How To Build Solar Panels

1. JamesD Said,

   The solar panels you have to buy from someone. The wind generators you can build yourself. As for reliable depends on your skills and how much wind is in your location.
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2. Bonno Said,

   unless you’re in the North west & have timbers available to it’s not quite there… you need 220 for A/c & solar panels haven’t quit got up to that snuff! you can buy an LP frig, & cooking. wood heating/ cooking is the cheapest. I would imagine a small lp house tank would run a frig for over a year. light are easy enough 12 V, A gas operated wringer washer & clothes line, or you need juice for the laundry. you could make them all work with wood, batteries & L/P, but id you need A/C that lighting on tap cannot be replaced!
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3. Chris Said,

   Solar panels that produce power are not something you can make at home. The only solar panels you can make are ones that heat water. Heating water is most efficient use of solar power. Basically need a box with a clear top that lets the sun in which heats up the box. having a black tube with water running thur it to get the heat out. These things are very ugly and need to be connected to your hot water tank. need to hire a plumber to hook it up. These things can make sense but i would think its cheaper to just buy one than make it.

   A generator is something you can pick up easily, the windmill is a little harder. matching the 2 you need an engineering degree. Will also need a machine shop to fabricate a bunch of parts to hook the thing together.

   You also need an inverter to take your power and tie to the grid. They are around 1-2 thousand dollars.
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4. Dan B Said,

   There’s no way that "home built" system that will generate enough power to run your home "off the grid". That’s all hogwash! No wind = no electricity generated. No sun = no electricity generated.

   I’m looking into a grid tie solar system. I’m still working out the math for my home. They are expensive ($20k - $50k) before tax credits, but they have been designed by engineers, not back yard, shade tree wanna-be engineers. They will put power into the grid during the day (making your meter run backwards) and you’ll draw the power back at night (when there’s no sun). This is perfectly legal. It must be installed by power company approved techs. That’s how power companies are going to meet their "green energy" mandates for the future. You’ll generate power for the power company and get paid wholesale prices for it (during the day). But you’ll buy it back at retail (at night)
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5. Amy Said,

   Please avoid those "build your own" sites. They are not something that can be reliably built. Even if you were to build the panels, they are not UL listed and would not be allowed to be hooked up on your house. The price of solar panels has dropped so much this past year, that the panels are no longer the most expensive piece of the system. You still need to buy an approved inverter to convert the DC power generated by a solar panel or wind turbine to AC that is used by your appliances.

   If you are interested in installing solar, please only use approved equipment that will safely and reliably produce power for 50 or more years.

   If you would like to look at some examples, you can see some prepackaged kits at http://www.altestore.com/store/Kits-and-Package-Deals/Grid-Tied-Systems/Alt-E-Designed-Grid-Tie-Packages/c1087/
   References :
   AltE Store - http://www.altestore.com/store

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