Even
the poorest amongst us inherit two very priceless assets
at birth – the sun and the moon. They are all yours till
your eyes are closed upon the light of this world. The
sun, apart from providing us with light and warmth at
least twelve hours a day, can also give us the much
needed electricity if we harness it appropriately. And
that’s precisely what science has
achieved.
With
the help of photovoltaic cells we can derive electricity
from solar energy; as much as we need, and that too,
sans any price. Of course, it costs a great deal of
money to construct a solar or photovoltaic panel to
obtain electric power. But that is a different
story.
To
begin with, with the sun as your helpful but
non-interfering working partner, you can do business
selling electricity to your utility company or the grid
at a profit (no raw material cost and no running cost)
through “Net-metering Scheme” for as long as you may
wish. Since it may sound more like a fairy tale than a
business venture, the matter is discussed in detail
here. Say, your monthly electricity consumption is X
number of units or A amount of dollars. Now, if you
install a solar panel at your home that can produce 6X
number of units per month that is equivalent to $5A and
you draw 2X number of units from the utility for night
time consumption, you are still left with 6X minus 3X or
3X number of units equivalent to $5A minus $A or $4A in
your hand. Since you can neither relish eating the
surplus electricity as your breakfast food everyday nor
can store it for a rainy day, you obviously sell it to
the utility company or the grid at a profit. This way
you can eat your cake and have it too. If you still find
it mind-boggling, talk it over with your nearest solar
panel dealer who may make the plan look more
profitable.
Then
there is the question of return on investment. Let me
warn you at the outset that the investment can be fairly
high though most states offer financial assistance to
you for the simple reason that you are utilizing
eco-friendly, clean renewable energy to produce
electricity that does not contaminate the environ.
However, you can always find out the break-even point by
subtracting the value of the annual sale of electricity
from the initial investment made by you. In any event,
this is relatively easier computation that is given
here.
Initial investment
$30,000
Yearly sale value of solar electricity
$ 5,000
Number of
years to reach break-even point
6 years
From the 7th year onward
everything is free
Since
solar energy is clean, renewable, non-fossil fuel
oriented and sustainable, it does not pollute the air
that we breathe by discharging sulfur dioxide (SO²),
carbon dioxide (CO²), nitrogen oxide (NO) or mercury
into it as happens with most of the traditional fossil
fuel electricity generation systems. And for the same
reason, solar energy does not contribute to the
contemporary problem of global warming or greenhouse
effect. And the best part of it includes the fact that
it would never cause unhealthy smog or acid rain in the
area where it is utilized.
Some
of the solar energy advantages also include free usage
of fuel and no maintenance cost as the solar panel has
no moving parts that may require replacement after a
given period of time.
Yet
another unique and novel advantage that is associated
with installation and use of solar energy concerns its
independent nature of application. Solar energy does not
need any other implement to begin operation and starts
generating current absolutely on its own through the
solar panel. This distinctiveness of operation helps
installation of units anywhere under the sun,
irrespective of whether other facilities are available
or not. Besides, it is portable. Powerful Solar energy
units mounted on trailers, complete with control panel,
converters, battery banks and switches are now in use in
such remote areas like the South African Game Reserves
where scientists are busy checking the genes of large
animals like the rhinoceros or the giraffe. Independent
solar energy operated units help light up their camp
sites while powering their laptops for research work.
On
top of everything else, it has already reduced the
dependence on Middle Eastern countries whose oil
supplies had so far been responsible for fossil fuel
generated electric power. And the way people are now
becoming ready to install solar power in homes and
workplaces, a day will come in not too distant
foreseeable future when diesel powered generators would
sound like archaic storybook
topics.
However,
let us now take a look at some of the disadvantages that
accompany solar energy uses. A disturbing factor is the
present high cost of installation of a solar panel.
Though the government departments are trying their best
to bring about a solution by way of allowing financial
help as well as various rebates and concessions to would
be users, the picture is still pretty grim. But
considering the many advantages, the negative points
seem minor.
So
are you ready to opt for solar energy – there are simply
too many advantages to ignore it. What you need is a
training guide – a manual, that will let you learn how
to install a system. You will also need to know a few
other things such as what is the best place to set up
the system, where to buy the parts, how to get free
batteries, safety precautions and also wiring the
system. Get informed and you are ready to install solar
system in your home.
