solar daylighting

By admin On January 2, 2006 Under free solar

solar daylighting

With the recent introduction of plug-n-play solar chargers into the market, solar power is within the reach of just about anyone. You no longer have to be a tech savvy “do-it-yourself-er” in order to harness solar power.

What exactly is a plug-n-play solar charger? In its simplicity, it’s usually a solar panel combined with a battery pack, sold as a unit, which is capable of collecting solar energy and storing it in a battery. That’s all there is to it.

The feature that makes this type of set-up so useful is that you can use it to power or recharge your electrical devices, laptops, power tools, radios or even TVs, from the battery pack. The solar power and battery pack are sold together – so you don’t have to worry about compatibility, cables, watts, voltages, or anything like that. And you don’t have to wonder whether the setup will work or not.

By using the battery pack, instead of trying to power your equipment directly from a solar panel, you ensure that you have a steady flow of power or electricity flowing into your equipment. Even on a sunny day there can always be some clouds. When they move in front of the sun it there would be a decrease of solar energy being picked up by the panels, which would momentarily reduce the amount of electricity being produced by your solar charger. But if your equipment is connected to a battery pack (which is in turn connected to a solar panel) the battery would take up the momentary slack in solar energy.

There are other advantages to using plug-n-play solar charger kits, i addition to their steady flows of electricity. Because of the fact that the solar panels charge the battery pack, you will be able to make use of solar energy at any time, night or day, regardless of weather conditions or available sunlight. You simply make sure the solar charger is charging during daylight hours. You then use the battery to charge your laptop, cell-phone, iPod (or whatever else you need to charge) during the night, while you are sleeping.

A little known fact I will throw in is that many people think solar chargers and solar panels only work in hot climates. Not true. Solar panels collect solar energy far more efficiently when they are cold. Thus, they actually operate more efficiently in colder temperatures. This fact makes them perfectly suitable for just about any climate. All you need is daylight.

There are some factors you will need to take into account with such a solar charger setup:

1. Whether or not the battery pack is capable of powering the device you want to power

2. How long it takes for the solar panel to fully charge your battery pack.

Once you know that, you can decide whether you have found the right solar charger setup for you or not.

There are now a wide variety of ready-to-go, plug-n-play solar charger systems and do-it-yourself packages available, to suit anyone’s needs. They are used for small portable power units,cell phones, camera batteries, iPods, and laptops, etc. They are also used for larger systems which give remote or emergency power for AC and DC appliances such as radios, small TVs, cabin lighting and much, much more.

Plug-n-play devices and do-it-yourself kits are a great way to get started using solar energy at an affordable price. They bypass the need for advanced knowledge in electronics, and keep things simple.

About the Author:

Please visit Anna’s website on Solar Chargers & Portable Solar Power, for further information on portable solar panels and chargers. You can also find more information at Plug ‘n Play Solar Chargers.

Article Source: ArticlesBase.com – Plug ‘n Play Solar Chargers

Solatube 290DS Daylighting System Skylight

$359.99

Energy-Efficient Natural Daylight Skylight System
The Solatube 160DS Tubular Daylighting Systems and Solatube 290DS Tubular Daylighting Systems set performance standards never seen before in solar tube skylighting. Highly effective and simple to install, solar tube skylights brighten up dark interiors with natural daylight.

Simple to Install Natural Skylighting
Solatube’s solar lighting systems a…

Sunlighting As Formgiver for Architecture

$51.95

…

Solar Radiation and Daylight Models for the Energy Efficient Design of Buildings

$59.95

This book and CD Rom package provides an accessible, user-friendly database on daylight design data. With the boom in interest in energy-efficiency and solar design, it provides a valuable source for architects and engineers. It describes models which can be used to provide essential data at any place in the world. These models are included on a disk to ease the task of the architect or engineers…

Passive Solar Architecture: Heating, Cooling, Ventilation and Daylighting Using Natural Flows

$35.96

No matter what climate you’re designing for, new buildings can be solar oriented, naturally heated and cooled, naturally lit, naturally ventilated and made with renewable, sustainable materials. In a comprehensive overview of passive solar design-the resurrected solar strategy that is sweeping through Germany and rapidly regaining popularity in the United States-two of the nation’s solar pioneers …

Passive Solar Architecture: Heating, Cooling, Ventilation and Daylighting Using Natural Flows

$44.06

Passive Solar Architecture: Heating, Cooling, Ventilation and Daylighting Using Natural Flows

Dynamic Daylighting Architecture

$56.22

When planning buildings in which people are to work and live, the efficient use of natural daylight and solar energy is increasingly important. The challenge is to compensate the different lighting requirements in winter and summer. Integrated daylight deflection systems distribute light into the interior of buildings, utilize and store solar energy to save artificial lighting, air-conditioning and heating costs. Extensively researched and impressively illustrated with a large number of computer simulations and photographs of built examples, this volume is more than an introduction to the basic principles, functions, designs and calculation methods of advanced light-guidance technology for architects, lighting designers, building and climate engineers. In particular it provides detailed documentation of the new Retro-Technology systems, explaining the role they can and do play in integrated facade and building design and planning processes.

Daylighting, Architecture and Health: Building Design Strategies

$60.94

Daylighting, Architecture and Health: Building Design Strategies

Solar Technologies for Buildings

$166.23

A complete overview of solar technologies relevant to the built environment, including solar thermal energy for heating and cooling, passive solar energy for daylighting and heating supply, and photovoltaics for electricity production Provides practical examples and calculations to enable component and system simulation e.g. Calculation of U-values, I-V curve parameters and radiance distribution modelling Discusses the new trends in thermal energy use, including the architectural integration of collector systems, integrated ventilation photovoltaics facades and solar powered absorption cooling systems Coverage of cutting-edge applications such as active and passive cooling techniques and results from ongoing research projects

Solar

$11.99

Solar

Sustainable Solar Housing

$86.4

This far-reaching and authoritative two-volume set examines a range of potential solutions for low-energy building design, considering different strategies (energy conservation and renewable energy) and technologies (relating to the building envelope, ventilation, heat delivery, heat production, heat storage, electricity and control). Energy and life-cycle impacts are considered as crucial factors, including passive and active solar use, daylighting and high efficiency conventional heat production.

Solar Cooking: Solar Cooker

$14.14

Solar Cooking: Solar Cooker

Sistema Solar/ Solar System

$11.24

Sistema Solar/ Solar System

Sistema Solar/ Solar Sistem

$7.29

Sistema Solar/ Solar Sistem

Ecological Restoration: Landscape Ecology, Daylighting, Ecosystem Services, Restoration Ecology, Habitat Corridor, Bush Regeneration

$14.14

Ecological Restoration: Landscape Ecology, Daylighting, Ecosystem Services, Restoration Ecology, Habitat Corridor, Bush Regeneration