While I've been interested in solar power for a long time, I've never actually implemented it beyond the small stuff: solar lighting in my garden and a solar powered radio. Recently I've been interested in upgrading my solar usage but I haven't been quite sure where to start. Perhaps, if you're like me and  want to learn about solar technology and have a limited budget you'll be interested in the solution I've found: a do-it-yourself  solar panel kit.   

 

When I first looked at the DIY kits I thought: well that's neat, but I'm not really a hobbyist - at least not yet. I'm looking for a practical solution that will give me hands on experience with solar panels. I need it to power at least one small electrical device and it can't look bulky or out of place in my home. Thankfully I found that there are many kits out there that fit my needs.

 

Small solar panel kits start at about $100 and can teach you everything you need to know solar power technology.  The panels range in size, voltage and level of experience. For example, the one I'm looking at now is a 12-volt do-it-yourself kit. The 12-volt panel will end up generating about 36 watt hours of energy from 5 hours of sunlight. I think it will go in nicely with my garden set up... a little solar path lighting, a solar radio and a nice new panel on the gazebo I can plug my laptop into. It would be like having a super green office at my disposal.

 

You may be asking yourself ,"but why doesn't she just buy a small solar panel ready for mounting and hook up? Wouldn't that fill her needs?" Well yes and no.

 

The thing I'm looking forward to the most is  learning more about the mechanics of solar technology.  Of course, the kit itself is sort of cheating... many of the components are already put together and I'm simply putting on the final touches. But it's a good start. I'll learn practical information about energy storage, conversion and creation. I may even learn enough to hold an intelligent conversation with the person who will someday soon (I hope!) be installing a solar powered water heater in my home.

 

Later on down the line I'll look at DIY solar manuals and learn how to build one from scratch. I may even try to refurbish old cells - which seems to be what a lot of solar hobbyists are doing these days. I hope to have more knowledge after I complete the kit about how to eventually take my whole home solar. For now though, I'll just concentrate on my garden retreat.

 

Written by Emma Santa