We so often hear about the benefits of local goods- buy your food locally, buy furniture made by people in your area, etc. The basic idea is that local products need not be transported, reducing their environmental impact. However, the idea that local creation of products is valuable extends past consumer products. In particular, it’s incredibly important for the environment that electricity is produced locally.
An immediate question springs to mind, however. Isn’t all power produced at least somewhat locally? In short, yes. However, we have narrow down what we consider local. If your power is produced 100 miles away, that’s not terribly far in today’s world, but some of the electricity will be lost over that 100 miles. If the power is produced on your roof or in your backyard, none of it will be lost (or at least very little of it).

For a moment, consider the factors at play in producing power. First, one has to consider the source of the power (i.e. coal, solar, wind, etc.), then where it’s made (in a plant, in your backyard, etc.), then how far it has to travel (NY to CA or from the source to your breaker box). Something we often don’t realize is that electricity degrades as it travels. While our technologies for creating power have advanced rapidly, our technologies for transporting and storing power have not. Some new developments, such as hydrogen fuel cells, have promise, but the kinks are not all worked out yet.

It seems clear, then, that truly green power is created close to where it is used. This prevents the degradation of the signal that occurs in power lines, in transformers, etc. However, that is not the only benefit. Producing local power takes advantage of whatever natural form of energy is avaialable- be that solar, wind or hydro.

Today it is easier than ever to build green power at your own home. Systems have been created that can be deployed in any number of environments, urban, rural, or suburban. You don’t even need much land today to make some of your power from natural sources, and there are numerous guides to assist you in the process. Thus, thinking globally and acting locally is a tenet that we should absolutely be applying to our power systems. Even a polluting plant in your own backyard would end up requiring you to use less energy than the same polluting plant 100 miles away- and you could sell extra power to the utility company. Thus, building your own green power is a goal that you can take as an environmental goal, a conservation goal, and even an economic goal. I would strongly encourage everyone to at least consider the possibilty of building green power in your own home.

Damon Westchester is the editor of www.build-green-power.com.

A problem exists with the UK for the government to create a climate of affordable housing for its population. The massive price rises have been blamed on the lack of supply, which has made home ownership impossible for many people.

The pressure is on local councils and housing associations to build 3 million new houses by 2020. The consequences for the environment and the countryside are wide reaching. It is a contentious issue and divides opinion, giving rise to nimbyism (not in my backyard).

The governments response to this was to commission a Pre-Budget Report promising to utilise vacant property. Figures from the Empty Homes Agency claim that there are 840,000 derelict properties currently in the UK. There are a further 420,000 vacant properties registered on the National Land Use Database. The list contains spaces above shops, commercial properties and pubs. The figure is almost a million vacant properties, which amounts to about a third of the government’s target.

You can’t always know who the owner of the derelict building is, or why it has been abandoned to deteriorate. The council has always been in charge of monitoring empty propeties and maintaining them. But it is a recent improvement to see incentives and resourses aimed in this direction.

The owners of derelict property used to find the same lack of incentives. They would argue that they had to rely entirely on the private sector, utilizing the services of a vacant property security specialist. Its up to these companies to offer strategic advice including traveller eviction and squatter removal. Often these eviction services included the removal of hazardous material, whilst affecting a general site clearance.

Whilst squatters are seen as a large problem for owners of derelict properties, it is worth mentioning that positives can exist. A site can be renovated and improved when ’squatted’ by professionals, which can be a benefit to the owner. Once these buildings have become secure, they are probably less likely to be targets for vandalism, reducing further maintenance cost.

Oil actually controls the whole world at the current moment. It powers machines, cars and so many other pieces of mechanical instruments. Although the globe is looking for an alternative to oil, as we do know that it is running low, what would it in reality be? Imagine that overnight all of the oil dried up completley, which other energy source would you use as a replacement? Lets take a brief look

Coal

Before oil dominated the earth, it was coal that powered almost everything. But because of the sheer amount on Co2 that coal emits it would be impossible for coal to come back, especially now as the planet is trying to get greener and greener.

Renewable Energy

This is something that the whole world is moving towards, renewable energy is not only natural but it will never run out. Things such as solar power can actually now store energy from the sun or the moon and emit almost a days worth of power.

Nuclear Power

Although atomic power is a lot more effective than oil there is still one major problem. Nuclear power is pretty grievous to say the least. Because of the sheer amount of accidents that have happened at a lot of the nuclear branches people just will not accept this as a form of energy. I mean who can forget the incidents of Windscale (UK, 1957), Three Mile Island (US, 1979) and Chernobyl (USSR, 1986).

All in all I believe that we are well on track to find a new energy form that is going to substitute oil. We all come to know that oil is not going to last forever and by developing natural methods, it will help us all out in the long run.

Order Heating oil For all yourheating oil andheating oil suppliers

Due to the ever decreasing energy supply it is appropriate now to take a look at the most under used free energy sources that are freely available around the world. Disasterous impact on the environment can be reduced by using the resource that the sun radiates. We have not yet taken to the concept of making solar electricity units at home due to the outlay and inconvenience.. Today, due to modern technology, it is now much more efficient and less expensive to make full use of the free energy that the sun provides. By taking advantage of solar energy you will be taking your energy consumption away from the already depleting current supplies and towards the abundant energy generated by the sun, and saving yourself energy bill costs in the long term.

For an Up-To-Date Report on Eliminating Electricity Expenses Go To: Solar Energy Review

Let’s now take a look at some of the ways that are available to use solar power in your home.

You can implement a solar cooker to cook for your family and its free. The compact box-like utensil allows you to prepare a good size meal for a dinner party of around 5 people. Don’t think for one minute that this will inhibit your culinary skills with your family. You are not just limited to boiling food but you can also roast or bake a good sized meal. The only thing you will need to remember that’s different is that you should plan to start your cooking a little sooner as it does take a little longer to cook. This is of far less importance when you see the advantages on your energy costs. You can cook for free.

A popular option is to fit a home solar lighting system. It’s designed to make use of the free energy by using solar converted to domestic power. Solar energy is stored in the cells allowing you to remain with a functioning lighting system at night also. Once installing a solar lighting system then you will have reduced your bill forever.

You might like to take a look at a DIY project to implement you solar lighting: A Look At DIY Home Solar Lighting Projects

A solar heating system will also save you a small fortune on bills, especially so if you live in the cooler regions. You will also be helping by preserving energy supplies for the future.Your probablyconcerned by now how your house will appear once it’s done..Most of the solar kits available can fit in quite well aesthetically with the surrounding area. Your return on investment will largely depend upon the system you choose. The most economical method of completing your project with a high ROI is by employing one of the few quality diy home energy saving projects that are widely available.

For a Insight of the Most Popular DIY Kits Click the Link: Review The Most Recommended DIY Solar Project Guides Here

If youre wondering what type of battery is the best to use with a solar power system, this article will tell you the answer. If you are planning to install a solar power system and you want to use electricity when the sun isnt shining, youll require a way to store the power generated when the sun is shining. The way to accomplish this is with batteries and a proper charge controller. But, what is the best type of battery to use?

The recent battery technologies that are used in things like laptops, ipods and hybrid cars might be your first thought. Those battery types are great for these devices, but arent a very good fit for solar as youll see.

These types of batteries are much smaller and weigh significantly less than older battery types. The biggest drawback to these batteries is cost versus the older batteries. In applications where size and weight are very important, like laptop computers, people are willing to pay extra to have a smaller, lighter device.

You likely arent going to be carrying your solar power system around with you, however. What is going to be important is having as large a capacity as you can. So, much more important than size or weight will be cost per watt/hour of capacity.

If you want the best value for a given battery capacity, you cant beat regular sealed lead acid. Thats right, the same kind of battery that is in your car. The newer types of batteries are going to cost you between 2 and 4 times what sealed lead acid batteries will for the same capacity. For toughness, low cost and safety, you cant bead sealed lead acid batteries.

In most solar power systems you will find 12v sealed lead acid batteries. Most solar installations use some multiple of 12 volts like 12, 24 or 48. By wiring together 12 volt batteries in series, you can obtain any of these voltages. You can then begin to increase the number of appliances you can supply electricity to and also increase the amount of energy you can store by combining the groups of batteries in parallel.

For charging your 12 volt batteries, you should use a 12 volt solar charger. The charge controller lowers the amount of power applied to the batteries as they get more charged to prevent overcharging.

In order to power appliances you usually plug into the wall with batteries (or solar panels) you will need a power inverter. If youre looking to sell extra power back to the electric company, you should use a grid tie inverter. If you dont care about tying into the grid, or plan to live entirely off grid, a regular power inverter will work just fine and will also cost less than a grid tie inverter.

Thats the whole story. For a home solar power system, tried and true older battery technology is best. Sealed lead acid batteries are the best choice for home solar power systems.