Developing residential solar power is critical to combating the energy crisis we are facing today. We are consuming our natural resources, including non renewable fossil fuels, faster every day. One example is the rapidly increasing number of automobiles in countries like China and India that didn’t used to have near as many people driving. This is causing skyrocketing demand for resources like oil to produce gas, not to mention the increased demand for non-renewable resources like steel. If we are going to ensure that future generations can enjoy the same standard of living we have today, we must start conserving our resources immediately and get serious about using alternative solar energy sources and other renewable energy sources.
Alternative energy sources like solar power and wind power, can reduce the burden on non-renewable resources. As a home owner or user of energy, there are lots of things you can do to save energy, protect the environment, and save money too. Here are some ideas you can consider.
One thing you can do in your home is to use a solar water heater to heat your water for showers, laundry, dishes, and everything else you need heated water for. They are more expensive to install than a traditional natural gas or electric water heater, but over time they can pay for themselves with the energy savings you will achieve. You can either buy a water heater designed to use solar energy or you can modify your existing water heater to take advantage of the suns rays to heat your water. This is a really great use of the suns energy!
For anybody that owns a swimming pool, the sun can be a great help in heating up your pool in the spring and fall to extend your swimming season. These systems are so cost effective that if you live in an area where you can get sun to the heating system, you are foolish not to use solar energy to heat your pool up. If you really want to be environmentally friendly, make sure you convert to a salt water pool to avoid the chlorine and install a solar panel to produce electricity for your pump. Once you do that, you can have an eco-friendly pool that is powered completely by alternative solar energy.
Lighting your home is another simple way to use the suns rays to reduce your consumption of electricity. During the day, make sure your blinds are open to let the sunlight in and provide some heat. You can also install skylights or light tubes that will let sunlight into your house so you can turn off some lights. On the other side, if you keep your blinds closed when it is hot out, you will block the sunlight and heat which will help keep your home cool. Just use a little common sense on when you want to let the light and heat in and when you want to keep the heat out. Using solar energy in this way costs almost nothing unless you decide to install one or more skylights. If you already have blinds on your windows, it might not even cost you anything.
One last bit of alternative solar energy to talk about is solar panels. These come in many sizes and do things as simple as store energy during the day to power your sidewalk lights at night or as complex as harness the suns rays to create electricity to power your house. The technology is the same. Basically you convert solar energy into electrical energy and store it in a battery or series of batteries for use later. Large solar panels can be quite expensive, but with the cost of electricity today, there can be a very substantial payback on your monthly electricity bill. It is possible to create enough electricity that you will actually sell electricity to the electric company instead of buying it.
Now you might be asking what you can do if you cannot install solar panels or modify your house or apartment to put in a solar water heater or skylights. You may be able to purchase environmentally friendly energy from your electric company. In many areas, electric companies offer a green energy option which promotes the use of green or renewable energy like alternative solar energy. One such company that offers a green energy option to electricity customers in Texas and New York is Ambit Energy. Check with your company to see if you have the option to select green energy or check out the cheap electricity Ambit Energy offers.
Now that you know a little more about what is out there as far as renewable energy, go start saving money!
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