Solar enegy ups and downs 10 points to most answers?

Question

my dad is giving me 100 dollars to reseearch about solar energy and see which one we should get or if we should get one at all

For some of my research i would like to find out some good and bad things about solar energy. The one with the most points gets the points

thanks in advance to all your answers

Answer 1

The Thermosiphon hot water system is the best.  No moving parts and no electricity needed.  The size is dependent of the number of people using it.  The down side is the weight of the system.  If you have the space on the ground, it would be ideal.  If not you may need to make your roof stronger.

Solar systems work better in tropical zones.  If you live in outside this area you need more panels.  Best if you talk with several solar companies and compare prices.

Photovoltaic systems to convert sun to electrical is very expensive at this time, but some parking lots in my state (Hawaii) have installed solar lights with wind generators to keep the system going 24/7.  That system has been running for over four years and is a wonderful addition to any area where you want security lights during the nights.  The downside is the noise from the wind generators.  It will keep you up all night if you are a light sleeper.  I purchased a couple of solar spotlights and it's ok but only gives about six hours after the sun goes down.  

Solar cookers designs are all over the Internet.  Best if you build and design one yourself..  The down side is most people are working during the day to get full advantage of this system.

Hope you get your 100 dollars.

Answer 2

Solar energy is the energy of the future. Currently it is very expensive for the general public to have it in their own homes, but in a couple of years it will be very affordable. There are new technologies in solar panels that are just getting started. Check out this web site: http://nanosolar.com/about.htm. This company "Nanosolar" has just started selling solar panels at $1/watt. Some of the companies investing in it include IBM and Google.

There are some government insentives depending where you live.

Check out these websites:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Solar_energ

http://www.energy.gov

Solar energy is only good during the day, but there are other technologies that are starting up that will resolve that issue. Hydragen is one of them. We are very close to having a hydrogen station in our garages that could use solar energy during the day to produce and store hydrogen use it at night to power your home and your automobile. Check out this web site: http://world.honda.com/FuelCell/FCX/stat... & http://www.honda.com/solar-cell/

And check out this hidrogen car that will start selling to public of South California this summer: http://www.honda.com/fuel-cell/

Answer 3

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Answer 4

The CAT (Centre For Alternative Technology), has years of experience and information, they run courses for you to learn and build your own etc.  They are based in Machynlleth, Wales, UK.  The have books you can buy too.

Also The Permaculture Magazine has information and advertisers, again based in UK.

A woman called Caroline Barry, lives in a straw bale house and uses solar and other alternative sources of power. Her home will be on the web - dont have the address to hand but if you look up Straw bale and her name you will find her, she is based in Somerset, UK

And there is a guy in Glastonbury, Somerset, UK who sells solar products and recycled bio diesel his name is Simo but again not sure of web address, sorry.

Hope that gives you some starting points.

Answer 5

Photovoltaic cells are (still) relative expensive and pay-back time is long.

But then there is time.

If left unharmed, silicon wafers are virtually ever-lasting. They can, in theory, continue transforming sunlight to electricity for tens of thousands of years.

Answer 6

the good thing about solar energy is that it is better for the enviorment BUT the bad thing is that if it is a realy cloudy day you can't get energy from the sun.

Answer 7

If you are looking at cost and payback period then Solar water heaters are the best bet, they cost less and payback is fast.

They only work if you have at least 3-4 hours of strong sunlight in your place though. And this is applicable for ANY solar energy equipment you try and use.

You should do your research based on cost and payback period rather than pros-and-cons because the biggest pro oftentimes is money and how fast you get a return on your investment.

You can also buy a solar cooker or better yet build one at home and show to your father how it works, these are very cheap and effective especially if you boil stuff a lot.