Monday, 17 August 2009
Welsh Assembly Plans for Microgeneration Scheme
New planning rules that make it easier for people to install microgeneration equipment in their homes came into effect from the beginning of September 2009. Permitted Development Rights are extended to allow a greater range of domestic microgeneration equipment to be installed without requiring planning permission, subject to specific criteria. The Welsh Assembly Government have published a leaflet for households explaining the changes -
Wednesday, 13 May 2009
The Benefits of Solar Electricity
Cut your carbon footprint: solar electricity is green, renewables energy and doesn't release any harmful carbon dioxide or other pollutants. A typical home PV system could save around 1200 kg of carbon dioxide per year - that's around 30 tonnes over its lifetime.
Cut your electricity bills: sunlight is free, so once you've paid for the initial installation your electricity costs will be greatly reduced. A typical home PV system can produce around 40% of the electricity a household uses in a year.
Sell electricity back to the Grid: if your system is producing more electricity than you need, or when you can't use it, someone else can use it - and you could make a bit of money. Read more about selling electricity.
Store electricity for a cloudy day: if your home isn't connected to the national grid you can store excess electricity in batteries to use when you need it.
Energy Saving Trust
Cut your electricity bills: sunlight is free, so once you've paid for the initial installation your electricity costs will be greatly reduced. A typical home PV system can produce around 40% of the electricity a household uses in a year.
Sell electricity back to the Grid: if your system is producing more electricity than you need, or when you can't use it, someone else can use it - and you could make a bit of money. Read more about selling electricity.
Store electricity for a cloudy day: if your home isn't connected to the national grid you can store excess electricity in batteries to use when you need it.
Energy Saving Trust
Monday, 20 April 2009
The History of Solar Cooking in The Gambia
An organization in the United Kingdom, the Gambia Fellowship Association, has been promoting solar cooking in the Gambia for a number of years. Four units to produce cookers have been developed by the group with assistance from the British High Commission, the Gambia Energy Department and the British Foreign Office in London. The organization has also made a film about solar cooking which is shown from time to time on Gambian television.
Another group, the Boka Loho Organization, in the Gambia itself, has built and demonstrated solar cookers at agricultural shows and other gatherings. They produce cookers, train users, and also work with schools in the promotion' of solar energy usage. An individual, Mr. Saikou Jarra, has also promoted solar cooking for years in his area of the Gambia. Other organizations, both governmental and non-governmental, seems to be active as well, including the Ministry of Trade and Industry which has trained women's groups as users and carpenters in the making of box cookers. One of the early/promoters was an organization called Rescue Mission, which disseminated 200 cookers in the early 1990s through demonstrations and classes.
For some years, a British woman, Rosalyn Rappaport, has been spreading solar cooking in Western Gambia, working through the Methodist Agricultural Mission, the Gambia Renewable Energy Centre and the Women's Solar Cooking Club of Marakissa. Initially, they only had a small number of box cookers, which women shared, taking turns using the devices. Many women worked in the fields, and the larger box cookers were difficult to transport, requiring a cart at minimum. Ms. Rappaport decided to try the panel cooker which is much lighter in weight. Women there invented a variation that used string to hold the folded sides of the cooker together. After systematic testing to see if the panel performed well enough (it did!) the panel came to be more widely used. The panel is made locally, and a substitute for the plastic bag was found in a product used to package sugar (Solar Cooker Review - August, 2002).
In a more recent report, Ms. Rappaport, described the ongoing development of solar cooking projects in the Gambia, particularly the Marakissa Solar Cooks Club. The group has been in existence for a number of years, and members use both box cookers and the panel cooker (CooKit). They have engaged in demonstrations in a number of villages and towns. Originally (see above) they had difficulty locating plastic bags for use with the CooKit, but have recently found a local manufacturer of inexpensive bags. Local women use an existing Methodist church network, and have attempted systematically to follow up with newly trained cooks to assess progress made. Reports thus far have been favorable, and most food used in the country lends itself well to solar cooking. (Solar Cooker Review - March, 2002).
Other Gambians have indicated their interest in solar cooking by corresponding with Solar Cookers International; that number includes persons affiliated with government and non-governmental organizations.
[Information for this section was taken originally from State of the Art of Solar Cooking by Dr. Barbara Knudson]
Solar Power in The Gambia
Another group, the Boka Loho Organization, in the Gambia itself, has built and demonstrated solar cookers at agricultural shows and other gatherings. They produce cookers, train users, and also work with schools in the promotion' of solar energy usage. An individual, Mr. Saikou Jarra, has also promoted solar cooking for years in his area of the Gambia. Other organizations, both governmental and non-governmental, seems to be active as well, including the Ministry of Trade and Industry which has trained women's groups as users and carpenters in the making of box cookers. One of the early/promoters was an organization called Rescue Mission, which disseminated 200 cookers in the early 1990s through demonstrations and classes.
For some years, a British woman, Rosalyn Rappaport, has been spreading solar cooking in Western Gambia, working through the Methodist Agricultural Mission, the Gambia Renewable Energy Centre and the Women's Solar Cooking Club of Marakissa. Initially, they only had a small number of box cookers, which women shared, taking turns using the devices. Many women worked in the fields, and the larger box cookers were difficult to transport, requiring a cart at minimum. Ms. Rappaport decided to try the panel cooker which is much lighter in weight. Women there invented a variation that used string to hold the folded sides of the cooker together. After systematic testing to see if the panel performed well enough (it did!) the panel came to be more widely used. The panel is made locally, and a substitute for the plastic bag was found in a product used to package sugar (Solar Cooker Review - August, 2002).
In a more recent report, Ms. Rappaport, described the ongoing development of solar cooking projects in the Gambia, particularly the Marakissa Solar Cooks Club. The group has been in existence for a number of years, and members use both box cookers and the panel cooker (CooKit). They have engaged in demonstrations in a number of villages and towns. Originally (see above) they had difficulty locating plastic bags for use with the CooKit, but have recently found a local manufacturer of inexpensive bags. Local women use an existing Methodist church network, and have attempted systematically to follow up with newly trained cooks to assess progress made. Reports thus far have been favorable, and most food used in the country lends itself well to solar cooking. (Solar Cooker Review - March, 2002).
Other Gambians have indicated their interest in solar cooking by corresponding with Solar Cookers International; that number includes persons affiliated with government and non-governmental organizations.
[Information for this section was taken originally from State of the Art of Solar Cooking by Dr. Barbara Knudson]
Solar Power in The Gambia
Thursday, 2 April 2009
Shropshire Solar Power
Are you puzzled by the various terms used when describing a residential solar power system? Shropshire Solar Power can help you find out how solar power works. Help you with the basic terminology so that you can make an informed choice on if residential solar power is the right renewable energy source for your home.
With the rising cost of electricity purchased from the local electric company, people are starting to explore other ways of powering their home. Solar power in the form of electricity generation is also known as solar photovoltaic energy converts sunlight into electricity. The most commonly associated component of a solar power system are the photovoltaic panels or solar panels that you see mounted on roofs.
In order to get the maximum electrical output from photovoltaic cells they need to be oriented to solar south in the northern hemisphere and solar north in the southern hemisphere. The solar panels need to be facing toward the equator to get maximum sun exposure.
Most solar photovoltaic panels are set at home latitude plus fifteen degrees or home latitude minus fifteen degrees. Depending on if you want a summer or winter bias to the angle of the solar panels. In higher latitudinal areas it makes more sense to have the photovoltaic panels set on a winter bias, so that during the winter the solar panels still get enough sun light to produce electricity.
With the rising cost of electricity purchased from the local electric company, people are starting to explore other ways of powering their home. Solar power in the form of electricity generation is also known as solar photovoltaic energy converts sunlight into electricity. The most commonly associated component of a solar power system are the photovoltaic panels or solar panels that you see mounted on roofs.
In order to get the maximum electrical output from photovoltaic cells they need to be oriented to solar south in the northern hemisphere and solar north in the southern hemisphere. The solar panels need to be facing toward the equator to get maximum sun exposure.
Most solar photovoltaic panels are set at home latitude plus fifteen degrees or home latitude minus fifteen degrees. Depending on if you want a summer or winter bias to the angle of the solar panels. In higher latitudinal areas it makes more sense to have the photovoltaic panels set on a winter bias, so that during the winter the solar panels still get enough sun light to produce electricity.
Sunday, 29 March 2009
Generate Cheap, Green Electricity From Sunlight
Solar electricity systems capture the sun's energy using photovoltaic (PV) cells. The cells convert the sunlight into electricity, which can be used to run household appliances and lighting.
PV cells don't need direct sunlight to work - you can still generate some electricity on a cloudy day.
PV cells are panels you can attach to your roof or walls. Each cell is made from one or two layers of semiconducting material, usually silicon. When light shines on the cell it creates an electric field across the layers. The stronger the sunshine, the more electricity is produced.
PV cells come in a variety of shapes and colours, from grey "solar tiles" that look like roof tiles to panels and transparent cells that you can use on conservatories and glass.
The strength of a PV cell is measured in kilowatt peak (kWp) - that's the amount of energy the cell generates in full sunlight.
PV cells don't need direct sunlight to work - you can still generate some electricity on a cloudy day.
PV cells are panels you can attach to your roof or walls. Each cell is made from one or two layers of semiconducting material, usually silicon. When light shines on the cell it creates an electric field across the layers. The stronger the sunshine, the more electricity is produced.
PV cells come in a variety of shapes and colours, from grey "solar tiles" that look like roof tiles to panels and transparent cells that you can use on conservatories and glass.
The strength of a PV cell is measured in kilowatt peak (kWp) - that's the amount of energy the cell generates in full sunlight.
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