar system that, instead of water, will move warm air through your home. The system works by gathering air heated by the sun and beating it on an exposed wall or the roof.
Houses that accommodate this system need to have one house siding or roof that can absorb heat. However, you’ll find that most of these systems can only heat one room.
- Solar Electricity
If you asked most people how to use solar energy in their homes, they would say electricity. It is by far the most common use of solar energy that has gained momentum the past several years, and for good reasons too. The costs of solar panels have declined with time, and more people have discovered the environmental and financial impact of using solar energy for electricity.
You can power your entire home with solar, and even though it sounds expensive and complicated, it’s quite simple. You’ll have solar panels installed with polycrystalline silicon, the element that reacts to the sun, and generates electric currents. The DC currents are sent to an inverter, which in turn converts it to the AC power that feeds into your electrical panel.
- Solar Energy in Cooking
Did you know you can use solar energy to cook means in your home? Most people have no idea how to use solar energy to cook, but this is one of the simplest ways you can take advantage of solar energy because it requires zero installations.
All you need is a few things that include aluminum foil, a carton box, a cooking bag, duct tape, a pan, a thermometer, and styrofoam. What you do here is line the box with the aluminum foil or anything shiny that could concentrate solar heat into the cooking chamber.
- Solar Energy for Outdoor Lighting
Instead of investing in underground wiring, you can opt for solar energy for all your outdoor lighting needs. Individual solar powered outdoor lighting fixtures are an incredible addition since they come installed with small solar cells and rechargeable batteries. Due to LED technology, having adequate outdoor lighting is possible, and the best part is that you don’t have to do any wiring at all.
How to Use Solar Energy: The Future Is Renewable Energy
Renewable energy is taking over the world, and if you had no idea how to use solar energy in your home, now you do! It’s advisable to start going the clean energy way because it comes with innumerable benefits and makes the world a better place for everyone.
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