Solar energy systems have been around for a long time. When the equipment first became accessible solar cells were heralded to be the end of the oil crisis and the energy crisis. We suddenly had copious free energy, all of it coming from the sun. Inside ten years solar power systems were predicted to heat and power our homes and businesses. Some folks even thought we would be driving solar-powered cars soon, with long, sleek shapes covered with solar panels.
Unfortunately, the actuality didn’t quite match up with the dream. Solar panels were expensive to manufacture, and unless you had a lot of panels exposed to a lot of sunlight, solar power systems didn’t churn out very much energy. However, now that we’re seeing more improvement in solar power equipment, we may be witnessing a renaissance in solar power systems, at least in particular environments.
Though solar panels still absorb solar energy when it’s cloudy outside, they absorb much more energy and therefore provide more power if they’re exposed to direct sunlight. Solar power systems are therefore much more valuable in Tucson, AZ, then they are in Seattle, WA. Also, solar power systems create more power during longer days, so short Alaskan winter days aren’t very satisfactory for solar systems. The ideal situation is in the desert, with long days and little cloud cover.
To be successful, solar power systems don’t need to power an entire business area or even provide all of the power for a private Home. Solar power systems are much more effective at heating water than they are at producing energy. Since standard hot water heaters can consume over a third of a house’s power, replacing a gas-powered hot water heater with a solar powered heater can reduce a home’s energy bill considerably, as well as making the owners eligible for a tax cut in select states.
Solar power systems are also very advantageous for providing power in locations which are hard to reach with standard power lines. They’re extensively utilized for cell phone towers and other reflective antenna arrays located on mountaintops and other hard to reach places. Since these installations don’t require a huge deal of power or maintenance to run, solar panels can provide plenty of power without needing to be maintained or refueled. Though we’re probably still quite a ways from a completely solar-powered society, we’ll likely see many more solar powered devices as solar technology becomes more refined and more effective.
