subject: Secrets of Homemade Electricity [print this page] Secrets of Homemade Electricity Secrets of Homemade Electricity
With rocketing energy bills and constant pressure to be more 'green' it is no wonder that many people are turning to alternative ways to generate electricity. In the industrialized countries we all consume vast amounts of electrical energy on a daily basis without thinking about it. We run our lives through labor saving appliances in the kitchen and laundry. We entertain ourselves with MP3 players, laptops, stereo systems, televisions and games consoles. We manage our home environment with heating or air conditioning systems and may even control our security with alarms, lights and cameras. We take this all for granted and assume it is a right and then we complain when costs rise or the supply is cut off suddenly. In the current economic climate it is time to consider the benefits of generating your own "homemade electricity."
When most people think of generating their own electricity they immediately assume they only have two options - solar or wind power. Most people do not even consider building their own electric generator because they think it is too difficult, noisy, smelly and certainly not green. They don't even know if it is even possible. So... is it possible and can it be green? Yes. But before we look into the "hows" and "whys", let's talk about electricity.
Electricity is a naturally occurring form of energy, just like heat and light. The only problem is that most of the naturally occurring forms of electricity, such as static, produce very little power. The good news is that electricity is governed by the laws of physics, just like all the other forms of energy. One of the basic laws of energy is that it can be converted from one form into another. The energy we harness as electricity is produced from another energy source, such as burning fuel (a chemical reaction) or turning the blades of a turbine (mechanical energy). This means that it is possible to miniaturize electric power generation for domestic use.
The two most common ways of making homemade electricity are solar panels or a wind turbine. To put it in simple terms solar panels consist of cells that convert light energy to electricity. These days it is quite easy to purchase photovoltaic cells that react to the light to produce a voltage. Each individual cell produces only a relatively small voltage so the cells are usually connected together in arrays. Setting up a solar array can be very expensive and, depending on the amount of sunlight in their location, they are not as efficient as other ways of generating electricity. So if you plan to produce your homemade electricity using solar panels, you will need a large wallet.
Wind turbines are growing in popularity and can sometimes be purchased from a large hardware retail outlet. Basically, a wind generator is a dynamo (the general name for any motor or generator). The dynamo is connected to a turbine that has large blades. When the wind blows the blades are pushed round by the force of the wind. This mechanical movement is converted into electricity by the dynamo. Compared to solar panels, wind generators are more efficient as long as the turbine is oriented to where the wind is strongest. In some places the erection of a wind turbine is controlled by planning or zoning laws so you need to check you can get permission before buying one.
Obviously the biggest pitfall of both solar panels and wind turbines is that they rely on the presence of sunlight or wind. If it is dark or a calm day then you won't get any electricity. One solution to this problem is to store the generated energy in a battery. If you choose to do this you need to be very careful as batteries, especially those with high "mAh" ratings, can produce fatal levels of current if short-circuited.
There are several other lesser-known viable options for creating your own homemade electricity. All it takes is a little research and patience before you can generate practical amounts of electric energy.
Safety warning - take careful safety precautions when dealing with electricity as it is very dangerous. You don't want to fry your appliances, or worse - yourself!
Information just like this will help you learn the secrets of home made electricity and also how to make your own generator.
