Solar Energy—When Questions Arise

July 14, 2011 By Leave a Comment
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You love the idea of saving energy; going solar. What is out there for the pickings? What must you be concerned about?

Solar panels. They not only save you money they increase your home value. Whether you put together a DIY kit or buy the panels outright, solar panels are used for a new or established home as well as a business venture.

The reason many folks are vying for the solar energy solution, is naturally because of their interest in decreasing the use of fossil fuels including natural gas, oil and coal. The use of solar energy helps the environment. Sure, it’s a lifestyle change from the typical fare, but going solar many finally keep the electric prices low and personal budgets in check.

What we already know is that the environment does not suffer from the use of solar energy, and that solar energy can effectively supplement what is already in use. Unfortunately, answers to questions such as whether or not to personally install your own solar panels, may not be.

For this reason, companies such as kissinsights.com are offering websites with an eye for green living, alternative energy and solar energy an opportunity to get on the proverbial panel and generate the answers many of us are searching for regarding the green life.

The best news is that questions can finally be answered and in only moments by the website that chooses to add kissinsights to their main page.

Other options in tackling the solar energy bug include blogs, videos and other online media that aid in the quest for the best answers in solar energy.

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Cutting Costs and Energy Use in Homes

January 29, 2011 By Leave a Comment

Are you ready to help save the earth? It is not just voting “yes” on a green bill or advertising for local recycling to promote the environment. You can make a big difference by starting in your own home. There are plenty of ways to save energy and this in turn can save you money. Join families everywhere, who are deciding to make changes to help the environment. When you receive your water and fuel bills you will be glad you did.

1.    Reduce use of the air conditioner during the summer. This accounts for 16% of American’s use of electricity. Consider opening the windows at night when the air is cooler to air out the house. Invest in some ceiling fans to circulate air throughout the house during the day. This will save energy and save you money on your monthly electric bill.

2.    Always wash a full load of dishes in the dishwasher. Half-loads are not energy-efficient.

3.    Keep lights off when not in use. Rely on natural lighting as much as possible to reduce your electric bill.

4.    Reduce the temperature on your water heater. A suggested temperature is 120 F. This will help save you money. Consider turning off the water heater all together when you and your family are away on long trips.

5.    Also reduce your thermostat in the house several degrees. Decreasing the heat in your home can also cut down on monthly expenses. If needed wear an extra layer such as a sweat shirt or sweater.

6.    When traveling to daily functions, carpool with neighbors or friends. If the location is nearby, it may be better to walk there. Not only will this save on gas, it will help you have a healthier lifestyle.

7.    Air dry clothes whenever possible to save on electricity used by the dryer.

Apply these tips in your home, and you can enjoy the satisfaction of helping the environment and low monthly bills.

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Earth-Friendly Practices for Business

January 27, 2011 By Leave a Comment

A business’s consumption of large amounts of resources and its contribution to considerable amounts of waste, make it a target for change. Businesses deciding to go green can take simple steps to transition or do a complete overhaul. The desired end though is to help decrease pollution and global warming as well as strengthen the business financially.

Consider some of the following as earth-friendly practices to improve your business:

1.    Use recycled products and paper. Businesses consume huge amounts of paper from printing off agendas for training meetings, to producing product manuals. Cut costs by using recycled paper and products that can be reused. Have the mentality that one-time use is not enough. Consider donating old products that are still useful to charities. Reuse ink cartridges by refilling them. Take an inventory of all products in use, and make the necessary changes.

2.    Purchase Energy Star equipment that can better benefit the environment. Instead of taking time to individually turn off all equipment pieces, plug them into a power strip that can be easily turned off at the end of the day.

3.    Review use of water within the company and utilize water-saving equipment. Be sure all equipment that deals with water is functioning properly to prevent leaks and water loss.

4.    Reduce the amount of printer-use. Encourage double-sided printing to save on ink and paper as well as costs.

5.    Consider doing simple training meetings to promote employee’s personal energy-use habits. Create incentives for those who are more energy-efficient.

6.    Invest in hybrid or electric cars for the company cars. Reward those who carpool or use public transportation.

As businesses make the transition to practices and policies that help save the earth, they will reduce their resource consumption and decrease the amount of waste produced. This not only will help them and the public, but will help the earth.

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The Use of Solar Energy in Agriculture

December 12, 2010 By Leave a Comment
On 140 acres of unused land on Nellis Air Forc...
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So how does solar energy work in a practical world setting? As the battle continues to stop wasting fossil fuels and to turn to alternate and renewable forms of energy there is the growing talk of solar energy and solar power as a ways to generate electricity, but the question remains for most people: does it really work? The answer is yes. It works in a variety of ways and settings. Like take the agriculture industry. They seek to get as much solar energy as they can because the more sunlight the plants have the more productive they will be.

So how do they maximize the sunlight to the plants? They do it in a variety of ways. One is the timed cycle where they plant and there is the way they position a row of plants toward the sun. They also stagger the heights of the rows so that plants all get a change to get the sunlight they need. When there have been periods in time where there was little light seasons they used growing walls which acted as thermal walls and accelerated the ripening process.

But the use of solar energy isn’t just limited to growing crops. There is also the use of solar power for pumping water, drying crops, brooding chicks and drying chicken manure. And at wineries all over the country they are using the energy generated by panels to power the presses for the grapes. Greenhouses work much the same way to keep heat in so that all year round the plants can be productive. Of course other industries are learning exactly what the farmers have known for years: that the use of solar power is one of the strongest, cheapest, and most effective ways to generate power.

So where does this leave solar power heading into the future? It will be one of the best ways to generate electricity for homes and as technology advances so will our dependency for the sun in our everyday lives going forward.

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What is Solar Energy?

December 6, 2010 By Leave a Comment
Moody sun burst hovering over a trough at Kram...
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We hear the world solar power a lot but there is another word that you hear just as often that is easily confused with solar power, and that word is solar energy. Solar Power is the use of the suns energy to convert it into electricity. This is considered a growing source of alternative power for companies, cities and homes all over the world but what is solar energy and how does it matter to you?

Solar energy is radiant light and heat directly from the sun. It has been used by human beings since the dawn of man. Solar radiation along with the various other forms of energy such as wind and wave power are responsible for most of the renewable energy on earth. There is a fraction(albeit a small fraction) of solar energy used meaning we could be using the sun to power things far more than is currently done.

Solar powered generation for electricity relies on heat engine and photovoltaics. The sun can be used for everything it’s only our lack of imagination that is stopping it. The solar applications that are used today includes space heating and cooling through architecture, portable water via distillation and disinfection, daylighting, solar hot water, and solar cooking, and high temperature process heat for industrial purposes. The best way to use solar energy is through solar panels.

There are two solar technologies: either passive or active solar. The difference has everything to do with the way the capture and distribute solar energy. The active technique includes photovoltaic panels or solar thermal collectors that harness the energy. The passive solar techniques include orienting a building to the Sun and selecting materials with light dispersing properties. This can also include making spaces that naturally circulate air.

The land and oceans absorb solar radiation that raises their temperature. This would explain why the water gets warmer over the summer time. Things like this are a good reason why so many people are pushing for solar energy but solar energy does more than you think.

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