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Build Your Own Wind Turbine

Sunday, March 7th, 2010

Build Your Own Wind Turbine
Both the rising cost of home energy use and the new push for more environmentally friendly technology has led to a great increase in the interest of wind turbines. Wind turbines harness the naturally occurring power of wind currents to produce electrical power. While they’re not perfect for use in all parts of the country, many states have enough strong wind to make using a wind turbine a cost effective and environmentally friendly way to generate power. It’s possibly for homeowners to buy small wind turbines to put on their own land, but these are often too expensive. For the best deal, you can build your own wind turbine.
If your area has enough wind power to produce power, you can use parts found at hardware and electrical supply stores to build your own wind turbine. By building it yourself, you save thousands of dollars, and will know how to repair it if parts wear out or break. You will need some basic electrical and construction knowledge, but even if you’re completely new to these ideas you can learn them with a little extra research and patience. There’s no advanced electrical knowledge needed to build your own wind turbine, and almost all of the parts are common items that can be found in any hardware store.
For homeowners looking for more environmentally friendly and economically independent sources of energy, low cost solar panels can also be constructed at home with the right materials. Solar power can be harnessed in every part of the country for at least some of a household’s energy use, and when used in combination with a wind turbine is much more likely to provide all of the electricity for a house. But solar panels can be extremely expensive, and cost even more to repair. But if you’re handy enough to build your own wind turbine, building a set of low cost solar panels isn’t much harder. You’ll also have the skills to repair your low cost solar panels.

Whether you’d like to be more economically self sufficient, or worry about the damage done to the environment by traditional energy sources, it’s possible to build your own wind turbine and low cost solar panels. This can save you thousands of dollars over purchasing these items, and teaches you the skills needed to repair these items as they wear out and break. Almost anyone can do it, and the parts are readily available.

Check out my sponsored Products for more information on Wind Turbines and solar panels.

Low Cost Solar Panels

Tuesday, February 9th, 2010

Making your own solar panels for less
This is the 21st Century! We have so many technological advances… we can communicate with anyone in the world, fly from one end of the globe to the other in less than a day, we’re even able to listen to music for less than a buck and download it into a portable device no bigger than your hand, so why do we still derive our energy from fossil fuels? That is so 20th Century! But solar panels are so expensive. Or are they? You can make your own low cost solar panel and generator for about $300 and power some of your favorite electric items using renewable energy!

First, you want to look for a panel that is 12 volts or higher. Most RV shops and marinas can sell you a 16 volt for under $100. Or you can build your own check it out at Earth4Energy..

Second, You want to get a battery. No, not the 9 volt or even the type in your car. you want a small and rechargeable battery. Get a 12-volt lead – acid – battery, you can usually get these for about $50 – $60 online.

Next, for safety reasons, you’ll want to buy a battery box. This is especially a good idea if you have kids around. Low cost solar panels won’t do you good if you don’t have it protected.

After that, buy a DC Meter that’s 12 volts ($25 at electronics stores) and a DC Input (car parts store — $10). These will allow you to take the energy from the panel and use them for your DC appliances. Note that you will NOT be able to use AC appliances until you buy an inverter. Inverters will convert your DC energy into AC energy so you can power them (most hardware stores will have these starting at $50). Take an estimate as to how much energy you will be using and remember that the wattage of the inverter must be greater than the wattage you’re going to use.

Now use a drill to attach the DC Meter and Input to the box, and use insulated wire to attach the meter to the battery. Only handle one wire at a time, and ALWAYS CONNECT TO THE NEGATIVE (-) SIDE FIRST! No point getting a low cost solar panel if you get electrocuted in the process. Now connect the DC Inlet to the battery, then connect the solar panel to the battery. Actually there is no chance of getting electrocuted the potential health hazard is rapid heating of the wires if shorted also you want to keep sparks and open flames away from led-acid batteries as they produce hydrogen when charged or discharged.

That’s it! Close the lid, seal it tight (bungee cords are recommended) and let your generator sit in the sun for 8 hours. Congratulations! You’ve got yourself a working solar panel and it will power your low wattage devices and save you money every month on electricity. Isn’t that cool? George Jetson would be proud of you.
Check out my sponsored Products for more information on Low Cost Solar Panels.