How to generate renewable energy at home
How to generate renewable energy at home
The term “renewable” is commonly used to refer to energy sources that are considered sustainable, renewable and clean.
A renewable resource is a natural source of energy that can be replenished and reused over time. Examples include wind power, solar power, biofuels, hydroelectric power and geothermal power.
Renewable energy resources are non-fossil fuels such as wind, solar, biofuels or hydroelectricity.
What are the best systems for generating electricity at home using renewable clean sources?
Generating your own electricity at home with renewables has become a common practice in many countries around the world. These days it is also possible to generate electricity in your own home using renewable clean sources such as:
- Wind: Wind turbines can be found in many places around the world and they convert wind into electricity through a turbine generator that spins an electric generator on its axis.
- Solar: Solar panels use the sun’s energy to generate electricity through photovoltaic cells which create direct current (DC).
- Biofuels: Biofuel uses plants or plant material for fuel production. The most common biofuel is biodiesel (a diesel substitute). Biodiesel can be made from vegetable oil or animal fat. Biodiesel burns cleaner than fossil fuel and does not produce carbon dioxide or other pollutants when burned; however, biodiesel has its own drawbacks such as being expensive and having limited supply at present time due to food shortages worldwide. Bioethanol (a different kind of alcohol) comes from plants like corn or sugar cane grown for their starchy roots which are then fermented to make alcohol. Bioethanol is often used as a mixer in gasoline blends, as an additive in diesel fuel and usually blended at the rate of 10% in regular diesel fuel.
A renewable energy source is one that can be replenished naturally or through a sustainable process such as hydroelectricity, wind power or solar power.
The best systems for generating electricity at home using renewables are systems which:
- Can produce lots of electricity from small area;
- Are easy to use and install; and
- Have reliable electricity delivery without the need of an electric grid (offgrid).
Some of the best systems for generating your own electricity at home are listed below:
1) Solar PV with battery storage system: A combination of solar panels and batteries that store excess electricity generated during the day during peak times for evening use. A common home application is using a PV system in conjunction with a battery bank with sufficient capacity to cover night time electric loads such as residential lighting, heating or air conditioning unit. Solar PV can be paired with Battery Storage Systems (BESs) either on site or off site depending on power requirements. Offsite solutions may include utility scale generators, solar thermal units etc.. These types of BESs have been widely implemented throughout Europe especially Germany and Spain with significant reductions on peak summertime power demand in some cases over 90%. This type of BES configuration provides high up front investment costs but it provides very low running costs when compared to utility grid based
How to use solar energy for generating electricity at home for cutting bills
Renewable energy is energy that can be renewed or replenished naturally, such as sunlight, wind, rain and tides.
Solar energy is a form of renewable energy that you can generate at your home for free. It uses the sun’s rays to heat water or to directly produce electricity.
Using solar power to generate electricity at home is a great way to save money on your bills because you don’t have to pay for electricity from the grid.
There are two types of solar power systems:
- Grid-tied systems: These are connected directly to the electric grid and can be used whenever it is connected. They also work best in sunny areas where the sun shines most of the time during daylight hours.
- Off-grid systems: These are not connected directly to the electric grid and they operate independently of it. This means that they can provide electricity even when there isn’t any sun shining or when the sun isn’t shining enough to use them effectively. Off-grid systems use batteries as their primary storage medium and therefore they need more maintenance than grid-tied systems because they have a much larger battery requirement.
Solar panels are one of the most important and inexpensive renewable energy sources.
Solar energy is produced when sunlight is converted into electricity through a photovoltaic cell.
Photovoltaic cells can be formed from a variety of semiconductor materials like silicon, cadmium telluride, copper indium gallium selenide or copper zinc tin sulfide.
The main advantage of using solar energy to produce electricity is that there’s almost no CO2 emissions when you use it. The disadvantages are that you need to install it on your roof and it needs a lot of space.