If you have seen how much it costs to buy and install solar panels then you will be pleased to know that great savings can be made if you know to how to build a solar panel from scratch. What may have been outside of your budget can suddenly become affordable as the savings can be more than 70%.
The secret that you discover once you learn how to build a solar panel from scratch is that you can buy slightly defective solar cells that have been rejected by the commercial manufacturers. There is nothing wrong with these solar cells other than minor blemishes which prevented them from getting through the quality control process. I’m talking very minor defects here that you would have to look very hard to find and will have no noticeable performance impact on the panel.
Other than these solar cells everything else is obtainable at local hardware stores. The other materials consist of Plexiglas and plywood to build the weatherproof containers that house the solar cells. Then you need copper wire and electrical fittings to wire it all together. It can take a bit of looking around to find the solar cells at the cheapest prices but I’ve found that eBay is a great place to find them. The other things that you will need are batteries to store the electricity that you create.
Your hardware store can cut the plywood and Plexiglas to the required specifications and you just assemble and install everything yourself. It’s important to give the plywood casing a few coats of paint to seal them from the elements to prevent them from swelling up.
It can all be a bit of an effort if you don’t like DIY but the costs savings are huge compared to what you would have spent. Once installed you will continue to make huge savings as you will drastically reduce your electricity bills and may even have surplus power that you can sell to your utility company. Yes, you did here that correct! Many people who have solar powered homes actually get sent checks from their utility company. However this all depends on how much electricity you produce which is determined by how many solar panels you decide to build and how much sunshine you receive.
I highly recommend Earth 4 Energy as being the best guide showing you how to build a solar panel from scratch. This is by far the most comprehensive and easy to follow guide and is fully illustrated and accompanied with videos. You don’t need any special skills and the only tools you need are common to any DIY enthusiasts toolkit. As I mentioned the cutting of the Plexiglas and plywood can be done by the store to the specifications that will have been provided with the Earth 4 Energy manual.
I learnt how to make solar panels from scratch several years ago now and I can honestly say that it was one of the best investments I’ve ever made. It gives me a great sense of freedom knowing that I’m generating my own electricity and not being so dependent on the grid.
