HOW TO BUILD A HOME SOLAR PANEL

Energy prices are constantly rising, slowly and steadily. With a growing world population and a dwindling supply of fossil fuels, there is no reason to think energy prices will drop anytime soon (possibly ever). Consequently, many homeowners are turning to renewable, or "green", technology as a way to lower their power bills and improve their property values.

Unfortunately, renewable energy technology remains expensive. Although a renewable power system in your home will eventually pay for itself (in about twenty years), coming up with the money for the initial installation can be prohibitive. Even solar panels, perhaps the cheapest and lowest-maintenance of all green technologies, cost hundreds of dollars. Paying a professional to install a solar power system in your home can quickly run into the thousands of dollars.

Looking for a less expensive route, many people ask, "Is there any way I can build home solar panels myself and save money?" The answer is yes. It is possible to build home solar panels yourself and save up to 30% of the cost. It requires a large time investment and some electrical engineering knowledge, but it is possible.

WHERE CAN I BUY THE MATERIALS?

Luckily, almost all of the materials required to build home solar panels can be found at your local hardware store (like Home Depot) and electronics store (like Radio Shack).

The lone exception is the solar cells themselves—the thin, flat wafers that convert sunlight into electricity. Those, however, can be easily bought online from a surprisingly large selection of companies. The cost per solar cell is between six and ten dollars each, depending on the size. Larger solar cells produce more electricity, so buy the biggest ones you can to get.

HOW DO I BUILD HOME SOLAR PANELS?

1. First, a single solar cell, however, doesn't produce that much electricity—a mere 45 milliwatts per square inch. Consequently, lots of solar cells need to be wired together into an array to be effective. You can use as many or a few as you want, depending on how big you want your solar panel to be. The average size of home solar panels, however, includes 36 solar cells.

2. Next determine the positive and negative sides of each solar panel. To do this, you'll need to use a voltage meter (which can cost as little as $20 at Radio Shack).

3. Using a soldering iron and 8-oz Roin core solder (both found in any hardware store), solder tinned interconnection wire (about ten inches long, but feel free to adjust the length to your needs) to the connection strips on the negative sides of all 36 solar cells.

4. Next, solder all the solar cells into a chain. Many people arrange them in a S-shaped or zig-zag pattern to save space. Solder interconnection wires from the negative side of one solar cell to the connection strips on the positive side of the next cell.

5. Although not required, it's beneficial to layer your solar cell array between two pieces of protective thermoplastic sheets such as EVA (ethylene vinyl acetate). This will protect the solar cells from weather damage and extend the lifespan of your solar panel. Also, most people mount their solar cell array in plastic or wooden frames to keep them stiff and flat.

6. Take pieces of insulated wire (roughly three inches long) and solder them to the positive wires on the first solar cell, and the negative wires on the last solar cell.

7. Take three-inch pieces of color-coded wire (usually red for positive and black for negative) and solder them to the interconnection wires on the first and last solar cell.

You're done! Of course, this is just the solar panel—to get the electricity from the solar panel to your wall outlet will take a lot more equipment and work. For example, you'll need to set up a battery array to store the electricity and a DC inverter to convert the battery's DC power into the 120-Volt AC power used by most household appliances.

Luckily, there are many books and websites that will talk you through these subsequent steps of building a home solar power system. To build home solar panels is only the first step, but one that can save you money.