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Sooner or later, we will have to recognise that the Earth has rights, too, to live without pollution. What mankind must know is that human beings cannot live without Mother Earth, but the planet can live without humans.
- Evo Morales
HELLO! I am Vincent Lepark I love to give back to mother Earth by sharing knowledge of green technology. You can find me at @vincelepark
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1. WHY SOLAR?
WHY ADOPT SOLAR ENERGY?
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Clean power, does not produce carbon dioxide. Does not speed up global warming. Free power, as long as there is sun. Can potentially lower or even eliminate your power bills.
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SOLAR IS NOT THAT BAD
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Solar will work as long as there is direct sunlight. Solar does work even on cloudy days. Very reliable technology – sent into space. Will last for 30-50 years. Efficiency is improving with better technology. Cost is getting cheaper due to mass adoption and mass production.
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2. SYSTEM OVERVIEW
ONLY 4 MAIN PARTS
» Solar panel generates electricity. » Battery to store the power. » Charge controller to prevent battery overcharge. » Inverter to convert into AC power. I.E. Provide a “wall plug”.
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SOLAR PANEL TECHNOLOGY
MONOCRYSTALLINE Oldest and most expensive. But also one of the most efficient.
POLYCRYSTALLINE Slightly newer technology. The common Joe today. Not as efficient, but generally slightly cheaper.
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AMORPHOUS Youngest technology. Basically a thin sheet that is very flexible. Not efficient though.
BATTERY TECHNOLOGY
SEAL LEAD ACID The old reliable. Probably bullet prove.
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LITHIUM Newer technology. Holds more power, but explodes when punctured.
CHARGE CONTROLLER TECHNOLOGY
PULSE WIDTH MODULATOR (PWM) Cheap and simple. Not meant for heavy-duty.
MAXIMUM POWER POINT TRACKING (MPPT) Industrial grade. Tracks and optimizes charging.
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3. BUILDING YOUR SYSTEM
CONSIDERATIONS
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How much power do you need? How much budget? Size of your solar panels array. Enough batteries should hold your power produced. Enough power to drive your appliances. Future proofing – a better charge controller and inverter so you don’t waste money changing it.
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THE BUILD
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Need to connect at least 3 things to the charge controller. Connect battery to charge controller first. Join the solar panel next. Lastly, tap that power to run your devices.
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THANK YOU!
Want more? You can find the complete guide at – http://red-dotgeek.com/solar-power-basics/
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CREDITS Special thanks to all the people who made and released these awesome resources for free: » Presentation template by SlidesCarnival » Photographs by Unsplash » Diverse device hand photos by Facebook Design Resources
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