Making Cheap, Inexpensive DIY Solar Panels at Home
Mike Davis is an astronomer. To practice his hobby away from the light-pollution of cities, he bought some land in a remote part of Arizona. But there was a problem: No electricity…. But he’s a resourceful fellow. He built some home-made solar panels using inexpensive blemished and damaged solar cells from eBay! That might be even cooler, though less romantic, than the couple who got their solar panels via their wedding registry.

Read on for more photos and some technical details to give you an idea of how he did it.

I bought a couple of bricks of 3 X 6 mono-crystalline solar cells. It takes a total of 36 of these type solar cells wired in series to make a panel. Each cell produces about 1/2 Volt. 36 in series would give about 18 volts which would be good for charging 12 volt batteries. (Yes, you really need that high a Voltage to effectively charge 12 Volt batteries) This type of solar cell is as thin as paper and as brittle and fragile as glass.

A solar panel is really just a shallow box. So I started out by building myself a shallow box. I made the box shallow so the sides wouldn’t shade the solar cells when the sun comes at an angle from the sides.

Next I cut two pieces of masonite peg-board to fit inside the wells. These pieces of peg-board will be the substrates that each sub-panel will be built on. [...] To protect the solar cells from the weather, the panel will have a plexiglass front.

I laid out the cells on that grid pattern upside-down so I could solder them together. All 18 cells on each half panel need to be soldered together in series, then both half panels need to be connected in series to get the desired voltage. [...]I used a low-Wattage soldering iron and fine rosen-core solder. I also used a rosen pen on the solder points on the back of the cells before soldering. Use a real light touch with the soldering iron. The cells are thin and delicate. If you push too hard, you will break the cells.

Here’s what it looks like from the front.

Here I am testing first half panel outside in the sun. In weak sun through clouds the half panel is producing 9.31 Volts. YES It works! Now all I had to do is build another one just like it.

I drilled a hole in the back of the panel near the top for the wires to exit. [...] Each solar panel in a solar power system needs a blocking diode in series with it to prevent the panel from discharging your batteries at night or during cloudy weather. [...] I added a polarized two-pin jones plug to the end of the panel wires.

Here is the finished product, producing 18.8 volts and 3.05 Amps in the sun.

How much did it cost?

Not bad, though of course there’s a lot of labor needed to actually build the thing, and you need the skills in the first place. Not a project for everybody, but those with the courage will certainly have a lot of fun.

This is just a quick overview of the project. If you want more, please visit Mark’s website linked below. There’s a lot more details and more photos about how he built his inexpensive solar panels.

Want to Start Making Solar Power at Home? Check out these instructions for building your own solar power. Includes videos, ebook, diagrams, and all the plans you need to get off the power grid and start saving some green while going green.

Part of the American Reinvestment and Recovery Act was announced today by President Obama, and his goal is to help the growth of our economy and geo thermal and solar power technology in the United States.   This amount of money will help ensure that solar energy is on the fore front of our power goals in becoming more energy independent and more green conscious.

Obama is trying to stimulate the economy with these new jobs created in the renewable energy fields and the world waiting to see the results that will come from these decisions.  Obama claimed that we could be known for being big guzzlers of oil or for leading the world in clean energy technologies.

The solar power industry is growing by leaps and bounds every day and has seen over a 10% annual growth rate in America alone.  117 million dollars of the funds will go to helping companies excel in the production and inclusion of solar power.  This includes aiding in the solar commercialization at colleges, government offices, and even in the private sector.  The goal is to become a clear leader in the international community regarding solar energy technology.

51.5 million will help in getting photovoltaic cells to be more productive and to become more efficient in the production of electricity from the power of the sun.  The more efficient these cells will be the more power will be able to be produced for less money and will make it more affordable for everyone.

40.5 million will go to help in the aid of getting set up with solar energy.  This includes everything that works around the solar panels, like the grid system, batteries, inverters, etc.  This will also fund the cities and local governments to figure out how to make solar power more accessible in the marketplace.

25.6 million will go to the every important research and developement.  This is the most important part of the package in my mind but the least funded.  More research must be done to make solar power a viable option to the average individual not just to rich and power companies.  Until the average consumer can utilize solar power at their homes, solar power will always be looking in the distance.

Want to Start Making Solar Power at Home? Check out these instructions for building your own solar power. Includes videos, ebook, diagrams, and all the plans you need to get off the power grid and start saving some green while going green.

Batteries are one of the most important parts of the solar power system but also one of the least understood areas as well. You need to make sure you get the right batteries before you even set up your own solar power system, so this article may prove helpful to many of you out there.

Most of the smaller or lower end solar panel systems are 12-volt DC.  The power coming from your panels will go into these batteries and not directly into your house.  Now there are also power inverters you can get to convert that DC into AC that you can use for household power consumption that is 120 volts.  And of course in some cases you may use net-metering which ties in the power from the solar system directly into the power grid so you do not use batteries at all, but this is only when you have a large enough system capable of this power.

The wiring on some of these systems can be a little tricky so you may want to hire a qualified electrician to make sure you got it right.  After all, it’s not worth using solar power if you end up burning your house down.

So what solar batteries do I need?

A battery bank is simply a place where all of the batteries are stored and connected to keep them from the elements and preserve their longevity.  There are wet cells and sealed batteries and each battery is made to function for a different purpose.  You may have been told that car batteries are all you need, but this is wrong.  Car batteries are made to provide a short burst of power and then longer periods of minimal use.   But with solar panel systems you will want long continued use.

The batteries used in golf carts provide a basic idea of what we need.  These batteries are made to be used all day long and have long deep discharge, while having a short recharge to be powered again.  Since most of these golf cart batteries are 6 volts, you will want to get them in pairs to get that 12 volts of power.

How much power will these batteries hold?

The typical golf cart 6 volt battery can hold 1 kilowatt hour of use.  How much power is this?  It’s enough to power two 5o watt lightbulbs for 10 hours.  Not bad, but you will need more than one to power your entire home.

Other considerations

These batteries are very heavy so make sure the bank you make can hold all of them safely.  You also need to provide proper ventilation because these batteries do vent gas.  Make sure the batteries are never exposed to extreme temperatures as a swing too hot or to cold can cut the batteries ability to store energy in half.

Here is an example of a battery bank that someone has built.

Want to Start Making Solar Power at Home? Check out these instructions for building your own solar power. Includes videos, ebook, diagrams, and all the plans you need to get off the power grid and start saving some green while going green.

Are you trying to find a way to build solar water heater at home? Or maybe you just want to use the power generated by the sun so you don’t have to pay to heat your water anymore. There are a lot of ways you can build a system at home for this kind of project. And unlike many other projects with solar, this one can be done easily by anyone, even without being a mechanical genius.

How much do parts cost to make it yourself?

Well thats the best part.  Most of the parts you will need for a DIY solar water heater project can be found at a dump or gathered easily from things you already own.  There is no reason you could do this for less than $5 in parts.

Here are some of the parts you will need:

• You will want a bucket
• Some water (of course)
• Drill with drill bits
• Scissors
• A hand saw or circular saw
• Ply wood
• a Pane of glass
• the back of a small fridge
• some clear small hose
• aluminum foil
• some duct tape (yup, it’s good for everything after all)
• and some screws.

I would say that the most crucial part of this whole process will be the fridge coil from the back of it.   This is what will allow the water to be collected and heated inside of your solar water heater.  The sun will hit that pane glass and heat up the inside of your system with the aluminum foil helping to make it even hotter.  The water in the coils will heat up enough for you to take a nice hot shower.

This same system can be made portable and used for camping too.  So if you hate cold showers like I do, you can always get some hot water and it will not cost you a penny as you are you just using the natural amazing power of the sun.

Learn How to Assemble This Solar Water Heater Here

Want to Start Making Solar Power at Home? Check out these instructions for building your own solar power. Includes videos, ebook, diagrams, and all the plans you need to get off the power grid and start saving some green while going green.