home solar panels

home solar panels

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If you want to build a solar power house, you will want the best power for the least cash. While once it was costly to build solar power homes, today with new advancements in technology it is becoming cost effective and beneficial. One new product added to the solar power for homes market has been the thin film solar panels, making it easier than ever to get solar energy that is cost effective.

These new thin film solar panels now being used in solar powered homes, are actually thin layers in stacks that are not thicker than packing paper. This type of technology can be seen in calculators that are solar powered and the thin film used there. Instead of being baked the way traditional panels are, the solar panel films are printed on a machine much like a printing press.

Using these new flexible solar panels has many advantages for a solar power house. They are much lighter and they work well on a variety of surfaces. They look good, and there are no huge and unsightly panels on the roof-top to worry about. A key benefit is that these thin film solar cells are much cheaper to purchase and they are more efficient too. Installing thin film solar panel for conversion to solar power homes is definitely an idea whose time has come.

The technology and science behind these new thin panels is essentially the same, there are some differences in the manufacturing process. Silicon is put between wafer cell layers, but for the thin film cells, either copper indium gallium diselenide or cadmium telluride is placed between each thin layer. New thin film solar panels are also not made in the same way.

These panels are made on huge presses similar to printing presses using aluminum foil, a process that is quite cheap. Solar panels made of thin film designed for a solar house have been featured by CNN and even given the distinction of the "Invention of the Year" by Time Magazine. The excellent pros of thin solar panels definitely make them a worthy invention to be given this title. In addition solar power is finally going to be as affordable as other forms of energy, and these new thin film solar panels are definitely a technological leap forward that will change the way we think of solar energy.

Mike Toll is an engineer who's also passionate about solar power. You can get his solar advice and step-by-step guide to DIY home solar projects by signing up for his Solar Power House newsletter. You can also visit his Solar Power Homes blog and stay up to date with the latest in the world of residential solar power.

Build solar panels at home