PV Gap

Glenda Said:

DIY solar power in house?

We Answered:

If the old building isn't well insulated, get the thickest insulation you can buy. Not only will it be cheap, it will pay you back after the first couple years.

If you're actually on a lot of land, consider mowing the fields and piling all the debris in one place to compost, then extracting heat from the compost pile to heat a room in your house.

Jane Said:

DIY: Given a solar panel and an electrical outlet, how do I power a fridge using solar with grid backup?

We Answered:

2n2222 is right about the power you could get from the panel not being enough for what you want.

There's also the fact that you need an inverter to convert the DC from the PV cells to AC for the fridge and that everything between the inverter and power point is mains voltage and therefore deadly.

There's also the need to have the grid connection completely shut off during a power outage so that you don't accidentally feed power into the grid while someone is fixing the power lines (otherwise you may end up killing a maintenance worker and getting charged with manslaughter).

Marcus Said:

Wind or Solar Power, DIY?

We Answered:

It may not be free but as an example I purchased the guide from http://www.ebooksreviewed.info/earth4ene… and constructed a small scale wind turbine (I plan on making a few more as well) and I have to say the design was about as easy as it can get when dealing with something like this. It also provided places to get everything for as cheap as possible. In the end I spent a few hundred dollars for something that sells for $7,000 - $10,000, so I don't think you're wasting your money on a guide, you're never going to make one for free either. The materials alone cost a few hundred and then it takes some time to assemble and if you plan on attaching to the power grid you will need your city/county inspector and the electric company inspector to come out. I hardly think that $50 for a guide is a large cost. If you do plan on assembling one yourself I was pleased with my experience and recommend it. I calculate that I will recoupe my overhead costs within 8-10 months.

Tara Said:

Whats the best site for Solar Power?

We Answered:

Hey, I think that http://solarpoweredgarden-lights.com is really good. I purchased the kit for about $100 and I can tell you, I reccommend it to everyone! Also, there is loads of FREE information aswell, and videos lol.

Dwayne Said:

How to build a DIY LED lamp running on solar power?

We Answered:

The easiest way to power a lightbulb with a solar panel is to keep everything at DC voltage. Get a 12V solar panel, a 12V battery, and a 12V lightbulb. I'm trying to put together an inexpensive solution below.

This LED bulb will plug into a regular light socket, just make sure you do NOT plug it into a wall outlet. AC will blow it up. It uses less than 2W at 12VDC. http://www.altestore.com/store/Lighting-…

This battery will power the lightbulb for about 20 hours. http://www.altestore.com/store/Deep-Cycl…

This solar panel will charge up the battery. Note that because the panel is a smaller wattage than the lightbulb, you will need to have it in the sun charging the battery longer than the time the lightbulb is running. For example, to create enough electricity to run the light for 2 hours, you may need to have the panel charge the battery for 4 hours. To charge it faster, you'd need a bigger, more expensive panel. http://www.altestore.com/store/Solar-Pan…

Melvin Said:

Is easysolarandwindpower the best place to get your solar and wind power DIY kits?

We Answered:

yes

Constance Said:

DIY Solar panels to power home?

We Answered:

The only big thing i have seen with testing mono and poly solar cells
Mono will have a little more volts per cell mono normally will hit in volts .58 to .60 and poly
.50 to .55 volts for each cell most of the time with test the amps are much the same Mono may be little more but for the price i would go with poly. Poly seem to be not as fragile , Mono solar cells are very fragile I have put together allot of free info on DIY Solar Panels
this is a link to my Glass Frame diy solar panel
https://sites.google.com/site/earthforsolar/glass-frame-diy-panel

www.solarcells101.com

I have Help links to other sites on my website all for free

I hope this helps i have Made three diy solar panels so far,and by far i love the all glass solar panel
its 100% sealed from water

DAVID